GreenThumbNYC – January 2021 Events

January 5, 2021
by garden
6 min read

Dear gardeners,

Please see updates from Greenthumb below. We *highly* recommend that as many of you as possible listen in on the rat academy on January 13th. The link to register is below. Keeping the rats at bay is a massive maintenance job and all of us need to be trained.  

Thank you!
🌻🌻

Deadline Extended! GreenThumb GrowTogether 2021 Design Contest

Submit your design for the 2021 GrowTogether Conference! While there will, unfortunately, be no GrowTogether t-shirts this year, GreenThumb is still hosting its annual GreenThumb GrowTogether 2021 Design Contest! Artists can submit up to three designs relating to the conference theme of “Gardens of Resilience.” The winning design will be used as a downloadable stencil for a DIY screen printing webinar during the conference and will also be featured during the conference. Please see here for more information about design specifications. Designs can be submitted for consideration to: greenthumbinfo@parks.nyc.gov. The application deadline is Monday January 11, 2021. Designs will be disqualified if guidelines are not met.

In Memoriam

GreenThumb will be celebrating the lives and legacies of the community gardeners we lost in 2019 and 2020 during the 2021 GrowTogether conference. Please help us honor these gardeners by sending us their names, garden, photos, and a brief statement about their lives as gardeners to: greenthumbinfo@parks.nyc.gov.

GreenThumb Programming Updates

GreenThumb Growing Food Toolkit

GreenThumb supports community gardeners in growing food through educational workshops and materials. In the GreenThumb Growing Food Toolkit, you will find most of our workshop handouts and webinar recordings, as well as many resources from partnering organizations, on topics related to food production. We will continue to add to this page and update our educational resources as time and capacity allows.

GreenThumb Composting Toolkit and COVID-19 Compost Safety Guide 

Many GreenThumb gardens host volunteer-run community composting operations or host food scrap drop-off sites. Due to COVID-19, curbside organics collection by the NYC Department of Sanitation is temporarily suspended and some food scrap drop-offs are currently closed. Because of these changes in the composting landscape, GreenThumb gardeners are seeing a growing public interest in composting at community gardens.  The COVID-19 Compost Safety Guide provides guidance to existing compost sites on best practices for preventing the spread of COVID-19 during compost drop-offs or during use of the compost area. Gardens that are curious to learn more about the art and science of composting can refer to the Compost Toolkit, a compilation of webinars, videos, and publications from partners and compost experts.

GreenThumb Webinars

Join us for an ongoing series of online workshops to dig in, grow food, and keep your community garden going while following health and safety protocols.

Did you miss some of our past webinars? Webinar recordings are all available to watch online here: bit.ly/GreenThumbWebinars 

Upcoming webinars include:

Please click the link to RSVP and receive information on how to join the webinar.

Rat Academy: Keeping the Garden Rat-Free

Wednesday, January 13, 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Learn Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategies for keeping rats from wrecking your garden. In this workshop with the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, participants will learn proper rat prevention measures, how to look for signs of rats, and how to correct the conditions that attract rats.

Crop Planning 101

Tuesday, January 26, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Grow more vegetables by planning ahead. Learn how to map out more than one season of bountiful harvests using planting calendars, knowledge of plant families, plant spacing charts, and more.

Make it Rain: Grants for your Green Space

Thursday, January 28, 5:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Are you working to improve your local NYC park, community garden, street trees, or other green space in your neighborhood? Come hear from Citizens Committee for NYC and Partnerships for Parks, who provide grants of up to $3,000 for NYC-based community green space projects. Learn about the financial resources they offer and tips to secure funding for your 2021 projects.

This webinar will focus on grant opportunities available only to green spaces in NYC.

Updates and Resources from Partners

Civic Engagement & Leadership Development Virtual Workshop Series

The Civic Engagement & Leadership Development course is a free professional certificate program sponsored by the CUNY School of Labor & Urban Studies. Due to wide interest, those interested must apply for this popular series of Saturday morning sessions, held over seven weeks in January through March 2021. Each session features CUNY faculty and veteran practitioners with years of experience and expertise in civic leadership, electoral politics, the history of mass movements and policy making at the local, state and national levels of government. More information is available here. 

Department of Health & Mental Hygiene Rat Academies

Rat Academies have gone Virtual!  Attend a session to learn more about safe and effective rat prevention techniques. Upcoming sessions require RSVP at these links:

ThriveNYC’s COVID-19 Community Conversations: Mental Health, Equity and Resilience

A 60 minute informational virtual presentation on potential mental health impacts, relevant coping skills and available resources. This session will cover topics such as grief, trauma, coping and resilience in addition to mental health tips.

To RSVP for any of the upcoming sessions, please click here.

Distance Learning from our Partners

GrowNYC’s Education programs are providing weekly reads and activities using upcycled, easy-to-access materials for children and adults at home. Learn how to build your own tiny greenhouse in your apartment, a tasty recipe for mugwort, and more by visiting: https://www.grownycdistancelearning.org/

New York Restoration Project is also posting webinars on their YouTube page on different topics including climate change, green infrastructure and soil health.

Food and Agriculture Anti-Racism Resources

FoodTech Connect compiled this list of resources to help with better understanding systemic racism in the food system. They also included Black-owned farms, businesses and organizations to support. Learn more.

