From the hills of Nepal to western PA: My journey to become a Penn State Master Gardener

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As a young boy growing up worlds away in rural Nepal outside the Kathmandu Valley, I remember my beloved grandfather telling me a story of how a tree once saved his life. A vehicle he was traveling in veered off the road onto an embankment, and a tree saved him from falling hundreds of feet over a cliff near the Himalayan Mountains.
My family paid homage to this miracle by planting trees throughout our village. I remember keeping a keen eye out for tigers and swinging from plants with leaves larger than an elephant, foraging for berries, and awing over the brilliant rhododendron trees, Nepal's national flower, blooming in the spring.
Being immersed in nature and living a simple, country life in my rural farming community could never have prepared me for coming to America in the late 1980s. My only reference to the United States at the time was when I would sneak off to a relative's home near the city to watch reruns of "Miami Vice" on an old black-and-white television set on the weekends.
My parents chose to pursue their graduate studies at the University of Pittsburgh, and we moved to a small third-floor apartment in South Oakland. From the snowcapped Himalayan Mountains to the skyscrapers dotting the hills and rivers of western Pennsylvania, I never forgot or lost my deep connection to nature, but life began to revolve around acquiring a serious education in business technology, the world of computers, and building a career.
Throughout the years, it was hit or miss for me to grow a yearly garden, plant a tree or two, and maintain an adequate lawn as a homeowner. A chance meeting with a well-seasoned farmer quickly reignited my childhood interest in plants and trees, and I wanted an opportunity to learn more, something more substantial, like the endeavor to become a Master Gardener.
The Penn State Master Gardener Program educates the public with research-based horticultural knowledge through exceptional Penn State instructors and is the perfect place to expand your understanding of gardening on an advanced level.
To join, the requirements include filling out an online application, followed by an information session and an interview with the program coordinator and some established Master Gardeners, during which you can learn about the objectives of the program and ask questions. Once accepted, there is a $250 fee, which includes a large course book and all other class materials. Financial assistance is possible, if eligible.
Running October through March, the main classes are Thursday night Zoom meetings (which are also recorded for later viewing), and there are also supplemental in-person classes to expand on certain subjects. To ensure comprehension of the program's material, there are midterm and final exams, which require 80% scores to pass. Plenty of assistance is provided to ensure your study is a success.
Besides the academic training component, there is a 50-hour volunteer requirement to earn your certification, since the overall purpose of the program is to serve and educate the community. There are various projects in Beaver County you can participate in to earn volunteer hours throughout the year while continuing to learn from many established Master Gardeners.
Some various projects in Beaver County include the Beaver Station Garden, Route 18 Gardens, Spring Street demonstration garden in Aliquippa, Sahli Nature Park in Chippewa, and the Wildflower Reserve in Raccoon Creek State Park, as well as community events such as the Maple Syrup Festival, various classes and workshops, garden tours, plant sale, and writing articles like this one for The Times, to name a few.
Additionally, volunteer opportunities vary from different days and hours throughout the week to accommodate most schedules. The opportunities are not so difficult that an earnest interest in plants, love of nature, and watching how things grow are good enough reasons to ponder joining the program!
Due to my own full-time employment, I had to be creative with my volunteer hours to ensure that I met the certification requirements. Volunteering at several of the yearly Environmental Field Studies classes on the weekends and periodic workdays at gardens with accommodating schedules was sufficient. Volunteering has been an exceptionally good opportunity to apply the knowledge from class, while learning from my peers with more experience in the process.
One of the memorable parts of volunteering at both the annual Maple Syrup Festival and an Environmental Field Study class was finding common interest and enthusiasm with people wanting to learn more about gardening, plants, and native habitats; many of them braved the chilly weather to go on an ephemeral wildflower hike to see several unique species in the woods at Bradys Run Park.
Having the knowledge to grow your own food, understanding native plants, the impacts of invasive species, knowledge of pest management and soil health can be the difference between the success and failure of your garden. Comprehension of the importance of native pollinators can entice you to create a thriving garden while beautifying your property and increasing its value and curb appeal. A wide variety of these topics and more are covered in the program to satisfy a plethora of interests; the program has something for everyone from the novice beginner to the advanced green thumb.
If you are fascinated by nature, love plants, wonder which insects may be eating your roses, are beginning or expanding a flower garden or growing an assortment of vegetables, you should consider joining me in the Penn State Master Gardener Program. While it is challenging to learn many topics in a brief period of time, the joy of learning new things and volunteering to apply that knowledge makes it a well-earned personal and community investment to become a Master Gardener.
Applications are now open to join the 2026 class of Master Gardeners in Beaver County and will remain open through August. Learn more about the program and submit your online application at bit.ly/40XYf9P, or email our hotline at [e-mail] for more information.
Anup Aryal is a Penn State Master Gardener Trainee in Beaver County.
This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: My journey to become a Penn State Master Gardener