Kaitlyn O’Connor Starts her Position as Horticulture Educator

Kaitlyn O’Connor started as the UW-Madison Division of Extension Horticulture Educator for Jackson and Trempealeau Counties. O’Connor started work on March 17, 2021. Her position is 50% time, and her primary office will be the Extension office in Black River Falls, but she will be providing horticulture education to citizens in both counties. She will be available on Wednesdays and Thursdays. She can be contacted via email at koconnor26@wisc.edu She can also be reached by phone, initially, at 715.284.4257. Our educators are still on limited hours at our offices. You are encouraged to call or email to set an appointment.

“With the changes in local Extension staffing, the Extension committees in Jackson and Trempealeau Counties decided to invest in horticulture education,” noted Pat Malone, Area Extension Director. “One of O’Connor’s first responsibilities will be networking with stakeholders in both counties to identify educational priorities in horticulture. We expect that she will be working with home gardeners and specialty fruit and vegetable producers. We are excited to have Kaitlyn O’Connor join our Extension team to deliver high quality, evidence based horticulture education,” said Malone.

O’Connor joins the Division of Extension with from her current position as the Education and Outreach Specialist at Prairie Moon Nursery. She has traveled around the Upper Midwest to give public presentations on seed starting, native garden design, pollinators, and the importance of ecological restoration. She has been a speaker at the Wisconsin Public Television Madison Garden Expo, the MOSES Organic Farming Conference, and multiple Master Gardener groups in Wisconsin and Minnesota. She was also featured in the environmental documentary “Decoding the Driftless.”