Clark County Extension Office
4400 Gateway Blvd., Suite 104, Springfield OH 45502 Tel: 937-328-4607

Document prepared by Rachel Dauch (see additional document by Hillary Maurer below):

Our tour of the Cark County Extension Offices was led by Pam Bennett, the horticulture extension agent for Clark County. The purpose of extension is to educate the public about issues dealing with agriculture, home economics, consumer issues, and 4-H activities. OSU Extension takes the results of research done at the university and organizes it in factsheets which can be used by people in the industry or anyone who needs help solving a particular problem or is just looking for some new ideas. OSU Extension is broken down into county offices. Not every county has a horticulture agent, it depends on the demand and funding in that particular county. Extension is set up to be funded one third by federal money, one third by state, and one third by county. This is variable though depending on the countyís support for extension programs.

Figure 1. Pam Bennet introducing Extension activities to the students

Pam's responsibilities as the Clark County horticulture agent include planning short courses, giving speeches, and organizing the master gardener program for the county. The purpose of the short courses is to expose the public to new ideas and issues pertaining to horticulture and to encourage people to take advantage of the resources available through extension. Extension also tries to encourage interaction between the public and industry in the county. The short courses registration fees also help fund other extension horticulture programs in the county.

Pam also organizes the Master Gardener Program in Clark County.The Master Gardeners program is a group of volunteers who go through 50 hours of classroom and practical training in all areas of horticulture from vegetable production to basic entomology. In return they must give the same amount of time back volunteering for various horticultural activities in the county. There are many activities that they may participate in to fulfill this requirement such as giving talks or teaching at various short courses such as the Butterfly Workshop, the Herbal Luncheon, Home Gardening Series, and Compost Workshop. Clark County Master gardeners have developed educational gardens located behind the extension offices. They include a butterfly garden, an herb garden, perennial garden, and turf research plot. These plots are used for research and to educate the public about plants that work well in that area. All of the plants are clearly labeled and this year they held an open house to try to get more people involved. The Master Gardeners also have a hotline that the public can call with their gardening questions from May to September. Many of the volunteers continue volunteering after their fifty hours are finished. Part of Pamís job is to supervise and organize activities for the volunteers after they have completed the program. Currently there are about 100 volunteers in Clark County.

Figure 2. Example of herbaceous plants in the variety trials managed with Clark County Master Gardeners.

To get a job as a horticulture extension agent in the state of Ohio you must have a bachelorís degree and be planning on getting a masterís within five years. The extension agent may also have program assistants who only need to have their bachelorís degree. The program assistants help plan and organize various events and plan activities for the master gardeners.

The extension program is a very valuable resource. I think that many people believe that extension services are only useful to people in agriculture. Through programming and advertising, this stereotype is starting to change and I think that more people will take advantage of it in the future.

Clark County Extension Office - Hillary Maurer - maurer.56@osu.edu

Nature of the Organization

The goal of Clark County Extension is to serve as a bridge between research and the public. We focused on Clark County's horticulture programs ran by agent Pam Bennett. Pam has a bachelor's degree in Horticulture and is working on a master's in Horticulture Education. The reason she is completing this degree is that all extension agents are required to have their masters. Pam recommends that students take classes in business management and small engine maintenance. She feels that a lack of business sense impedes the progress of many commercial operations.

Purpose of the Organization

Pam Bennett conducts many programs that educate the public to better prepare citizens for the future. These programs include Master Gardeners, turf test plots, annual and perennial trials, wildflower plots, community gardens, and a teen garden.

Relative Size of the Organization

There is an OSU extension located in almost every county in Ohio. They serve a wide variety of ages, from children to the elderly. At Clark County, Pam Bennett has virtually no staff in the horticulture area. However, many of the programs can be carried out because of the volunteer hours Master Gardeners contribute.

Horticultural Focus of the Organization

Clark County utilizes many horticulture programs to educate the public, notable, the Master Gardener program. People involved in this program participate in 50 hours of instruction and 50 hours of volunteer work. This program creates enough manpower to make other programs happen. For example, in the last four years Clark county master gardeners began installing display gardens at the extension office. These include an Herbal Knot garden, a Butterfly and Hummingbird garden, perennial, annual, and turf trials. These gardens are beneficial because they introduce new styles and plant materials to the public. This will hopefully result in a greater demand at garden centers for the better varieties and more interesting plants. The public can also view the annual and perennial test plots to help decide which types would best suit them. They can see what varieties of annuals perform the best concerning things like; beauty of bloom, longevity, foliage growth, etc. There are also turf plots, which emphasize how the different grasses are growing under the same conditions. Community members can see which type of turf exceeds with different kinds of maintenance. This maintenance includes half of each of the plots being trimmed at a low setting, while the corresponding half is cut at a taller setting on the mower blade.

The Master Gardeners also participate in a program which installed eight community garden plots across the city. There is also a teen garden at the extension office, where young 4-H members grow produce to donate to the local rainbow table. Hopefully these two programs create more community involvement and awareness within neighborhoods that need it the most. All of these programs benefit the public by showing them research and ideas in practice, which has always been the vision of the organization.

Personal Impressions of the Organization

I believe that Clark County has one of the better horticulture education programs in the state. They provide information and activities for all kinds of people, from the local groers and sellers, to area people, and often ignored poorer communities. Since they work with The Ohio State University they are first to find out about new research and then can apply it in everyday circumstances. I think it is a great bridge, which everyone should use and have available.