December 2020 – GreenThumb Newsletter

December 4, 2020
by garden
8 min read

GreenThumb GrowTogether 2021 Design Contest

Submit your design for the 2021 GrowTogether Conference! While there will, unfortunately, be no GrowTogether t-shirts this year, GreenThumb is still hosting its annual GreenThumb GrowTogether 2021 Design Contest! Artists can submit up to three designs relating to the conference theme of “Gardens of Resilience”. The winning design will be used as a downloadable stencil for a DIY screen printing webinar during the conference and will also be featured during the conference. Please see here for more information about design specifications. Designs can be submitted for consideration to: greenthumbinfo@parks.nyc.gov. The application deadline is Friday, December 11, 2020. Designs will be disqualified if guidelines are not met.

In Memoriam

GreenThumb will be celebrating the lives and legacies of the community gardeners we lost in 2019 and 2020 during the 2021 GrowTogether conference. Please help us honor these gardeners by sending us their names, garden, photos, and brief statement about their lives as gardeners to: greenthumbinfo@parks.nyc.gov.

COVID-19 Policy Update Reminders:

GreenThumb Programming Updates

GreenThumb GrowTogether Workshop Proposals 2021

Due to COVID-19, the GrowTogether will be fully virtual this year, and spread out over multiple days. We’re inviting a wide range of workshop/webinar proposals about community gardening, seeds, composting, biodiversity, ecology, resilience, food and racial justice, herbalism, group development, community organizing, native plants, climate change, intergenerational gardening, garden/crop/movement histories, and more. We’re grateful for your offer to share your knowledge at our 37th annual conference, in an ongoing tradition of uplifting and celebrating community gardening in NYC since 1984.  

The conference will take place Saturday, February 20 through Saturday, February 27 in a virtual format. Due to budget constraints during the pandemic, we are sadly unable to provide workshop materials or t-shirts this year.

Please complete this form no later than Wednesday, December 9, 5:00 p.m. 

GreenThumb Growing Food Toolkit

GreenThumb supports community gardeners in growing food through educational workshops and materials. In the GreenThumb Growing Food Toolkit, you will find most of our workshop handouts and webinar recordings, as well as many resources from partnering organizations, on topics related to food production. We will continue to add to this page and update our educational resources as time and capacity allows.

GreenThumb Composting Toolkit and COVID-19 Compost Safety Guide 

Many GreenThumb gardens host volunteer-run community composting operations or host food scrap drop-off sites. Due to COVID-19, curbside organics collection by the NYC Department of Sanitation is temporarily suspended and some food scrap drop-offs are currently closed. Because of these changes in the composting landscape, GreenThumb gardeners are seeing a growing public interest in composting at community gardens.  The COVID-19 Compost Safety Guide provides guidance to existing compost sites on best practices for preventing the spread of COVID-19 during compost drop-offs or during use of the compost area. Gardens that are curious to learn more about the art and science of composting can refer to the Compost Toolkit, a compilation of webinars, videos, and publications from partners and compost experts.

GreenThumb Webinars

Join us for an ongoing series of online workshops to dig in, grow food, and keep your community garden going while following health and safety protocols.

Did you miss some of our past webinars? Webinar recordings are all available to watch online here: bit.ly/GreenThumbWebinars 

Upcoming webinars include:

Please click the link to RSVP and receive information on how to join the webinar.

Documenting and Preserving Garden Legacies: Part 2

Wednesday, December 2, 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

Join GreenThumb for our two part workshop series on oral history and community archiving. Community gardeners have shaped the history of New York City and it is critical that their experiences and legacies are preserved for future generations. Part 2 will focus on methods to archive and make community garden stories accessible using digital platforms such as wikimedia, social media, and online web exhibits. Participants will be provided with an introduction on how to conduct a community archive project design, identify record organization strategies and sharing their garden’s legacy with the greater public.

Troubleshooting for Advanced Composters

Tuesday December 8, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Are you passionate about composting in your garden but not quite sure how to speed up your processing effort? Not sure how to compost beyond using tumblers? Have questions about composting in the off-season? Share your questions with GreenThumb staff who will assist you with some troubleshooting basics to improve your composting skills.

The Ultimate Houseplant Starter Guide For Beginners

Wednesday December 16, 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

Bring the garden home with you this winter! This workshop will teach all eager houseplant learners basic houseplant care, such as lighting, watering, and humidity. Explore 10 of the best houseplants for beginners that we don’t usually see on a typical beginner houseplant list. Participants will get the best tips and tricks to ensure houseplant growth success.

Facilitated by Cristian Gilces, student at the Agriculture Program at John Bowne High School in Queens, NY, who has accumulated over 25 houseplants in his indoor greenhouse.

Organizing for Garden Success: Group Structure (Part 1 of 2)

Thursday, December 17, 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

This two-part workshop series is designed to help your garden group build a strong foundation for your group’s leadership and decision-making structures. In this webinar, we will discuss different styles of group structure and share examples with one another around the good, the bad, and the ugly of garden governance issues.

This webinar will be interactive and we encourage everyone’s participation. We will not be recording.

Updates and Resources from Partners

The Urban Farmer-to-Farmer Summit

Saturday December 5, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

RSVP at this link for full details

The growing of food is an act of resiliency and sustainability, often led by People of Color, specifically Black, Indigenous, and Latinx communities. We acknowledge that during this current health pandemic, issues of food access, sovereignty, justice and inequity have been exacerbated.

The Urban Farmer-to-Farmer Summit has been created in solidarity to provide more structure for the NYC Urban Farm Community to come together. In community and collaboration, we aim to share resources, reflect on misadventures, strengthen connections, and highlight new opportunities to rise to the challenges of our times. Our hope is to make this an annual farmer-driven event with a low barrier to participate.

CitizenNYC Live: Neighborhood Chat

Tuesday December 8, 5:00 p.m.

