Alaska gardening expert harvests national award

Submitted by Debra Damron
Phone: (907) 474-5420
07/21/06

Peter Bierman, a land resources agent with the University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service in Palmer, is a recipient of a National Association of County Agricultural Agents Achievement Award. He will be honored at the association’s 91st annual meeting and professional improvement conference in Cincinnati, Ohio, July 23-27.

Bierman works with farmers, home gardeners and the horticulture industry in the Copper River/Mat-Su District. Alaska’s horticulture industry is quite diverse. According to figures from the state’s Agricultural Statistics Service, horticulture makes up the largest segment of Alaska agriculture, with 68 percent of the total crop cash receipts coming from the greenhouse and nursery industry. Acknowledged for his soils and plant fertility experience, Bierman also teaches numerous master gardener courses.

The Master Gardener Program started in Alaska just over 25 years ago when UAF Extension educators in Anchorage brought the program to Alaskans. Starting with fewer than 50 volunteers in 1978, the program’s growth has been steady and strong, training some 2,120 volunteers throughout the state. In addition, 65 master gardeners have taken the course via correspondence.

The Alaska Master Gardener Program is an educational outreach activity of UAF’s Cooperative Extension. The class consists of 40 hours of instruction on different areas of horticulture and pest management. Graduates of the program are expected to volunteer 40 hours of their time as gardening educators in their local communities, supporting Extension’s educational outreach philosophy to "train the trainers."

Extension relies on master gardeners to help people in the community better understand horticulture and their environment. To date, these volunteer garden educators have donated over 85,000 hours statewide to gardening activities, equivalent to thousands of dollars worth of effort benefiting Alaska’s parks, gardens and horticultural events.

"Peter’s knowledge and dedication are known not just in Southcentral Alaska, but he is appreciated by peers and clientele throughout the state," according to Julie Riley, Extension horticulture agent in Anchorage. "While the biggest concentration of master gardeners is in Southcentral, communities from Kotzebue to Ketchikan also have master gardeners. We’ve also provided training so that 26 people in Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory are now master gardeners," Riley said.

In addition to Bierman’s work with home gardeners, he also coordinates Alaska’s Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program, which helps promote ecologically sound agricultural practices, sustain rural communities and address the disappearance of the diverse family farm. He also helps coordinate the Alaska Vegetable and Potato Growers Conference and the Alaska Greenhouse and Nursery Conference.

For more information on horticulture and successful gardening in Alaska, contact your local Extension office or go to www.uaf.edu/ces.

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CONTACT: Extension Land Resources Agent Peter Bierman at (907) 745-3639 or via e-mail at ffpmb@uaf.edu, Extension Horticulture Agent Julie Riley at (907) 786-6300 or via e-mail at afjar@uaa.alaska.edu or Extension Communications Director Debra Damron at (907) 474-5420 or via e-mail at debra.damron@uaf.edu.

Bierman photo available at http://www.uaf.edu/ces/newsreleases/AK-AA-BIERMAN.jpg