Meet Caleb Malcom

Caleb was born in Oklahoma City, OK and grew up in Newcastle, OK, just southwest of Oklahoma City. Caleb moved to Kansas City, MO for eight years and then moved back to Oklahoma where he met his spouse. After a few years in Moore, OK, Caleb and his family lived semi-nomadically for a few years but then decided it was time to stop traveling. Everyone in the family contributed what they wanted in a new location and all agreed that it had to be coastal. Caleb spent a couple weeks looking at coastal cities and Hampton Roads seemed to fit the majority of their criteria. They moved to Norfolk in February 2020 and two weeks later the world closed down due to the pandemic.

Caleb attended the University of Oklahoma and is currently attending Arizona State University online working on a degree in Conservation and Ecology. After graduating he plans to move on to attain a Masters in Plant Ecology. 

When asked what made him want to become a Master Gardener, Caleb answered that his spouse says it’s because he always needs too much to do! But Caleb has known about Master Gardeners since he was a small child. His paternal grandfather was a Master Gardener in Oklahoma City. What drew him to the Norfolk Master Gardeners was the diverse projects throughout the city. Caleb has volunteered for conservation efforts in any city in which he has lived.

Caleb joined the Class of 2023. He has been studying plants, horticulture, botany, conservation as well as other sciences from the time he was old enough to pick a plant or catch an animal and say, “What’s this?” His life has been full of plant enthusiasts and experts. His insatiable need for more information has always driven him to never stop learning. He has taught classes that range from plant identification to gardening to foraging. He thought the MG classes were packed full of useful information and he especially enjoyed the classes that were held outside.

To attain his fifty hours, Caleb worked a lot of different projects. These included Urban Ag, the Dune Garden, Weyanoke, community outreach projects, the Elizabeth River Project and their living shorelines, Lafayette Wetlands Partnership, the spring plant sale and has written articles for the Germinator Blog. He plans to help with the fall plant sale and tree adoption. He will continue to work on a diverse array of projects that fit his availability schedule.

When Caleb isn’t focusing on MG projects, he is a “research junky” by nature; always reading about the latest research on anything he can get his eyes on. He works in his garden and landscaping projects in his yard, cycling, paddle boarding, hiking, and camping. In addition, he is a plant breeder. He is currently working on several plant breeding projects including a multipurpose corn variety that will be able to grow in small plots so people can have corn that can be used for fresh eating or grinding into cornmeal in urban environments. He is working on his own pole bean variety and an okra variety that can be grown in smaller spaces. Another project is adapting a rare bittermelon variety to the Coastal Virginia climate and he’s excited that it is starting to yield a good amount. He is adapting a rare pink flowered buckwheat variety to the Coastal Virginia climate and he is a collector of house plants.  In addition to all of this, Caleb and his spouse make sure to schedule date days or nights that lead them to exploring new restaurants and places around the area. They have been doing this for seven years.

Caleb’s family includes his spouse, three teenage children, an older dog, a middle-aged cat, and they are surrounded by over 100 house plants!

When you see Caleb, be sure to introduce yourself and welcome him to the Norfolk Extension Master Gardeners.