RSVP at this link for full details

Join CitizensNYC’s CEO, Dr. Rahsaan Harris in an open discussion on quality of life issues faced by New Yorkers. This new series provides an opportunity for grantee partners, nonprofit partners, funder partners, and elected officials to come together to discuss how they can be all in for rebuilding New York City.

Department of Health & Mental Hygiene Rat Academies

Rat Academies have gone Virtual!  Attend a session to learn more about safe and effective rat prevention techniques. Upcoming sessions require RSVP at these links:

ThriveNYC’s COVID-19 Community Conversations: Mental Health, Equity and Resilience

A 60 minute informational virtual presentation on potential mental health impacts, relevant coping skills and available resources. This session will cover topics such as grief, trauma, coping and resilience in addition to mental health tips.

To RSVP for any of the upcoming sessions, please click here.

Partnerships for Parks Webinars & Volunteer Opportunities

Partnership for Parks provides support to neighborhood volunteers to advocate and care for parks and green spaces. They are offering a variety of webinars that may be of interest to community gardeners and have many opportunities to volunteer in your local parks.  Details about upcoming webinars and volunteer opportunities are available here. 

Distance Learning from our Partners

GrowNYC’s Education programs are providing weekly reads and activities using upcycled, easy-to-access materials for children and adults at home. Learn how to build your own tiny greenhouse in your apartment, a tasty recipe for mugwort, and more by visiting: https://www.grownycdistancelearning.org/

New York Restoration Project is also posting webinars on their YouTube page on different topics including climate change, green infrastructure and soil health.

Food and Agriculture Anti-Racism Resources

FoodTech Connect compiled this list of resources to help with better understanding systemic racism in the food system. They also included Black-owned farms, businesses and organizations to support. Learn more.

LES Ecology Center has Compost Available

The LES Ecology Center has free compost available for community gardens! Delivery options are available to sites in the Lower East Side. All other gardens would need to coordinate a pick-up from the Ecology Center’s compost site in East River Park in the Lower East Side. Fill out their Compost Request Form to request compost and learn more.

GreenThumb Events for September

September 6, 2020
by garden
10 min read

COMPLETE THE 2020 CENSUS NOW 

Dear all — please see below for the latest greenthumb announcements. In particular, I encourage everyone to sign up for the Rat Academy! It is more fun than you think to learn about preventing rats in our garden. 🙂 — Bethany  

The 2020 Census is critical to the future of New York City. If we don’t complete the census, New York City will lose billions of dollars distributed by the federal government every year for schools, hospitals, health clinics, affordable housing, public transit, and much more. We will also lose up to two seats in Congress and representation in Albany. 

The census is easy, safe, and confidential. It can be completed online or by phone, and is just 10 simple questions that can be answered in under 10 minutes. By law, your responses are completely confidential and cannot be shared with anyone — not immigration, not the police, not tax authorities; not even your landlord. There are no questions about immigration, citizenship, criminal history, or income. 

All you need is your address – no special code required. Visit my2020census.gov or call 844-330-2020 to complete your census form today.

Invasive Pest Sightings – Spotted Lantern Fly

The Spotted Lantern Fly (SLF) is an invasive pest that was first found in the northeast in 2014 and was confirmed as found in NYC in Manhattan in the latter half of 2019. Since that initial sighting they have been found in many places in Manhattan and other boroughs, unfortunately. The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the state Department of Agriculture & Markets are conducting surveys currently via inspections. It is important that people report sightings of the SLF as well as their egg masses to  spottedlanternfly@agriculture.ny.gov or here https://survey123.arcgis.com/share/a08d60f6522043f5bd04229e00acdd63  

The fact sheet attached to this email can help you identify the Spotted Lantern Fly and its egg cases. All sightings should be reported, and the insects themselves should be placed in a baggie or jar to be suffocated so that a DEC or NYSDAM representative can collect it after you report it through the above survey or email address. For egg masses, a small sample should be scraped into a zip-lock bag and sealed. The remainder of the egg mass should be put in a baggie and doused with alcohol or hand sanitizer and then discarded.

GreenThumb Programming Updates

Special Webinar with International Partners

Food for Resilience: Transatlantic Lessons from Community Gardens and Farms
Friday, September 18, 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.  

This webinar will share lessons from across the pond on how community food growing is building resilience in cities, how they have responded to Covid-19 and reflect on what we can learn for the future beyond Covid-19, for challenges that lie ahead.

Organized by Capital Growth in London, NYC Parks GreenThumb in New York City and Toronto Urban Growers, it will provide a context for how the cities are supporting and organising their networks, and share valuable insights from the gardens.  

Harvest Fair Goes Virtual

Saturday, September 26th, 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

GreenThumb’s annual Harvest Fair celebrates the ongoing efforts of GreenThumb community gardeners who have continued growing and producing during these uncertain times. Join us for a day filled with workshops, a virtual tabling with our greening partners, and the announcement of this year’s winning harvest from community gardeners. Stay tuned for the schedule for the day! 

If you are a GreenThumb gardener and think you’ve grown an award-winning vegetable or flower, please enter the 2020 Harvest Fair competition! Submit up to 10 photos in total of your best vegetables and flowers. Winners will be announced on Saturday, September 26th during our virtual recording. Winners will receive a virtual certificate or a ribbon for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place. Entries will be judged on condition, quality, uniformity of size, and color.

For more information visit www.greenthumbnyc.org and to enter the competition, please fill out the Harvest Fair Submission Form by Friday, September 16th.

What’s Wrong With My Vegetable Plant? Office Hours with Cornell Cooperative Extension

Thursday, September 17, 12 p.m. – 1 p.m.

