If you are looking for a way to turn your horticultural training into lasting local impact, MGGNO offers both purpose and community.
Connect with fellow Master Gardeners who care deeply about education, service, sustainability, and the future of Greater New Orleans.
Continue expanding your horticultural knowledge through hands-on experiences, shared expertise, and continuing education opportunities.
Support projects, programs, and outreach that bring trusted gardening information and greener spaces to our community.
MGGNO is a volunteer organization affiliated with the LSU AgCenter’s Master Gardener Program. Our members are part of a statewide network built on horticultural education, public service, and community outreach. Through local projects and educational efforts, MGGNO helps connect residents with reliable, research-based gardening knowledge.
For many members, the journey begins by applying to the Louisiana Master Gardener Program through the LSU AgCenter. Acceptance is based on an applicant’s qualifications and the current volunteer needs of the LSU AgCenter, and participants must successfully complete the training course to continue toward certification.
When you join MGGNO, you become part of a local organization that values learning, stewardship, and service. Whether you enjoy teaching, volunteering in gardens, supporting public programs, or learning alongside others, there is a place for you here.
MGGNO volunteers help extend research-based gardening education into the places where it matters most.
Members help maintain and support gardens that teach, inspire, and serve residents across Greater New Orleans.
From presentations and workshops to horticultural guidance, MGGNO helps bring trusted gardening knowledge to the public.
Projects across the region reflect a commitment to greener neighborhoods, environmental stewardship, and community engagement.
When you join, you help cultivate a healthier, more informed, and more beautiful Greater New Orleans.
MGGNO membership is grounded in the Louisiana Master Gardener tradition of education and service. New participants in the Louisiana Master Gardener program pay a $250 course fee for materials and lab supplies, complete training, and must pass the course to continue toward certification. Once training manuals have been ordered, the fee is non-refundable. After completing the course, participants must provide 40 volunteer hours by the end of the following year to become certified Master Gardeners.
The first year of their annual dues as an MGGNO Member is included in the tuition, so they are welcome to attend the MGGNO monthly educational meetings, generally held at the Jefferson Parish Main Library on West Napoleon.
Applying for the Louisiana Master Gardener program is simple.
Click the application and complete the requested information.
Follow the instructions on the form to send in your completed application.
Once your application is received, you will be one step closer to joining a vibrant network of volunteers committed to gardening education and community service.
If you have not done so yet, then yes. New participants begin through the LSU AgCenter training program and must successfully complete the course and become certified. After that, you must fill out a membership application, but the tuition covers the first year’s MGGNO membership dues
After initial certification, members are expected to continue contributing through volunteer service, annual continuing education, and yearly dues to the MGGNO. Attending the monthly meetings counts towards educational hours. So do field trips and volunteering at the spring and fall garden shows in New Orleans City Park.
MGGNO is a volunteer organization affiliated with the LSU AgCenter’s Master Gardener Program and serves Orleans and Jefferson parishes through education, outreach, and community gardening efforts
Yes. After you become certified you can begin to start coming to our meetings and getting involved. Your annual MGGNO membership fee is included in your Louisiana Master Gardener Tuition. The MGGNO has a separate membership application that still needs to be filled out after you become certified.
Members may volunteer to support community projects, educational programs, public outreach, and gardening initiatives that reflect MGGNO’s mission of service and horticultural education. They may get their educational hours by attending the monthly meetings, going on field trips, and other events sponsored by the MGGNO.
Expertise is developed through execution. The more you learn and the more you do will develop your expertise. MGGNO is built on training, continuing education, and shared service. The organization values people who are willing to learn, help others, and contribute meaningfully to the community, not just people with advanced personal gardening experience. This is supported by LSU AgCenter’s broader Master Gardener framing of members as enthusiastic, community-minded volunteers who are willing to learn and help others.
If you are ready to continue your Master Gardener journey in a way that deepens your knowledge, strengthens your community, and connects you with fellow volunteers, begin by clicking on the link below to apply to the Louisiana Master Gardener program.
You will be one step closer to joining the MGGNO and helping cultivate a greener Greater New Orleans through education, service, and shared purpose.