Background
Maria was one of the first female Agricultural Extension Agents/Specialists in the United States. She has an Associates Degree from Farmingdale State University of New York and Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Plant Pathology/Horticulture from the University of Georgia. For more than two decades, Maria Cinque was a Turf/Horticulture Specialist with Cornell Cooperative Extension. At Cornell, she conducted field research on turf and many ornamental plants and was a consultant to the horticultural industry. She also planned and coordinated seminars and conferences for both home gardeners and the green industry.

Newspaper and Magazine Columnist
Maria’s weekly column, In The Garden in Newsday’s This Week’s Pennysaver, reaches more than one million Long Islanders. Her Distinction Magazine column, Let’s Garden, has readers in more than 50,000 affluent Long Island households. Her byline has appeared in the New York Times.

For the professional horticultural industry, Maria writes a column for the Landscaper, the leading green industry newspaper for the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. Her byline has also appeared in a number of other trade newspapers and magazines.

Maria has written thousands of articles, leaflets and other publications as well as gardening articles for internet informational outlets, such as Cablevision’s Optimum Online.

TV and Radio Appearances
Maria Cinque has a faithful following of television viewers and radio listeners. She’s a recurrent guest on CBS 2 News Sunday Morning and has been a frequent guest on News 12 Long Island. She also hosts In The Garden with Maria Cinque on Island Talk Radio 540 AM – Long Island’s only talk radio station.

She has appeared on many national, network and local television shows, some of which include: CBS Morning News (televised nationally – interviewed by Diane Sawyer and Bill Kurtis on numerous occasions), CBS Evening News, NBC Nightly News, FOX 5 News, FOX 5 – Good Day New York, WLNY-TV55, WLIW-21 and Long Island News Tonight. For many years, Maria Cinque was the garden expert on Telecare’s TV Talk Show On Long Island and on Cornell Cooperative Extension News, both cable magazine shows.

As for radio, Maria has frequented the WOR Garden Hotline with Ralph Snodsmith (nationally syndicated) many times and she has also been a guest on WABC, WCBS, B-103, KJOY, WDRE, WALK, WBAB, and WBLI radio stations. For seven years, Maria hosted WHLI On Landscaping and Gardening.

Maria also hosted and produced award-winning horticultural segments and educational videos that appeared on Cablevision throughout Long Island and the Metropolitan Area – one of which contributed to an ACE (Academy of Cable Excellence) Award. She writes, produces and hosts educational videos as well as commercials.

Professional Speaker
Maria Cinque lectures on lawns, gardens and related gardening topics at garden centers, garden clubs, professional seminars and conferences, flower shows, trade associations and other groups. She coordinates seminars and conferences for professional horticultural organizations. Maria also serves as a keynote speaker at business conferences and meetings as well as civic and social gatherings.

She has conducted training sessions for master gardeners; garden center employees; nurseries; landscape professionals; Parks Department; arborists; environmental groups; golf course, athletic field, and cemetery superintendents.

Awards
Maria Cinque was honored with the prestigious Green Industry Award at the 2003 Maxwell Turf and Landscape Conference for her dedicated service and longtime commitment to the green industry. She also received a First Place Award from the Society of Professional Journalists – Long Island Chapter for a WALK-FM radio show she did on Peace Gardens after the September 11th attacks.

Maria has received 12 AT&T Communication Awards for her work in TV, Radio and Print. In addition, RJ Reynolds honored her with a Communications Award, as did the Garden Writers Association when they presented her with the Quill & Trowel Award. In 1997, Maria Cinque was named Professional of the Year by Landscaper newspaper. She also hosted and produced a TV segment that contributed to an ACE Award. Each year, the Nassau-Suffolk Landscape Gardeners Association honor her by awarding the Maria Cinque Scholarship to a Farmingdale State University horticulture student at their annual conference.

Also, in 1997, Maria Cinque was named Alumna of the Year by Farmingdale State University. Earlier, she was enrolled into the SUNY Alumni Honor Roll in Science and Technology and was profiled in the roster of SUNY Alumni in Business and Industry.

Business/Education Partnership
Maria Cinque chairs the Farmingdale Horticulture Committee – an advisory and fundraising committee of the Farmingdale Foundation for the horticulture curriculum at Farmingdale State University of New York. She’s been involved in raising over three quarters of a million dollars for the horticulture program. Maria is one of the Farmingdale Horticulture Committee’s founders.