What are these spots on my tomatoes? What is this bug, and is it eating or helping my crops? GreenThumb is thrilled to continue our partnership with Cornell Cooperative Extension (CCE) this fall to help GreenThumb community gardeners have a successful growing season. Please submit your photos and questions in advance (photos from past seasons are welcome if you anticipate recurring issues this season). During the virtual office hours, CCE Urban Agriculture Specialists Yolanda Gonzalez and Sam Anderson, together with GreenThumb staff, will do our best to provide answers, tips, and suggestions! Register to attend the virtual office hours at cce_officehours_sept.eventbrite.com. These sessions are reserved for members of GreenThumb community gardens in good standing. Please submit your photos and questions in advance, by Monday, September 14 at noon. 

GreenThumb Growing Food Toolkit

GreenThumb supports community gardeners in growing food through educational workshops and materials. In the GreenThumb Growing Food Toolkit, you will find most of our workshop handouts and webinar recordings, as well as many resources from partnering organizations, on topics related to food production. We will continue to add to this page and update our educational resources as time and capacity allows.

GreenThumb Webinars

Join us for an ongoing series of online workshops to dig in, grow food, and keep your community garden going while following health and safety protocols.

Did you miss some of our past webinars and are interested in learning more about that topic?  Did you miss our great keynote speakers on Earth Day?  They are now available to watch online here: bit.ly/GreenThumbWebinars 

Upcoming webinars include:

Please click the link to RSVP and receive information on how to join the webinar.

Conflict Transformation Circles: Orientation
Wednesday, September 9, 5:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

How can we hold space for and resolve conflict within our groups? In these monthly sessions, mediators Skye Roper-Moses and Michelle Jackson will facilitate discussion circles for community gardeners to bring their challenges to the group and collectively generate solutions.  This one hour orientation is important to attend for all future sessions.

Conflict Transformation Circles for Community Gardeners
Wednesday, September 23, 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

How can we hold space for and resolve conflict within our groups? In these monthly sessions, mediators Skye Roper-Moses and Michelle Jackson will facilitate discussion circles for community gardeners to bring their challenges to the group and collectively generate solutions.

Demystifying Mental Health Care with ThriveNYC and the Department for the Aging
Thursday, September 24, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Tune in for a discussion on ThriveNYC and NYC Dept. for the Aging’s services and resources, and how they can support community gardens across the city. Come with your questions!

Organizing for Garden Success: Group Structure
Wednesday, October 7, 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

This two-part workshop series is designed to help your garden group build a strong foundation for your group’s leadership and decision-making structures. 

Updates and Resources from Partners

Department of Health & Mental Hygiene Rat Academies

Rat Academies have gone Virtual!  Attend a session to learn more about safe and effective rat prevention techniques. Upcoming sessions require RSVP here:

Partnerships for Parks Webinars

Partnership for Parks provides support to neighborhood volunteers to advocate and care for parks and green spaces. They are offering a variety of webinars that may be of interest to community gardeners.  Details about upcoming webinars are available here. 

Distance Learning from our Partners

GrowNYC’s Education programs are providing weekly reads and activities using upcycled, easy-to-access materials for children and adults at home. Learn how to build your own tiny greenhouse in your apartment, a tasty recipe for mugwort, and more by visiting: https://www.grownycdistancelearning.org/

New York Restoration Project is also posting webinars on their YouTube page on different topics including climate change, green infrastructure and soil health.

Soul Fire Farm is hosting Black womxn farmers every Friday on Facebook Live to discuss gardening, livestock, agroforestry, plant medicine, and food preservation. Anyone is welcome to join, but please create space for centered folks to speak and ask questions. Learn more.

Food Resource Guides: 

In this difficult time, we understand that food insecurity is a growing concern. Please see these food access resource guides from partner organizations. 

Coronavirus NYC Neighborhood Food Resource Guides: To help connect community members in need with food resources during this challenging time, the Hunter College NYC Food Policy Center is constantly updating Coronavirus NYC Food Resource Guides for each NYC neighborhood. Each resource guide includes information related to food access within the community, such as meals for students and seniors during this time, delivery services for people with disabilities, and resources for immigrants. Resource guides will be published and updated as rapidly as possible, in order of the NYC neighborhoods most impacted by poverty and food insecurity. For more information, visit: https://www.nycfoodpolicy.org/coronavirus-nyc-food-reports/. 

GrowNYC COVID-19 Schedule Changes & Resources: Most Greenmarkets and some Farmstand locations are open and operating on schedule, changes to the schedule are listed here. In addition, many Greenmarket producers are offering a variety of ways to purchase their products, from allowing customers to pre-order and pick up at a market, to direct home delivery and shipping products from their online stores. All of that information is available in one place at GrowNYC Greenmarket Alternative Sales Directory 2020. For more information, visit: https://www.grownyc.org/blog/schedule-changes. 

Cooperative Extension Survey about Urban Agriculture

The survey available at this link will help Extension educators and researchers at your local land grant university better serve urban farmers and gardeners. NYC Parks GreenThumb is not affiliated with this research. We are sharing it in case gardeners want to get involved.

Food and Agriculture Anti-Racism Resources

FoodTech Connect compiled this list of resources to help with better understanding systemic racism in the food system. They also included Black-owned farms, businesses and organizations to support. Learn more.

LES Ecology Center has Compost Available

The LES Ecology Center has free compost available for community gardens! Delivery options are available to sites in the Lower East Side. All other gardens would need to coordinate a pick-up from the Ecology Center’s compost site in East River Park in the Lower East Side. Fill out their Compost Request Form to request compost and learn more.

