Alamaba Master Gardeners Association

Alabama Master Gardeners

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The Alabama Master Gardeners Association (AMGA) was incorporated in 1993 and the Officers and Board of Directors are comprised of representatives from many of the counties in the State of Alabama. The Board meets quarterly to address statewide program issues and is responsible for locating a local county association to host the annual conference and business meeting, required by the bylaws. The conferences are located around the state, depending on the local association that agrees to host. The conferences are attended by 350-400 Master Gardeners who can participate in several advance training workshops and lectures. Awards are presented to individuals from throughout the state for their Master Gardener activities and recognition is given to a State Master Gardener of the Year (Mary Lou McNabb Alabama Master Gardener of the Year Award, named in honor of Mary Lou who brought the MG Program to Alabama in 1981 from the state of New York).

The mission of the Alabama Master Gardeners Association is to assist and support the Alabama Cooperative Extension System in its education outreach program and to support the local Master Gardener Associations in their pursuit of continuing education in the field of horticulture and providing volunteer service through horticultural based assistance, education and community projects.

AMGA presently has more than 1800 members statewide representing approximately 30 counties. Over 121,000 volunteer hours were reported to the Alabama Cooperative Extension Agents during the year.

The purpose of our Web site is to provide Alabama Master Gardeners with our state newsletter and information concerning gardening events throughout the state. If you need information that you can't find in our site, please click on "write the webmaster" and we will get the information to you or put you in touch with someone who can help. If you are interested in becoming a Master Gardener contact you local ACES County Offices for class dates.

AMGA Awards Recipients (click here)

*Mary Lou McNabb Award: Master Gardener of the Year*	*Lifetime Hours Award*	*Top Hours of the Year Award*	*Gary Murray Award*
1997 Mary Lou McNabb (Madison County)	2003 Jean Lee (Madison County)	2002 Jean Lee (Madison County) 892 Hours	2003 Gary Murray, Etowah Co. Extension Agent
1998 Patricia Barnes (Walker County)	2004 Jean Lee (Madison County)	2003 Brenda Tapp (Madison County) 1,173 Hours	2004 Dr. William B. Shell, Lee Co.
1999 Jim Call (Madison County)	2005 Jim Call (Madison County)	2004 Theda Goodridge (DeKalb County) 1,525 Hours	2005 Jean Inscho, Wiregrass Master Gardener
2000 Barbara East (Etowah County)	2006 Brenda Tapp (Madison County)	2005 Margaret Holler (Lee County) 2,080 Hours	2006 Chuck Browne, Lee Co.
2001 Bess Parks (Madison County)	2007 Cookie Kruvand (Madison County)	2006 Kathie Bass (Madison County) 1,581 Hours	2007 Charles E. Andrews, Shoals Agent
2002 Brenda Tapp (Madison County)	2008 Ann Houston (DeKalb County)	2007 Kathie Bass (Madison County) 1,270 Hours	2008 Harvey Cotton, Huntsville Botanical Gardens
2003 Linda Stephens (DeKalb County)	2009 Helen-Sue Kemp (Wiregrass)	2008 Brenda Tapp (Madison County) 1,104 Hours	2009 Dot Burke, Shoals Master Gardener
2004 Harriet Turner (DeKalb County)	2010 Kathie Bass (Madison)	2009 Helen Sue Kemp (Houston County) 1,358 Hours	2010 Alice Lawler, North Alabama Master Gardener
2005 Brenda Close (Morgan County)	2011 Delores (Dee) Hubbert (Shoals).	2010 Dee Hubbert (Shoals County) 1,837 Hours	2011 Rachel Dykes, Wiregrass Agent
2006 Ann Houston (DeKalb County	2012 Joan Jones ( Madison County)	2011 Kathie Bass ( Madison County) 2,593 Hours	2012 Rick Beauchamp (Ret. ACES Agent Elmore County)
2007 Janet Szofran (Madison County)		2012 Ona Garwood (Coffee County)
2008 Fred Evans (Elmore County)
2009 Dottye Pierce (Madison County)
2010 Kathie Bass (Limestone County)
2011 Cathy Maddox (Capital City)
2012 Dee Hubbert (Shoals)

Texas Star Spring Newsletter Available Now! Read More

Congratulations 2012 Search for Excellence Award Recipients!

Tuscaloosa Master Gardeners Association for the Garden Verner Elementary School Outdoor Project!

Shoals Master Gardeners Association for the Buffler Home! Built in 1930's the historic home is located in the town of St Florian in Lauderdale County.

Would you like you help rebuild Alabama communities destroyed by April 2012 Tornados? Donate to the Alabama Tree Recovery Campaign at www.arborday.org/Alabama

Every dollar donated will plant a tree in North Alabama!

Upcoming Conferences
CEU Opportunities
Request to All Master Gardeners

International Master Gardener's Conference 2013

Request for interest in supporting a UAB Research Study of Cancer Survivors and Healthy Eating through vegetable gardening with support of Master Gardeners mentorship.

