Merrillville’s streets department foreman
uses skills as master gardener to beautify
public spaces
For Tracy Ryan, no matter the weather, plants are always on her mind.
Since 2014, Ryan has been a master gardener who is involved in programming offered by the Lake County Master Gardeners organization.
I love (being a master gardener), I enjoy it. It started off as an extra-curricular club … and it has turned into something much, much more.””
“The master gardener thing has been a huge part of my life, and I try to do as much as I possibly can with them,” Ryan said. “I love it, I enjoy it. It started off as an extra-curricular club … and it has turned into something much, much more.”
Ryan’s day job is serving as Merrillville’s first female street department foreman where her gardening skills come in handy. Of course, when the weather warms up, her yard looks beautiful, too.
She and the other members of the Lake County Master Gardeners spend much of their time helping the public fulfill their mission of “Helping Others Grow.”
She said she does answer a lot of questions at booths at the Lake County Fair, the Buckley Homestead fall festival in Lowell and other events. Ryan also is part of Lake County Garden Walk committee. The annual event will be June 29 this year, and the plant sale is May 10.
Part of her volunteer work involves assisting families when they move into Habitat for Humanity-built residences. Ryan said she works with the families to find out the type of plants they want for landscaping, help install them and educate homeowners about how to maintain the plants.
Ryan said they take soil samples and explain which plants are best in this area. She said questions cover a variety of topics involving flowers, vegetables and other plantings.
Ryan said she was inspired to become a master gardener while working at a previous job. At the time, she did landscaping work for a municipality, but she didn’t have master gardener certification.
“My boss … insisted that I take the class, so that’s what brought me into the master gardeners because I was already into landscaping,” Ryan said.
Becoming a master gardener in Indiana involves a series of steps through the Purdue Extension. After completing an application, prospective master gardeners must attend weekly classes. Participants must also volunteer at least 40 hours in the community before becoming a master gardener.
To maintain master gardener status, regular education and volunteer hours are mandatory. Ryan said she has logged 139 education hours and 275 volunteer hours as a master gardener.
And while Ryan has used these skills to help the community, she also finds the knowledge useful in her current position as the town of Merrillville street department foreman.
It started with the boxes on 93rd Avenue that town officials asked her to rework.
Ryan then created a comprehensive beautification plan in 2024.
“We removed a lot of stuff, and we implemented a lot more stuff, and I think our 93rd Avenue last year looked fabulous,” she said.
14,870
The number of volunteer hours so far in 2025, according to the Purdue Extension Master Gardener Program.
In addition to the large planter boxes on 93rd Avenue, the department also handles plantings at Merrillville’s Town Hall and the Dean and Barbara White Community Center.
“So, all of my master gardener years have helped with all of that because I know what kind of plants to plant, what kind of plants are self-resistant, just changing everything up so it looks beautiful,” Ryan said.
Ryan plans to add more plantings this year.
Steve King, Merrillville’s street department director, said Ryan has done excellent work to enhance the aesthetics around town. He said Ryan’s plan resulted in more than 3,500 plants being installed throughout Merrillville last year.
Even during the winter months, Ryan has been busy getting plants ready for when the weather gets warmer.
King said Ryan saved seeds and bulbs from plants installed in 2024. Ryan and other members of the street department have used those to start growing plants that will be installed this year.
He said that will save the town tens of thousands of dollars because Merrillville won’t have to purchase as many full-grown plants from vendors as the community had to previous years.
Penchant for plants?
The Lake County Master Gardeners Association was incorporated as a nonprofit in 2010. Volunteers receive education in horticulture through the Purdue Extension Master Gardener Program.
To learn more:
Annual plant sale: May 10
Garden Walk: June 29
Website: lakecountymastergardeners.org
Purdue Extension Master Gardener Program: purdue.edu/hla/sites/master-gardener
“This was all (Ryan’s) vision, the planters that you see, the things around Town Hall, the things around the community center,” King said. “It was a total team effort by our department. Again, it was her vision, she implemented it extremely well, and we couldn’t be prouder.” •
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