Jan 11-12: Manhattan Orchid Sale and Show @ The Plant Shed Cafe

January 6, 2020
by garden
2 min read

In case garden members are interested:
Next weekend there will be an orchid show by the Manhattan Orchid Society on the Upper West Side at The Plant Shed Café, 555 Columbus (87th St.).  I think it might be the first orchid society show in Manhattan since the large GYNOS shows in the old Winter Garden and Rockefeller Center over a decade ago, though on a much smaller scale.  While this event will be pretty modest, it may evolve to something much grander in the future.

There will be two vendors — J&L orchids, which sells very cool miniatures, and Orchidphile, which sells fancy phalaenopsis (the latest breedings of the moth orchids you see at Home Depot and TJ’s). 

This is a rare opportunity — you can find them at NJ or LI shows a couple of times a year, but those shows are a bit of a hike for Manhattan dwellers especially without a car.

https://jlorchids.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Orchidphile

There will also be two workshops each day (1 and 2 pm).  I’m not sure of the topics.  The show and workshops will be free to attend.  Flyer is attached.

Sherman 

Open Gardens POSTPONED to July 27

July 19, 2019
by garden
1 min read

Dear all,

We had hoped to hold our open garden event on Saturday.  It seems that it will be too hot this weekend for our space. We have some shade but not enough.

We plan to hold our event the following weekend on July 27 with the same program and cooler temperatures (fingers crossed).  

We are truly sorry for this late cancellation. We are disappointed to feel it is necessary to do this.   

Hope to see you next week!

The Steering Committee

GreenThumb Newsletter – January 2019

January 8, 2019
by garden
9 min read

January News and Events

GreenThumb’s monthly newsletter of workshops and events not to miss in January!
Access all workshop info and more in: GreenThumb’s Winter Program Guide

GreenThumb staff at Harding Park Garden in the Soundview neighborhood of the Bronx assessing the site's potential for community garden improvements and expansion.

GreenThumb staff at Harding Park Garden in the Soundview neighborhood of the Bronx assessing the site’s potential for community garden improvements and expansion. Photo by Ariana Arancibia, GreenThumb

Happy New Year Gardeners!

On behalf of the entire GreenThumb team, I want to thank and congratulate everyone on an amazing 2018. Your volunteer efforts continued to beautify and strengthen communities across New York City as you stewarded over 100 acres of public open space, grew over 500,000 pounds of food, and hosted thousands of free community events. GreenThumb gardens thrive because of your hard work, and it is a privilege to support you in your efforts.

2019 promises to be another exciting year for GreenThumb. Planning is already underway for our 35th annual GreenThumb GrowTogether on March 30, 2019 at the CUNY Graduate Center, but you don’t have to wait until the spring to get involved with GreenThumb. Check out our 2018-9 Winter Program Guide for ways to stay active with workshops and events throughout the winter. And, please continue to let us know about your events and share your great ideas for 2019. We look forward to partnering with you in the new year as we work together to bring the benefits of community gardening to more New Yorkers.

My best for a happy and healthy 2019,
Bill LoSasso
Director of GreenThumb

Top Stories

Mulchfest

After the holidays, send your tree off in style at Mulchfest! Bring your evergreen to the nearest drop off location and we’ll convert it into mulch to make NYC even greener. Drop your tree off any day between Jan. 4 to Jan. 13.Join us at these GreenThumb gardens on Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 12 and 13 from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., to take home a bag of mulch.

Bronx
Jardin de la Roca – 422 East 160th St.Brooklyn
Amazing Garden – 261-265 Columbia St.
East NY Farms – 622 Schenk Ave.
Green Space at President Street – 222 5th Ave.

Manhattan
West 111th Street People’s Garden – 1039 Amsterdam Ave.

Queens
Two Coves Community Garden – 11-01 30th Ave.

Register for GrowTogether 2019

Our 35th Annual GreenThumb GrowTogether conference will be Saturday, March 30, 2019, at the CUNY Graduate Center – 365 5th Ave. in Manhattan. We’re looking forward to putting together another powerful and invigorating conference with you to kick off the 2019 growing season!

How to register:

ONLINE: http://bit.ly/GrowTogether2019

IN PERSON:
GreenThumb
100 Gold St., Suite 3100
New York, NY 10038
Monday through Wednesday, from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Please bring your ID to get through security.Register by March 28, or until capacity is reached. Space is limited, please register early!

The deadline has been extended to propose a workshop for the 2019 GrowTogether Conference!

If you’re interested in facilitating a workshop for this year’s GrowTogether Conference on March 30th, please fill out the Workshop Proposal Form by Sunday, January 13. We’re looking for a wide variety of workshops on topics related to gardening, composting, design, food and racial justice, medicinal plants, group development, community organizing, and more.

Community Board Applications are now available for the 2019-2021 Term

As hand-on volunteers with deep community ties, GreenThumb gardeners are great candidates to serve on boards, which play an important advisory role on neighborhood issues including land use, city budgets, local service provision, and other community issues. Community boards are consulted when new gardens are begun, and they identify funding priorities in neighborhoods every year during the City budget process.

For Community Board Membership Applications and Deadlines, please visit links below:
Brooklyn / Bronx / Manhattan / Queens / Staten Island

Snow and Ice Removal Responsibilities

As the weather becomes colder and the winter season approaches, a friendly reminder that the removal of snow and ice from sidewalks following a winter weather event is the responsibility of GreenThumb gardeners. Garden groups must have a group plan for keeping sidewalks safe after a snowfall.
Please visit our website for tips and to download the Snow Removal Guide from the New York City Department of Sanitation.