The partnership of ACES and UAB offers an exciting opportunity to expand a study on healthy eating of cancer survivors. A pilot program in the Jefferson County area of cancer survivors sustaining their own garden has a potential to expand the study across Alabama. ACES is requesting to know if any Master Gardener across Alabama may be interested in assisting a cancer survivor to design and implementing a vegetable garden.

1. Study cancer survivors who have completed treatment, are within 5-years of diagnosis, and have a good prognosis would be recruited by UAB investigators. UAB will interview, track and record all data regarding each "survivor" and their families in this study. 2. The "survivor" would be paired with a nearby Master Gardener who would mentor them over a 12 month garden cycle on fruit and vegetable gardening. This is conceived as a container or raised bed gardening project and supplies will be purchased by each "survivor" with grant funds. 3. Each "survivor" will be in the study for one year. Master Gardener mentor can choose to participate for one year or for two. Mentors participating a second year will be paired with a new "survivor" in the second year. 4. At 1-year follow-up, "survivors" and their families will be asked about their future plans to garden. All participants and mentors will additionally be asked to complete a survey regarding their experiences in the study. *[Please note that we may or may not need assistance from everyone who favorably responds]

ACES & UAB are pursuing a grant funded project with researchers at UAB - if funded this project will partner each selected cancer survivor (UAB responsibility) with a gardening mentor (ACES responsibility) for 12 months - growing fruits and/or veggies who's interested: we need to know this as part of our grant application process - please share the link below with your membership - a description of the project is included in the survey http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/harvest4health we will check the results of the survey weekly and need as many responses as possible by Sept. 16 - we will continue to take responses after that in preparation for the study (anticipating funds)

Sara Rogers, a graduate student in the Horticulture Department at Auburn University is collecting data to assess the consumer purchasing and consumption habits for fresh fruit and vegetables in Alabama. In particular, the interested in your attitudes and perceptions towards the purchase of locally-grown (Alabama grown) fresh produce. The survey will take approximately seven to ten minutes to complete and can be found at the following link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/consumerfreshproduce.

Alabama's Gardens & Arboretums

Auburn
Birmingham
Dothan
Huntsville
Mobile
Troy
Tuscaloosa

Auburn
Donald E. Davis Arboretum
Garden Dr. & College St.., Auburn, AL 36849
On the Auburn University campus.

Birmingham
Birmingham Botanical Gardens
2612 Lane Park Road, Birmingham, AL 35223

Dothan
Dothan Area Botanical Gardens
5130 Headland Avenue, Dothan, AL 36303

Huntsville
Huntsville Botanical Garden
4747 Bob Wallace Avenue, Huntsville, AL 35805

Mobile
Mobile Botanical Gardens
5151 Museum Drive, Mobile, AL 36689

Troy
Troy University Arboretum
210K McCall Hall
Troy University
Troy, AL 36082

Tuscaloosa
University of Alabama Arboretum
4800 Arboretum Way
Tuscaloosa, AL 35487

Resources(Click on an URL below and a new window will appear with the information.)

Forms

Publication(s)

Alabama Smart Yards	AMGA By-Laws	Instructions for ACES New log in
ACES Publications Search Engine	AMGA Handbook	2010 County Codes List
Conference Guidelines	Project Funding	AMGA Board Manual

Service Report

AMGA Board of Directors Calendar Note: Local Associations may have position titles or job descriptions that differ from those used below, but in any event, the stated Dues Collection, and Hour and Membership reporting requirements must be accomplished.

(click on topic below to view information)

Advisory Council

Jan, Apr., Jul., Oct. Advisory Council meets in Clanton.
Jan meeting - select a leader.

AMGA Board of Directors

AMGA Board of Directors:
Meeting Schedule: March. (State Conference), First Tuesday of :June. -Sept. -Dec.

Audit

Feb 28. The Audit Committee presents an audit report of AMGA financial records at the State Conference Board meeting.

Awards

Jan. 1. Search for Excellence award from ACES. More information on submittle process click http://www.aces.edu/mg/SFE.php
Jan 31 - Deadline for submission of awards nominations to AMGA Awards Committee.
Jan 31 - Local Volunteer Hours Coordinator submits names of qualified applicants for gold, platinum and lifetime badges and the stars advanced awards to the AMGA Awards Committee Chair. Go to www.alabamamg.org and click on Reach For the Stars Award Program at the bottom of the page, to access order form, click on "view order form".
Jan. 31. - Mar 1 - The Awards Committee evaluates submitted nominations for the various AMGA awards, selects award winners, and plans for their presentation at the Annual State Conference
Sep 15. Submit article for Garden Pathways announcing Awards deadlines and providing a brief explanation and criteria for how to submit awards.
Dec 1. Submit any requests for any potential monetary awards to the treasurer for discussion and approval at the December AMGA BoD meeting.

