While it is helpful to have people with gardening knowledge in leadership positions, volunteers can contribute in many ways, by making repairs, pulling weeds, and raising funds.
“When we’re talking about community gardens, ‘community’ is the more important word, because without the community, you just have a bunch of soil, and pretty much everybody goes home, because it’s a lot of work,” said Kitty Wallace, a retired educator who co-founded Florida’s Tampa Heights Community Garden in 2011 with Lena Young Green, a former state legislature employee.
Benoit encourages groups to use their gardens as community assets, perhaps adding picnic tables and benches to give neighbors a place to eat outside. She has also seen community gardens host movie nights or serve ice cream to neighbors. “Bring the community in,” she said.
“When we’re talking about community gardens, ‘community’ is the more important word, because without the community, you just have a bunch of soil, and pretty much everybody goes home, because it’s a lot of work.”
Solicit Funding and Support
The East Missoula Community Garden cost more than $100,000 to start, in part because Garden City Harvest added major water infrastructure.
“If a community group were trying to do this from scratch, the key would be to get a lot of in-kind donations from local businesses,” said Genevieve Jessop Marsh, the nonprofit’s outreach and impact director.
While city or county parks and recreation departments often play key roles, nonprofits like Garden City Harvest, which exist in many towns and cities, can oversee garden management, make repairs, and provide advice and resources like tools and seeds.
These organizations can also offer liability insurance to cover claims arising from injuries that occur at the garden. If no nonprofit is involved, community gardens should have their own liability insurance, which may be the garden’s largest expense.
State Agricultural Experiment Stations, usually hosted at land-grant colleges or universities, can be helpful resources, sharing agricultural advice with community gardeners and oftentimes offering public workshops and services like soil testing, Benoit said.
A tool shed built by Habitat for Humanity for the East Missoula Community Garden. Erika’s dog, Balloon, usually comes to the garden with her. (Photo credit: Erika Hickey)
Because running a community garden can get expensive—between the required permits, infrastructure, and tools—securing partners and raising funds is essential. Local businesses and community groups, like senior centers or Rotary Clubs, may be able to offer volunteers or donate funds.
Serve Your Community
Some community gardens serve specific populations, such as farmworkers, seniors, or people with disabilities.
Hospitals are creating gardens for their employees or as educational tools for patients suffering from diet-related illnesses. “In Hartford, Connecticut, Aetna has supported [nonprofit] Knox, which has community gardens, because they know that healthy people are going to need less health insurance payments,” Benoit says.