More News & Stories

• 2018-2019 Youth Leadership Council Application is Now Open!
The GreenThumb Youth Leadership Council (YLC) is an opportunity for high school youth 12-21 years old and college students to volunteer at a community garden in New York City. Participants will learn firsthand from community gardeners how to maintain and grow a healthy garden. To apply, please fill out the 2018-2019 YLC Youth Application.

• Volunteer to Help a Garden Grow with the GreenThumb Group Volunteer Program! It is a great way to involve yourself and your colleagues in community service and gardening, while learning new skills and improving your community’s green spaces. To sign up to volunteer, visit: GT Volunteers.

• 2019 Bylaw Re-licensing Requirements Due

Grants & Opportunities

• If you work for or know a community based organization in New York City, consider applying to host a Weekend Walk event in 2019! Weekend Walks are multi-block, multi-day events on commercial corridors that promote the use of streets as public space. NYCDOT provides funding to community based organizations to close commercial streets and program them to highlight NYC’s unique neighborhoods and local businesses. If you are interested in hosting a Weekend Walks event, please review the guidelines and eligibility requirements, and fill out the Weekend Walks 2019 application by January 11, by 5:00 p.m.. For any questions, please email: kgorman@dot.nyc.gov.

• Through Neighborhood Grants, Citizens Committee awards micro-grants of up to $3,000 to resident-led groups to work on community and school projects throughout the city. For more information and to apply, visit their website.
Application Deadline is January 21, at 11:59 p.m..

• Have an idea for your local park, playground or community garden? Then apply for Partnerships for Parks Capacity Fund Grant, small grants of up to $3,000 for community groups to use for projects for their local green space. To learn more and schedule an individual consultation, please visit here. Application deadline is February 1, at midnight.

• Borough President Capital Grants provide support for various important capital projects throughout the city, including capital projects at community gardens such as water installation, new fencing, and more. If you are interested in advocating for a grant for your garden, please visit the links below and contact the office of your Borough President for more details on the application process. Brooklyn / Bronx / Manhattan / Queens / Staten Island

• New York City Council Members can also offer capital grants for capital projects in community gardens. Contact your local Council Member to ask about the process to apply for capital project support in FY 2020.

• Gardens that are part of Brooklyn Queens Land Trust or would like to register with the Cooperative Economic Alliance of New York City (CEANYC), Mini-Grant Opportunities are available for various capacity-building projects. Visit their website for more information.

• NYC Service Neighborhood Volunteer Collaborative – Learn about the free tools and resources that are available to support volunteer engagement while connecting with other community groups. Contact Marcus Johnson (mjohnson1@cityhall.nyc.gov) if you have any questions and to see how you can become involved.

• New Yorkers have an opportunity to propose projects for inclusion in the participatory budgeting process by visiting the New York City Council Participatory Budgeting website. Add an idea about how things could work better for your community to the map and after your idea is submitted, it will be given to community volunteers, called Budget Delegates. These proposals will be up for community-wide vote in the spring

Workshops & Events

ALL of our workshops are free and open to the public.

Highlight of the Month:

Tuesday, January 22, Manhattan: Find your Green Thumb: Starting a Community Garden

6:00 p.m.–8:00 p.m.
Project FarmhouseDo you have big dreams for that lot you walk past every day? Come hear from a panel of community gardeners who started community gardens at different points in the last 40 years.Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions about some of the challenges and rewards of starting a new GreenThumb garden and strategies for organizing community members. GreenThumb will present the steps to forming a new community garden with today’s rules and regulations. This workshop will point new gardeners towards resources and tools for finding information and garnering community support to form new gardening groups.

Visit our event listing on Eventbrite and to RSVP.

• January 10, Manhattan: Youth-Led Culinary Education

• January 12, Brooklyn: Events on a Shoestring (Part 1 of 2)

• January 16, Queens: Make it Rain: Grants for your Green Space

• January 17, Manhattan: Organizing for Garden Success: Bylaws (Part 2 of 2)

• January 24, Manhattan: Dig up your Lot: Research Community Garden History

Soil and lumber request forms are available at ALL GreenThumb-led workshops for GreenThumb Community Gardeners.

Grow to Learn NYC

Grow to Learn is the citywide school gardens initiative and managed through a partnership between GrowNYC, NYC Parks GreenThumb, and the Department of Education’s Office of School Food. Grow to Learn provides ongoing resources, technical assistance, and training to support gardens in NYC schools.

Join the Grow to Learn Network and become eligible to apply for a Grow to Learn Mini-Grant, request soil and lumber deliveries to your school, and more, by registering your school garden!

• January 8, Brooklyn: Fun with Fungi – Growing Mushrooms in the Classroom

• January 10, Manhattan: For Students! Culinary Education for Youth

• January 12, Brooklyn: Events on a Shoestring (Part 1 of 2)

• January 17, Bronx: Trellis Building

• January 29, Manhattan: Restorative Garden Design

Follow GreenThumb on Social Media!

If you or your Community Garden are on social media, follow @greenthumbgrows on Instagram and Twitter, and @GreenThumbNYC on Facebook, to find out about the latest workshops, events, and news at GreenThumb.

GreenThumbNYC

To SUBSCRIBE to the GreenThumb newsletter, visit this link.
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GreenThumb: December 2018 News and Events

December 4, 2018
by garden
7 min read
GreenThumb’s monthly newsletter of workshops and events not to miss in December!

