Hillsborough Master Gardener Help Desk

Staff and Master Gardeners are available to answer questions on the telephone or in person from homeowners about their landscapes. They can assist homeowners with lawn and pest problems, what to successfully grow in their landscape and vegetable gardens, and when and how to water effectively. Insect and plant samples may be taken to the Help Desk for identification and for solutions to problems. Soil samples can be tested for a nominal charge to determine pH.

Services Available:

• Troubleshooting plant problems
• Soil pH testing
• Insect identification
• Plant identification
• Disease identification
• Irrigation recommendations
• Vegetable and fruit tree growing assistance
• Nutritional recommendations

Interested in joining the Master Gardener Program?

The goal of the Master Gardener Program is to provide comprehensive training on different gardening topics so that Master Gardeners Volunteers can serve as an “Extension” of the University of Florida/Hillsborough County Extension Service and share that information with Hillsborough County residents.

Come down to our office or reach out to University of Florida for help with testing:

• Water - $10 - Information and fees ; Submission form and instructions (80KB pdf)
• Plant disease - $20 - Information ; Submission form and instructions
• Turf disease - $75 - Submission form and instructions(145KB pdf)
• Nematode - $12 - Submission form and Instructions (347KB pdf)
• Plant ID -  Submission form and instructions(134KB pdf)
• Insect ID - $8 - Information ; Submission form and instructions (205KB pdf)
• Soil
  • pH Test ONLY (here at the UF/IFAS Extension Hillsborough County) - $3.00 per sample, Soil PH Test - 2019 Form
  • Soil pH and lime requirement (if needed) (UF/IFAS Extension Soil Testing Lab) - $3.00 per sample, Submission Form
  • Soil pH, lime requirement (if needed), and soil fertility and micronutrients (UF/IFAS Extension Soil Testing Lab): $10.00 per sample, Submission form