Eighteen new interns will be volunteering their time to the community as horticulture advisors and resource people after graduating from the Washington State University Clallam County Master Gardener training program on Tuesday, April 12.

Each intern will be donating 100 hours of work at plant clinics, demonstration gardens and other activities aimed at helping local residents address gardening needs on the Olympic Peninsula. Trainees received instruction in botany, entomology, soil science, and pest management and learned to identify plants and how to diagnose and resolve plant problems.

Clallam County Master Gardeners, a cooperative program between Washington State University and Clallam County, provides up-to-date information on sustainable gardening practices. Master Gardener volunteers also address environmental and social priorities such as water conservation, the protection of water quality, reducing the impact of invasive species and healthy living through gardening.

For more information, call Muriel Nesbitt, WSU Master Gardeners of Clallam County’s program coordinator, at 565-2679.