Budget

Dec 1. The Finance Committee prepares an Annual AMGA Budget for discussion and approval by the BoD. This approved budget is presented at the next annual AMGA meeting

Calendar

Dec 15 - The Communication Committee prepares the "Calendar of Master Gardener Due Dates and Action Items". Distributes copies to the State Coordinator, AMGA and Local leadership, and for publication in Garden Pathways. The Calendar will be revised and redistributed as needed and agreed upon at Board Meetings.

Conferences and Special Events

Mar 22-24 2012 State Conference---Birmingham
April 15-17, 2013 State Conference---Shoals
April 28-30, 2014 State Conference---Baldwin County
2015 State Conference---Etowah County

Dues and Membership Reporting

Jan. 15 Membership Chair notifies local presidents and treasurers of associations that have not submitted dues for current year that members are not in good standing.
Jan. 31 - The local Membership chair must reconcile Dues paid to AMGA with Members reported to the Database Manager. Members should be reported as "active" members only if their dues have been paid to AMGA at that time.
Sep. 15- Membership Chair sends a supply of membership cards to local associations.
Oct. 1-Local associations begin membership drive and dues collection process.
Nov.1 - Dec. 31 The Local Membership Chair collects annual dues and membership applications. The Local Treasurer sends state dues collected to the AMGA Treasurer and Local Database Manager sends changes to membership marked in an updated spreadsheet to the AMGA Database Manager. These should agree with the dues sent to the AMGA Treasurer.
Dec. 31- Deadline for dues and spreadsheets from local associations to AMGA Treasurer and Database manager. (Dues and updated spreadsheets may be sent at any time, but members who have not paid by January 1 are not in good standing.)
Quarterly- The AMGA Database Manager sends a list of current members to the Editor of Garden Pathways. Local Association Database Manager must have any updates in membership names, addresses and E-mails sent to the AMGA Database Manager by December 15th. This will ensure that everyone will get his or her hardcopy of the winter newsletter, which will contain AMGA Conference registration information.
The Newsletter, in PDF format, can be obtained by going to the AMGA website: www.alabamamg.org

Elections

Dec 15 -The Nominating Committee prepares a ballot for election of officers, board members, and a Nominating Committee position, and provides it for publication in Garden Pathways, and for the election held at the State Conference.

Garden Pathways Newsletter

March 15, June 15, Sept. 15, Dec. 15. Article submission deadlines. Newsletter available to members one month after each deadline.

Project Funding

Jan. 15 Deadline for submission of project funding requests from local associations to the Project Funding Chair.
Feb. 28. Prior to this date, the Project Funding Committee shall have evaluated funding request applications and made decisions as to grants to be awarded at the Annual Conference Meeting.
Sept. 15 Submit article for Garden Pathways newsletter announcing deadlines and how to get submission information.

Alabama Master Gardeners Project Funding Criteria (Click here for more details)

CRITERIA FOR EVALUATION OF PROPOSED PROJECTS

The applicant and the project must be in the State of Alabama
Priority will be given to those projects that most closely meet the mission of AMGA and Master Gardeners in general.
Master Gardeners must be directly involved in the project and should be the main force in the initiation and the implementation
The project should be non profit and/or charitable in nature
The project must have the potential to benefit a significant number of citizens
The project should have on-going value
The project should reflect creativity and uniqueness.
The project will be evaluated based on the information submitted. No further contact will be made by the Evaluation Committee to obtain information
An applicant may submit only one application per organization.
An applicant may receive funding for only one approved project within a three year period.

Scholarship/Endowment

Feb. 28. Notify The Auburn College of Agriculture if AMGA does not intend to award the usual $1000 annual scholarship for the year.
Dec. 1 Prepare a budget request and submit to the AMGA treasurer for discussion and approval at the December AMGA BoD meeting.

Stars Purchase

The Local Hours Coordinator and Local Treasurer must coordinate purchase of Stars Awards as required for award to local members at a later time. Go to www.alabamamg.org and click on Reach For the Stars Award Program at the bottom of the page, to access order form, click on "view order form". Order form and money are to be sent to the AMGA Awards Committee Chairperson.

State Conference

June. 30. The Program Committee updates The AMGA Conference Manual to include important input, if any, from the host association of the previous Conference.
The Program Committee is also responsible for obtaining a final accounting and summary report from the hosting association, and for its filing as a permanent record.

Volunteer Hours Reporting

Prior to Dec. 31. Master Gardeners report hours for the year in the on-line service report at www.aces.edu/mgmanager . The Local Hours Coordinator helps with this and/or may be responsible for communicating annual totals to the local MG Program Coordinator.
Dec. 31. Local Hours Coordinator ensures that reporting is as accurate as possible in the on-line service report. Informs the Local MG Coordinator that the report is completed.