Rooted in Impact

The NDSU Extension Master Gardener program empowers volunteers to lead community-focused horticultural initiatives across the state.

Story by Emily Erickson ’15 | Photos by Caleb Johnson ’15

Apply to become a Certified Master Gardener Volunteer or get involved in one of the many initiatives across North Dakota.

Get your hands dirty

Minot, ND

The ponderosa pine, blue spruce, and junipers — planted just two weeks ago along U.S. Route 83 — don’t mind the intense wind that whips through Minot, North Dakota. They are right where they belong.

These evergreens are among the many trees that have been planted in the past five years as part of an initiative fueled by NDSU Extension and Certified Master Gardener Volunteers: 2,000 Trees for Minot.

2,000

trees planted in Minot since 2023

Ward County Extension agent Emily How and Certified Master Gardener Volunteer Donna Bye ’98 (left to right) inspect rows of evergreens.

Certified Master Gardener Volunteers Donna Bye ’98, a landscape architecture and environmental design alumna, and Tim Baumann set the seemingly lofty goal of planting 1,000 trees throughout Minot to foster feelings of safety, growth, and renewal after the 2011 Souris River flood damaged neighborhoods and claimed so much of the city’s tree canopy.

They recognized that today’s saplings, both evergreen and deciduous, would improve the city and region for generations to come: A tree’s root systems catch and slow down stormwater, protecting against flash flooding and water damage. Leafy, tall tree canopies in neighborhoods act as insulation, lowering heating and cooling costs and increasing home values. Not to mention their visual benefits of defining neighborhood edges, enhancing city aesthetics, and providing vibrant seasonal colors.

Ward County Extension agent Emily How inspects a flowering crab apple tree in a new housing development that will shade pedestrians, reduce wind exposure, improve soil health, and showcase beautiful pink blooms in the spring.

Minot’s Forestry Department and NDSU Extension quickly became their partners in action, recommending tree species suited to Minot’s limited plant palette, disease concerns, and environmental conditions, while helping the pair secure grants, attract donors and, of course, plant a lot of trees.

Together, they turned an ambitious idea into a community-wide effort, so quickly surpassing their goal for 1,000 trees that they set the bar higher and reached for 2,000.

2,000 Trees for Minot is just one of dozens of projects spearheaded by service-oriented Certified Master Gardener Volunteers across North Dakota who have received cutting-edge training from NDSU.

Hear NDSU Extension horticulturist and program coordinator Dr. Esther McGinnis discuss the impact Master Gardeners have on their communities — and why she has the best job in the world. (Video by Caleb Johnson ’15)

The NDSU Extension Master Gardener course provides education on plant materials suited for North Dakota, plus specific training in soils, fertilizers, plant diseases, insect pests, weeds, wildlife issues, composting, and much more.

After acceptance into the program and a $250 fee, aspiring gardeners may complete the 10-week course on campus or online. Master Gardener interns are then required to complete 48 hours of community volunteering in cooperation with their county Extension office within two years before earning the title of Certified Master Gardener Volunteer.

NDSU Extension horticulturist and program coordinator Dr. Esther McGinnis looks for applicants who have a “fire” in them to make their community a better place.

“We as a university train these volunteers,” Esther said. “We give them the tools they need to be a blessing in their communities and to pay it forward.”

246

NDSU Extension Master Gardener volunteers and interns in 2025

13,784

volunteer hours reported in 40 counties statewide in 2025

Volunteers and interns are busy at work in a variety of projects and initiatives in North Dakota, identifying superior vegetable varieties through NDSU trials, hanging traps for invasive insects, monitoring rainfall amounts, mentoring 4-H students, hosting horticultural workshops, tours, and events, as well as caring for gardens and landscapes in counties across the state.

Bismarck, ND

Follow U.S. Route 83 about 100 miles south and another Certified Master Gardener Volunteer-led project sits atop a bluff overlooking the Missouri River.

Warmed by the afternoon sun, giddy laughter and curious voices float through the air as summer camp participants tend to the lawn of native grasses, construct feats of engineering in an interactive water table, and inspect herbs and vegetables in raised garden beds at the Explorium — the outdoor learning space at North Dakota’s Gateway to Science in Bismarck, North Dakota.

Beyond the insect-shaped xylophones and other hands-on activities, a cobblestone path invites visitors to a living science exhibit: pollinator gardens planned, planted, and maintained by Master Gardeners.

Two years ago, this space was practically bare.

Around that time, Certified Master Gardener Volunteer Connie Sprynczynatyk ’72 visited the science museum with her grandsons and noticed some weeds outside. She called the executive director and offered to come back with her gardening tools — she could use volunteer hours for her Master Gardener internship.