Access all workshop info and more in: GreenThumb’s Winter Program Guide

Gardeners learning about espalier fruit tree pruning from Outreach Coordinator Eric Thomann at Know Waste Lands Community Garden in Brooklyn.
Gardeners learning about espalier fruit tree pruning from Outreach Coordinator Eric Thomann at Know Waste Lands Community Garden in Brooklyn. Photo by Mara Gittleman, GreenThumb
 

GreenThumb GrowTogether 2019

Our 35th Annual GreenThumb GrowTogether conference will be Saturday, March 30, 2019, at the CUNY Graduate Center – 365 5th Ave. in Manhattan. We’re looking forward to putting together another powerful and invigorating conference with you to kick off the 2019 growing season!
 

2019 T-Shirt Contest

Submit your artwork to the GrowTogether t-shirt contest for our 35th annual conference!
The theme is: Roots, Shoots, and Fruits: Celebrating Generations of Gardening
The winning design will appear on the 2019 GrowTogether t-shirts, worn by hundreds of gardeners all over the city. The winners will receive: a t-shirt with their design, framed certificate, and Parks swag (reusable bag, hat, and more!). All are welcome to enter! Applicants may submit up to three entries.
 
For submission details and how to apply, visit: 2019 T-shirt Contest
Application Deadline: Friday, December 7th
 

Interested in facilitating a workshop at the 2019 GreenThumb GrowTogether Conference?

Apply with your ideas at GreenThumb GrowTogether Workshops 2019 by Monday, January 7, 2019. We’re looking for a wide variety of workshops on topics related to gardening, composting, food and racial justice, medicinal plants, group development, community organizing, and more.
 

Apply for Uprooting Racism Training

Facilitated by Leah Penniman of Soul Fire Farm, Uprooting Racism will be a practical training for community garden leaders to address racism in our communities. We will delve into the history of our community gardens and look at our personal and collective roles as stewards of the land. We will spend time developing tangible action plans for uprooting these dynamics within our own gardens. All levels of experience welcome to apply.
 
 

Community Board Applications are now available for the 2019-2021 Term

As hand-on volunteers with deep community ties, GreenThumb gardeners are great candidates to serve on boards, which play an important advisory role on neighborhood issues including land use, city budgets, local service provision, and other community issues. Community boards are consulted when new gardens are begun, and they identify funding priorities in neighborhoods every year during the City budget process.
 
For Community Board Membership Applications and Deadlines, please visit links below:
Brooklyn / Bronx / Manhattan / Queens / Staten Island
 

Snow and Ice Removal Responsibilities

As the weather becomes colder and the winter season approaches, a friendly reminder that the removal of snow and ice from sidewalks following a winter weather event is the responsibility of GreenThumb gardeners. Garden groups must have a group plan for keeping sidewalks safe after a snowfall.

 

Please visit our website for tips and to download the Snow Removal Guide from the New York City Department of Sanitation.

 

Did You Know?

You may request translation services for any GreenThumb workshop for any language at least three weeks in advance at greenthumbinfo@parks.nyc.gov.
 

More News & Stories

 

Grants & Opportunities

  • Through Neighborhood Grants, Citizens Committee awards micro-grants of up to $3,000 to resident-led groups to work on community and school projects throughout the city. For more information and to apply, visit their website.
    Application Deadline is January 21, 2019, at 11:59 p.m..
  • Borough President Capital Grants provide support for various important capital projects throughout the city, including capital projects at community gardens such as water installation, new fencing, and more. If you are interested in advocating for a grant for your garden, please visit the links below and contact the office of your Borough President for more details on the application process. Brooklyn / Bronx / Manhattan / Queens / Staten Island
  • New York City Council Members can also offer capital grants for capital projects in community gardens. Contact your local Council Member to ask about the process to apply for capital project support in FY 2020.
  • Gardens that are part of Brooklyn Queens Land Trust or would like to register with the Cooperative Economic Alliance of New York City (CEANYC), Mini-Grant Opportunities are available for various capacity-building projects. Visit their website for more information.
  • NYC Service Neighborhood Volunteer Collaborative – Learn about the free tools and resources that are available to support volunteer engagement while connecting with other community groups. Contact Marcus Johnson (mjohnson1@cityhall.nyc.gov) if you have any questions and to see how you can become involved.
  • New Yorkers have an opportunity to propose projects for inclusion in the participatory budgeting process by visiting the New York City Council Participatory Budgeting website. Add an idea about how things could work better for your community to the map and after your idea is submitted, it will be given to community volunteers, called Budget Delegates. These proposals will be up for community-wide vote in the spring
 

Workshops & Events

ALL of our workshops are free and open to the public.
 
Highlight of the Month:
 
Make it Rain: Grants for your Green Space
 
Hear from Citizens Committee for NYC and Partnerships for Parks, who provide funding for community green space projects. Learn about the financial resources they offer and tips to secure funding for your 2019 community garden projects.
 
Tuesday, December 4, Bronx: RSVP on Eventbrite
6:30 p.m.–8:30 p.m.
St. Mary’s Recreation Center
* Este taller se ofrecerá con traducción al español.
Tuesday, December 11, Brooklyn: RSVP on Eventbrite
6:30 p.m.–8:30 p.m.
Brownsville Recreation Center
 

December 8, Bronx: Herbal Soap Making
December 13, Manhattan: Organizing for Garden Success: Group Structure (Part 1 of 2)

Soil and lumber request forms are available at ALL GreenThumb-led workshops for GreenThumb Community Gardeners.
 

