In most counties, Master Gardeners staff Plant Clinic phone lines and desks at county Extension offices.\u00a0 Many counties also offer Plant Clinics in their communities, (i.e. at farmers\u2019 markets, fairs or garden retail outlets).\u00a0 Plant Clinics are a valuable service to the community, where Oregonians can ask questions about their home or community garden.\u00a0 Those who utilize the services of a Master Gardener Plant Clinic are often referred to as our \u2018clients\u2019.\u00a0 To ensure high quality answers to questions received at Master Gardener Plant Clinics, it is important that volunteers are trained to recognize and utilize appropriate resources and to consult with OSU Extension faculty and\/or expert Master Gardeners, as needed.<\/p>\n
Appropriate resources include the Pacific Northwest Weed<\/a><\/span>, Insect<\/a><\/span> and Disease<\/a><\/span> Management Handbooks; peer-reviewed journal articles, OSU Extension publications<\/span><\/a>, brochures and hand-outs; eXtension<\/a><\/span> and\/or university Extension websites; online materials produces by eXtension and\/or university Extension Services; and other resources that contain validated, research-based content.\u00a0 In addition, to utilizing county Extension faculty and expert Master Gardeners, on campus resources (e.g. OSU Plant Clinic<\/a><\/span>; OSU Herbarium<\/span><\/a>, Oregon State Arthropod Collection<\/a><\/span>), Extension specialists, and other OSU faculty should be consulted when needed.<\/p>\n Master Gardener volunteers should utilize these resources to provide research-based information to those seeking information or advice on home and\/or community gardening.\u00a0 Master Gardener volunteers are not permitted to answer questions for commercial growers, or questions related to commercial production.<\/p>\n Master Gardener Plant Clinics accept plant (live, dead or preserved), arthropod (dead or preserved) and soil specimens for assessment.\u00a0 Safety of the volunteers is paramount.\u00a0 For this reason, the Master Gardener Plant Clinics will not accept swabs, tissues, hair or other specimens of human or animal origin; articles of clothing, bedding or towels; personal hygiene items such as toothbrushes, hairbrushes or any other items that may be contaminated with human or animal pathogens, parasites or secretions.\u00a0 Clients with questions about possible human or animal health need to direct those inquiries to the appropriate public health or veterinary experts in the community.<\/p>\n A check list of the of what Master Gardeners can and can not do in plant clinic can be found below.<\/p>\n Occasionally, a client may submit a sample to or seek advice from the Master Gardener Plant Clinic that could have implications for human health.\u00a0 Examples include:\u00a0 bed bugs, spiders, suspected arthropod-caused skin lesions, pesticide poisoning, poisonous plants, etc.\u00a0 If this is the case, it is important to remember that Master Gardener volunteers are not permitted to offer medical evaluations, diagnoses or advice on treatment.\u00a0 Instead, the client should be referred to a trained professional for these services.\u00a0 Master Gardener volunteers are permitted to utilize appropriate resources to identify a plant or arthropod sample (e.g. bed bugs, poison ivy) \u2013 but not lesions, rashes or other symptoms that may have been caused by a plant or an arthropod (e.g. the bite marks or rash that could be caused by bed bugs or poison ivy).\u00a0 OSU Extension faculty staff and volunteers should refer all clients seeking advice on managing any potential life\/safety situations to medical or other trained professionals.<\/p>\n Often, the samples that are submitted to Plant Clinic make it difficult to confidently arrive at an accurate identification.\u00a0 For example, the client may submit only a small portion plant foliage, or may submit a crushed arthropod sample between two pieces of tape.\u00a0 If this is the case, and especially for those cases where the identity of the plant or arthropod could have implications to human health (i.e. a doctor would treat a patient who ingested a non-poisonous plant different than they would a patient who ingested a poisonous plant), it is important to use appropriate language when communicating findings to a client.\u00a0 An example of appropriate language is:\u00a0 \u201cBased upon the information provided to OSU Extension and from the research conducted, it appears that this plant is a XXXXXX plant, which is listed as not poisonous.\u201d<\/p>\n Master Gardener volunteers working in the Plant Clinic should be provided with continuing education and support, to ensure that they are current on information, understand appropriate resource use, recognize when they should seek additional help or support, and know that it is more important to accurately say \u2018we can\u2019t answer that question\u2019 (for whatever reason \u2013 not enough plant material, sample to crushed to identify, no research based resources on the topic) than to provide an incorrect answer.<\/p>\n As research on sustainable gardening practices continues to grow, we are learning more and more about those practices that methodologies that are backed by objective research.\u00a0 Below you will find links to topics that have been reviewed by OSU faculty against the current published literature on the topic, and our current stance on what constitutes a research-based recommendation for that topic.<\/p>\n Master Gardeners provide research-based recommendations for the home gardeners, community gardeners and others who grow for fun, relaxation or other non-commercial reasons. Plant Clinic Procedures: In most counties, Master Gardeners staff Plant Clinic phone lines and desks at county Extension offices.\u00a0 Many counties also offer Plant Clinics in their communities, (i.e. at farmers\u2019 markets, fairs … <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/osu-wams-blogs-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com\/blogs.dir\/2972\/files\/2018\/09\/Plant-Clinic-Recommendations.png\")
\nOSU policy for Master Gardener recommendations to clients:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n
\n
\nOSU Extension Master Gardener Program Stance on Select Gardening Topics:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n