Master Gardener Connie Sprynczynatyk at the North Dakota Gateway to Science in Bismarck.

Camp-goers learn about native plants, inspect herbs, and explore the gardens at North Dakota's Gateway to Science provided by NDSU Master Gardener volunteers.

A bee roaming around different flowers in the pollinator garden at the North Dakota Gateway to Science.

Pollinator gardens like the one nurtured by Master Gardener Connie Sprynczynatyk ’72 help support bee, butterfly, and hummingbird populations that provide pollination for horticultural crops and flowering plants.

Instead, she was asked to join the committee for development of the outdoor learning space. It just so happened that they wanted a pollinator garden on site.

In the spring of 2025, Burleigh County Extension agent Kelsey Deckert ’14 put out the call for gardeners of all skill and experience levels. Fifteen Master Gardener volunteers and interns responded, ready to create a pollinator garden (that turned out to be about 13 times larger than the original blueprint). That year, summer camp participants even got a crash course in digging and planting.

Pollinator habitat support is a major focus of the Extension Master Gardener program. According to the Apiary Inspectors of America, U.S. honey beekeepers lost more than 55% of their colonies from April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025. The staggering drop impacts consumers, farmers, and beekeepers — native bees and honeybees provide pollination for many agronomic, fruit, nut, and vegetable crops.

Extension experts, volunteers, and interns prioritized native varieties that thrive in western North Dakota and attract pollinators: red columbine for hungry bumblebee queens to enjoy throughout May and June blooms, purple prairie clover for a perfect butterfly landing pad in July and August, and New England aster — one of the last blooming plants in the garden — that will be covered in bees even through October.

For Connie, the Master Gardener course gave her the skills to help others channel their curiosity and make the world a better place.

“You work with knowledgeable professors, you hear from people all over the state in Extension who are deeply knowledgeable in a particular area, and you meet other Master Gardeners,” she said. “It’s just this beautiful community of people that care about the land.”

Fargo, ND

Orient yourself east. About 200 miles down I-94, Master Gardeners are busy planting, weeding, and harvesting in Fargo.

It’s late summer. In home and community gardens throughout the area, tomatoes are heavy on their vines, boxes of cucumbers are ready for pickling (or topping with salt and devouring), and fragrant herbs are ready to be clipped for fresh meals or dried for winter.

On select weekday evenings, area gardeners arrive at designated drop-o sites with trunks — and sometimes just armfuls — of freshly harvested produce. Volunteers collect the donations and deliver them to local food pantries through Veggies for the Pantry, an initiative established in 2016 after a Master Gardener recognized that local pantries often lacked access to fresh, nutritious produce.

It’s a simple idea with a meaningful impact: connecting home gardens with neighbors in need in a state where, according to Feeding America, 1 in 10 people and 1 in 7 children experience hunger.

Today, Certified Master Gardener Volunteers Carol Burley ’82, Vickie Hardy, and Deb Miller help organize distribution locations, find volunteers, and get the word out to the community — not to mention maintain their own home gardens and harvest crops throughout the season.

Certified Master Gardener Volunteers Julie Vetter, Deb Miller, and Carol Burley ’82 join Extension horticulturist and program coordinator Dr. Esther McGinnis outside Julie's home garden in Fargo, North Dakota.

A snapshot of Julie Vetter's home garden in Fargo, North Dakota.

Corn being grown in Julie Vetter's home garden in Fargo, North Dakota.

Certified Master Gardener Volunteers Julie Vetter, Deb Miller, and Carol Burley ’82 join Extension horticulturist and program coordinator Dr. Esther McGinnis (left to right) in Julie’s home garden, where she grows produce to donate to Veggies for the Pantry.

At the drop-off sites, they see donors’ joy in giving back firsthand. Vickie recalls how one regular donor shared that she experienced homelessness as a child and is now passionate about providing fresh produce to her community.

Beyond paying it forward, produce distribution days create opportunities to connect and learn. Families often make deliveries together, turning the experience into a point of pride for what has been grown in the family garden — so much abundance that it must be shared.

New community members also introduce crops, such as okra and purslane, sparking recipe exchanges and conversations about culture, food, and gardening traditions. For some participants, the experience inspires even deeper involvement; several Veggies for the Pantry donors have gone on to become Certified Master Gardener Volunteers themselves.

130,493

pounds of fresh garden produce donated to Veggies for the Pantry from 2016 to 2025

The Master Gardener program is filled with a diversity of community members — city planners, nonprofit leaders, local government officials, 20-something tree nursery employees, retirees — all driven by a passion for supporting their communities. One juniper sapling, bumblebee, or box of cucumbers at a time.