Grow to Learn NYC

Grow to Learn is the citywide school gardens initiative and managed through a partnership between GrowNYC, NYC Parks GreenThumb, and the Department of Education’s Office of School Food. Grow to Learn provides ongoing resources, technical assistance, and training to support gardens in NYC schools.

Join the Grow to Learn Network and become eligible to apply for a Grow to Learn Mini-Grant, request soil and lumber deliveries to your school, and more, by registering your school garden!

December 4, Manhattan: Food Justice 101: A Workshop for Kids and Teens
December 6, Queens: Bug Hotels

Follow GreenThumb on Social Media!

If you or your Community Garden are on social media, follow @greenthumbgrows on Instagram and Twitter, and @GreenThumbNYC on Facebook, to find out about the latest workshops, events, and news at GreenThumb.

Join us at Our October Flea Market!

October 1, 2018
by garden
1 min read

Please join us for our October Flea Market. Bargains galore!

SATURDAY, October 20
Rain date: Sunday, October 21

West 104th Street Garden FLEA MARKET

Time: 11:00a-4:00p

Location: on 104th Street, between Central Park West and Manhattan Avenue

Join community members as they clear out their closets and offer their wares. All items marked with suggested donations. All proceeds benefit the West 104th Street Garden.

There is a need for donated items for sale:
Contact Beverly Bates: bbates928@gmail.com

Feel free to Download the October 21, 2018 Flea Market Flyer to post in your mailroom.

October flea market flyer

Garden Updates: May 18, 2018

May 18, 2018
by garden
2 min read

Hello West 104th Street Community Garden Members,

Just a reminder:

We have a work day on Sunday, May 20th, 10:00 am – 12:00 pm in the garden.

We are monitoring the chance of thunderstorms, and if there is a change in the work day we will email a notice.

For the full list of our garden 2018 Work Days see our website calendar at:

http://west104garden.org/news-and-events/calendar/

The website has upcoming events, garden news, and social media contacts at

http://west104garden.org/

Including garden twitter:

Twitter: @west104garden

GreenThumb updates:

1)  GreenThumb is hosting a Manhattan Garden Get Together on Saturday, June 2nd from 11 am – 2 pm.  The venue is Recreation Center 54 at 348 East 54th St. between 1st and 2nd Avenues.  RSVP at mngardengettogether.eventbrite.com.

2) GreenThumb will install new signage at all GT community gardens beginning now and continuing throughout this summer.  This new signage will incorporate a welcome, general rules, and dog guidelines.  At the time of installation GreenThumb will remove previous and non-compliant signage.

3) Our portable toilet application and payment for July through December has been submitted to GreenThumb.

Please reach out to Melissa with any GreenThumb questions. Thank you for reading.

Hope to see you all at the work day!

GreenThumb: May 2018 News and Events

May 1, 2018
by garden
3 min read
1 Comment

GreenThumb Plant Starts Distribution

Get your veggie transplants and native plant starts for your registered GreenThumb garden at our annual Plant Starts Distribution on May 5th from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.. Be sure to visit our registration page to RSVP and learn more.

Collage Garden Exhibition Opening

On May 12th from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m., “Paper Garden”, an international collage show with garden-themed collages from all over the world, will be on display throughout the grounds at 6BC Botanical Garden in the East Village. On view until June 30th.

*Rain Date: May 20th*

Image courtesy from the_collage_garden.

Share Your “Art in the Gardens” Month Event

We are highlighting gardens with sculpture and murals in them, as well as creative and artistic events scheduled for next month.

If your garden is having a community art project event in the month of May, please email greenthumbinfo@parks.nyc.gov to let us know.

Request for Proposals

The Fund for Public Health in New York City, on behalf of the Building Healthy Communities initiative and NYC Parks GreenThumb, is currently accepting proposals from art organizations and individual artists interested in developing and installing art in three selected community gardens (William B. Washington Memorial Garden, Central Harlem; Canarsie Neighborhood Alliance, Canarsie; Patrick Van Doren Pocket Park, Bed-Stuy) in order to further activate public space and celebrate the strong history of arts and culture in community gardens. To learn more about this opportunity, view the Request for Proposals page. Deadline for submission is Monday, May 28th, 2018, 11:59 p.m. EST.

Community of Gardens

Community of Gardens, a digital archive hosted by Smithsonian Gardens in partnership with our Archives of American Gardens, are compiling gardening stories from gardeners or anyone who enjoys spending time in community gardens. This project was designed to preserve our country’s diverse garden heritage and they would love to see your stories! You can contribute your images, stories, videos, and oral histories related to gardens and gardening by emailing: communityofgardens@si.edu or sharing your stories through their website.

More News & Stories

• Save the Date for Harvest Fair: Saturday, 9/15 – Location TBD
• 2019 Bylaw Re-licensing Requirements Due
• New Safe Soil Gardening Practices Announced

Grants & Opportunities

• List your organization with the NYC Food Policy Database
• ioby: Power Up Neighborhood Match Grant
• ioby/PfP: Partnerships for Parks Crowdfunding Challenge
• The Awesome Foundation Microgrants

Workshops & Events

Grow to Learn Workshops
• May 9, Brooklyn: Potato Planters
• May 12, Bronx: Butterfly Project NYC Native Plant ShareDid you know that ALL our workshops are free and open to the public? You can find soil and lumber request forms at ALL GreenThumb-led workshops.

GreenThumb Workshop Survey

Do you have ideas for GreenThumb workshops? Would you like to host a workshop in your garden, share your skills by teaching other gardeners, or simply let us know which workshops you’d like us to offer? Let us know in the GreenThumb Workshop Survey.

Access all workshop info and more in: GreenThumb’s Spring Program Guide