Are you interested in sharpening your gardening skills? If so, the Chilton County Extension Office is offering the Master Gardener Volunteer Program beginning Jan. 19, 2011, at the Extension Office in Clanton.

The purpose of this nationwide Extension education program is to train interested gardeners to help others solve their home horticulture problems. The course is designed for non-professionals with an interest in increasing their gardening skills and helping others with the knowledge they’ve gained.

The course will last 10 to 14 weeks, and, after completing the course, Master Gardener interns will be expected to give 50 hours of volunteer service to Extension and their communities.

Any volunteer effort that relates to gardening will be accepted. Examples of volunteer efforts would include giving garden club programs, community garden projects, diagnosing plant problems or assisting the local Cooperative Extension Office in some way.

Specialists from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System and the local county Extension Office will be the instructors for the course. The topics to be covered include soils and plant nutrition, plant physiology, entomology, plant pathology, care of landscape plants, landscape design, plant selection, lawn care, weed identification, houseplants, vegetable gardening, home orchards, and plant propagation.

For more information or for an application form, contact the Chilton County Extension Office. The telephone number is 280-6268, and the deadline for application is Jan. 3, 2011.

The Extension’s office address is: Chilton County Extension Office, 504 First Avenue, Suite A. The mailing address is: P.O. Box 30, Clanton, AL 35046-0030.