Joe Boggs
Extension Educator
513.946.8993
boggs.47@osu.edu

Dave Dyke
Extension Educator
513.946.8983
dyke.15@osu.edu

The Horticulture program in Hamilton County falls into three main areas:

  1. Consumer Horticulture addresses questions and concerns for homeowners about landscape and gardening questions.

2. Master Gardener Volunteers undergo horticulture training and continuing education.  With this background they provide 
educational resources and programs to
                                                     consumers in the county.

3. Commercial Horticulture provides links and useful information for businesses in the green industry--landscapers, garden centers, turf care professionals and nurseries.

    Call the horticulture help line at 513.221.8733

   Horticulture fact sheets online

All About the Horticulture Program in Hamilton County

Hamilton County is the third largest in the state, covering an area of 414 sq. miles. Approximately 25% of the county is classified as “tree covered.” The County is home to a vibrant community of professional horticulturists and home gardeners.
Our OSU Extension, Hamilton County Horticulture Program proudly serves both of these groups.

Professional Horticulture:  The Green Industry in Hamilton County:

The professional horticulture community is also known as the “Green Industry.” It includes businesses in general landscape management, nursery management and plant production, turf management (e.g. lawn care, sod farms, etc.), tree care, and floriculture (e.g. greenhouses, garden centers.) There are 642 Green Industry companies based in Hamilton County , with an average number of 15 employees per company. The 642 companies represent almost 10,000 employees.

The Floriculture encompasses 226 businesses in Hamilton County . Hamilton County ranks 3rd among all Ohio counties in the number of floriculture firms located within the county. It ranks 7th in the state in equivalent wholesale value of the floriculture industry and 6th in the state in covered (greenhouse) production.

Our Service to the Industry:
Our Horticulture Program enhances the health of our Green Industry by providing research based technical information on plant production and management techniques; identifying and monitoring plant pest and diseases; and offering training on how to apply the latest Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices.

We offer these services through telephone and e-mail consultations, on-site visits, and training programs. In 2004, we answered 1,132 questions through calls and e-mails, provided direct technical support information to 355 Green Industry individuals, and made 133 on-site Green Industry visits. We held 34 educational workshops which earned Hamilton County Green Industry employees 167 hours of Ohio Pesticide Applicator License CEU's. Our plant evaluation program assessed over 26,000 new annual plants for use in Hamilton County .

Our Service to Home Gardeners:

We serve home gardeners by answering their gardening questions, teaching at garden club programs, and by offering the internationally known Master Gardener Program. Our goal is to enhance positive experiences of home gardeners.

We launched the OSU Extension, Hamilton County Hort Hotline in 2004. The Hotline was staffed by Master Gardener Hotline Specialists who received detailed training in diagnosing plant problems. The Hotline was open on Monday and Wednesday, from April through October, from 10:00 am . to 2:00 pm . The specialists volunteered over 600 hours of service to answer 492 gardening questions by telephone or e-mail. In 2005, the Hotline will be expanded to include Thursday.

Our Master Gardener Program was started in 1992. The Program includes over 50 hours of horticultural training, and a volunteer return service of 50 hours. We have trained over 1,000 Master Gardeners. Our M.G. volunteers have been involved in a wide range of horticulture endeavors, from working at the Cincinnati Flower Show, to beatifying our freeways through plant installations, to enhancing our downtown through designing and installing plants on the “ Purple People Bridge ,” to evaluating new plants at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens.