Volunteer

 

Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens offers unique and exciting opportunities to expand your knowledge, meet like-minded people, and support our mission by creating experiences with plants that inspire people and improve the world. 

 

Volunteers have been an invaluable part of our history and community — their dedication, hard work, and creative energies are the heartbeat of our organization. Today, more than 170 volunteers help maintain our grounds and nursery, share knowledge through our educational programs, support our fundraising events, plant sales, and much more! Keep scrolling to learn about our volunteer benefits and opportunities. 

 

To get started, please fill out our brief  Volunteer Application, and our Volunteer Coordinator will reach out to you. Please note, volunteers ages 10-17 must be accompanied by a parent or responsible adult.​​​​​

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Annual Volunteer Benefits​

• Volunteer 50 hours in a year to earn an Individual Membership.

• Volunteer 100 hours in a year to earn a Household Membership.

• Quarterly issues of the Volunteer Voice e-Newsletter.

• Horticultural knowledge and hands-on experience.

• Joy and fulfillment from participating in the growth, health, and beauty of the Gardens. Your work makes a difference in our local community by supporting education, conservation, health & wellness.

• Volunteers are also invited to join us for seasonal celebrations and social events. All active volunteers are invited to join us each April and October for annual volunteer appreciation events.

 

Cumulative Volunteer Benefits

• Volunteer 25 hours to earn a personalized engraved volunteer name tag.

• Volunteer 175 hours to earn a one-of-a-kind MCBG volunteer water bottle.

• Volunteer over 350 hours to earn an exclusive MCBG volunteer t-shirt.

• Volunteer over 500 hours to earn a LIFETIME Household Membership and a gold name tag!

• Volunteer over 800 hours to earn a giftable Household Membership.

• Volunteer over 1,000 hours to earn an exclusive gold MCBG pin.

• Volunteer over 1,500 hours to earn a gift card for lunch at Rhody’s Garden Cafe for $50, or a $50 gift card to The Garden Store/Nursery!

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Volunteer Opportunities​

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Whether you’re a plant person or a people person, we have something for everyone! Check out our current volunteer opportunities below, including weekly groups and seasonal opportunities.

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Horticulture Opportunities

 

Perennial Garden

Our Perennial Garden provides a large display of perennials and woody specimens and is bursting with blooms, bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds. Volunteers are welcome to join our Horticulture Staff in the Perennial Garden for weeding, pruning, mulching, composting, planting, and more. 

 

Succulent, Mediterranean, and Heath and Heather Gardens

Our Succulent Garden, Mediterranean Climate Garden, and nationally accredited Heath and Heather Collection are awe-inspiring. Join our Horticulture Staff in caring for these beautiful displays with weeding, raking, hedging, planting, and more.

 

Native Plant Garden and Natural Areas

On our 47-acre property, approximately 32 acres are dedicated to ecological restoration. Work with our Staff Naturalist to identify native plants, collect seed, remove invasive plants, and help with our reforestation project. With your help, we can continue conserving plants in harmony with our local ecosystems.

 

Vegetable Garden

Each year, we donate thousands of pounds of fresh, organic produce from our organic demonstration Vegetable Garden as part of our Giving Garden Program to the Fort Bragg Food Bank! In addition, we have been building a community of volunteers who share knowledge, passion, and excitement for food, food security, and medicinal plants. 

 

Seasonal Horticulture Opportunities

Join our Horticulture Staff seasonally to help tend the Woodland Garden and Dahlia Garden. We publish seasonal horticulture needs and schedules to our volunteer group via email, so keep an eye out for these fun and educational opportunities throughout the year.

 

Nursery & Propagation

Volunteers in the Nursery help stock shelves, water, provide advice to customers, and provide information about the Gardens to visitors. Volunteers also help to propagate plants by seed, cuttings, and division under the supervision of the Nursery Manager. Propagation makes many of the interesting and unusual plants showcased in the Gardens available to the public.

 

Seed Group

Join our Seed Group monthly to gather, process, and package seeds collected from the Gardens and sold in The Garden Store!

 

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Public Engagement Opportunities

 

Garden Discovery Docent Program

MCBG welcomes school groups, charter tours, and community organizations to explore and learn through our Garden Discovery Education Program. Our docent guides are active year-round – learning, sharing, and leading interactive, engaging tours for people of all ages. To be a docent, you must be at least 18 years of age and participate in our annual docent training and ongoing programs. If leading tours is not for you, our docents also help at educational events and engage guests of the Gardens at seasonal pop-up stations.

 

Event Volunteers

We always need support for educational events, workshop hosts, plant sales, and annual fundraising events – Art in the Gardens and Festival of Lights.

 

Store Volunteers

Do you love working with people, greeting guests, and helping them find the perfect gifts? Great news, we love having volunteer support in The Garden Store! Store volunteers enjoy interacting with and assisting members of the public in a fast-paced retail environment and can expect a range of tasks including customer service, packaging orders, dusting displays, and selling gift items, plants, books, seeds, and more. Store shifts are available on weekdays only. Shifts are two hours: 10am-12pm or 12pm-2pm.

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Special Opportunities

 

Friends of the Gardens (FOG)

Join our nonprofit support group, Friends of the Gardens (FOG)! Founded in 1998, FOG’s mission is “To promote and advance the welfare and development of MCBG”. It accomplishes this through fundraising events and volunteer support for the Gardens and has now raised over $672,000! FOG efforts have funded the development of the entry plaza, restrooms on the bluff, electric carts for visitors with disabilities, and many other items that are crucial to a great visitor experience. FOG fundraising events are fun and festive, offering an enjoyable, social way to support the Gardens. FOG meets most first Tuesdays of the month at 4:00pm at the MCBG Farmhouse. To become a FOG member, please reach out to fogsecretarymcbg@gmail.com.

 

​Bulk Mailings & Flyering

The Gardens sends out mailings approximately five times a year, and it takes a team to get it done. We also always need help distributing flyers and promotional materials for our fundraising and educational events.

 

Construction & Maintenance

Calling all handy maintenance hands! You got 'em? We need ‘em! From building raised garden beds to painting, routine repairs, and other building and grounds projects, our maintenance crew loves working with volunteers. Maintenance volunteers help care for our facilities, keeping our community space safe, functioning, clean, and in good shape for all to enjoy.​

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Questions? Contact Us

 

If you are interested in becoming a volunteer at the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens, please fill out our brief Volunteer Application, and our Volunteer Coordinator will reach out to you. If you have any questions about volunteering with us, please reach out to our Volunteer Coordinator at volunteer@gardenbythesea.org or 707-964-4352 Ext. 117.

 

Thank you for your interest in supporting the Gardens!