The Kansas State University Horticulture Newsletter is distributed to over 5,000 subscribers on a weekly basis for 50 weeks every year. The purpose of the newsletter is primarily educational, informing Kansas residents of the proper timing for garden-related tasks such as planting and maintenance. Other timely hot topics such as disease, pest monitoring and control methods are also provided. In January 2024 a needs assessment was deployed to all subscribers to evaluate their gardening behaviors and newsletter preferences. Almost 200 subscribers responded during the six weeks the needs assessment was available. Results indicate the primary audience is female (62%) over 60 years old (65%). Most subscribers (57%) use the newsletter to support their home gardening practices while 28% use it to support their community. Seventy-five percent of subscribers access the newsletter through the email distribution. Readers were asked their preferences for content they would like to receive in the newsletter. Thirty percent of subscribers rank vegetables as the topic of highest importance. The second highest ranked topic (18%) is garden spotlight content which features specific gardening practices of gardeners across the state. Sustainable gardening practices is the topic most requested to be added into future newsletters. This presentation will share details about providing an electronic resource to support gardeners and extension agents statewide.
