Over the past few months I’ve had several of you ask me “how can I find my cooperative extension?” What is it? What do they do?
The Cooperative Extension Service is a nationwide educational program started by the United States Cooperative Extension Offices, Department of Agriculture (USDA). National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) oversees the program, which provides various Information, through universities to the general public. Although they provide information on food, the environment and other topics, for our purposes we are most interested in their agricultural offerings.
Every state and territory has a central office and a network of local, regional or county offices. These offices are overseen by experts.
Cooperative extension offices offer master gardener classes and a ton of gardening information and classes for the public, both online and on-site.
The services I use the most are the disease diagnostic and soil testing labs. Most (but not all) extensions accept soil samples through the mail and, for a nominal cost — sometimes free — will test pH, test for nutrient deficiencies and other items.
Take a few minutes to check out your region’s cooperative extension service. I’ve made it easy for you by compiling a list for all 50 States. Click on these links to find the extension directories for the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico
This list was updated in October, 2023. Compiled by: M.L. Dewey
Cooperative Extension Directory
