A new batch of recruits got its first taste of what’s in store as they embarked Wednesday on a winter-long journey to become a Cullman Master Gardener.

This year’s group of new gardeners —twenty-four in all — is the largest in the local program’s history, said county extension agent and Master Gardeners Association coordinator Tim Crow.

“It’s the biggest group we’ve had,” he said Wednesday. “The part of it that we started today is the classroom setting: twelve to thirteen weeks of training for our new people who are interested in joining the Master Gardener program. Once they complete this class, they have to complete 50 hours of volunteer service — and then they actually become a Master Gardener.”

The classes cover the basics: topics like soil chemistry and plant physiology. “This just provides them the general information that, when they’re done with the class, will give them a basis for home gardening where they can not only help with gardens, but, from a community standpoint, they can assist with programs that allow them to pass this information on to other folks in the community,” said Crow.

The program represents part of Cullman County’s contribution to the Alabama Cooperative Extension Agency’s larger mission: bearing the research-based gardening and agricultural practices developed at Auburn University out into communities statewide.

“Service is part of our organization,” explained Crow. “This class is just one small component of what the larger group of Master Gardeners, which is about 80 members, is doing all over the county. We’ve got a lot of volunteer things going on in the community pretty much all the time.”

Some people go through the Master Gardener course just for the learning experience, and they don’t remain involved in the ongoing Master Gardeners Association — and that’s just fine.

“Not everybody will remain active with the group,” said Crow. “Some will come for the information, and they’ll be done with it. Others will get active with the group, and they’ll find their niche, and be a part of what we do for years to come. Either way, we’re here for people to come and learn.”

This year’s class is already fully booked. But Crow said it’s never a bad time to get interested in gardening, or to make plans to consider joining the group next year. The course costs new members a one-time fee of $150, with annual dues of $20 thereafter.

“Once you’ve completed this class and become an active member, we ask for 40 hours of service the following year,” explained Crow. “After you’ve done that, it takes 20 hours per year to stay active.”

While the introductory course is classroom-based, new recruits do still get the opportunity to see what’s to come, with excursions to local nurseries and other day trips that put them near the plants they’re studying.

“We’ll take some field trips and do some hands-on training along the way,” said Crow. “We’ll go out to the experiment station here in Cullman; we’ll go out and learn about fruit pruning. Even though it’s a classroom setting, we get people out to see what it’s all about.”

For more on Cullman’s Master Gardeners Association, visit their website at mg.aces.edu/cullman/ and visit the “Cullman County Master Gardeners” page on Facebook.