Hi all — Please see below for information and events from Greenthumb.
GreenThumb Gardeners’ Handbook 2021
The 2021 Edition of the GreenThumb Gardeners’ Handbookis a resource for community gardeners and the general public that covers a variety of topics, including event planning, construction work, accepting donations, selling garden produce, tree pruning, garden bylaws, and much more. The handbook includes many, but not all, GreenThumb, NYC Parks, New York City, and New York State best practices, policies, and laws that pertain to community gardens in the GreenThumb network. Gathering these topics and policies in one place helps gardeners in creating and sustaining these thriving public spaces. Gardeners have informed policies, guidelines, and protocols included in this Handbook, and GreenThumb is grateful for the immense time and grassroot effort community gardeners put into making gardens beautiful, productive, and community-centric for more than 40 years.
The Handbook is available to all garden members and members of the public in digital form here on our website and will soon be available at the same link in multiple languages.
GreenThumb Programming Updates
Open Garden Day 2021 – Sign up to Participate!
Saturday, June 5, 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
We are seeking community gardens across the city that want to participate in our fourth annual Open Garden Day NYC. During this day, gardens open their gates on the same day to invite the general public to explore these local jewels. This year we are celebrating Open Garden Day NYC on Saturday, June 5th (World Environment Day) from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. (rain or shine).
We are asking all gardens who are taking part in Open Garden Day NYC to schedule a free activity or event for the public to enjoy, along with some of our city’s finest community garden spaces. Activities can include tours, arts and crafts, music performances, workshops, or feel free to suggest your own activity. Please note that all gardeners must follow thecurrent health and safety guidelinesfor all activities.
If you would like to participate, please fill out the form at bit.ly/OGDNYC2021. Open Garden Day event submissions will be accepted on a rolling basis until May 26th.The first 50 gardens that sign up will receive a banner for their garden gate.
Please see the attached tipsheet for suggestions on how to host an event or activity during Open Garden Day 2021!
May is Bike Month – Community Garden Bike Tours!
NYC Parks GreenThumb is partnering with the NYC Department of Transportation to celebrate May being Bike Month with a series of socially distanced community garden bike tours, along with the release of a number of self-guided bike tour maps available for download and use.
To learn more about the NYC Department of Transportation’s bike programming, safe cycling resources, and more check out their website!
Read on for more details about our upcoming community garden bike tours. These tours are specifically geared towards people interested in community gardens but are not current members. Please share this information with friends, family, neighbors, anyone interested in joining a garden!
South Bronx Community Garden Bike Tour
Saturday, May 15 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Please register here.
South Bronx has always been the hotbed for urban expression and innovation. The community gardens highlight this legacy by providing the visitor a glimpse of South Bronx’s unique take on eco-sustainability, community needs provision, youth and senior involvement, entrepreneurship, indigenous spirituality, animal husbandry, and cultural inclusivity. Prepare yourself for a warm South Bronx welcome!
Central Brooklyn Community Garden Bike Tour
Saturday, May 22 1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Please register here.
This tour will take you through Brooklyn neighborhoods which collectively include almost sixty percent of Brooklyn’s GreenThumb gardens. We will start the bike tour at Garden of Life garden in the Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood. This neighborhood includes 53 GreenThumb gardens. We will then cycle through Brownsville (26 gardens), ending up in East New York (56 gardens). While the predominant use of these gardens is food production, you will be sure to see the beauty of Spring flowers in almost every garden.
Harlem Community Garden Bike Tour
Saturday, June 5 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Please register here.
This historic Harlem bike tour explores the neighborhood’s rich community garden legacy. Along the ride, participants will see diverse food production practices honoring Black southern roots, horticultural beacons, and outdoor educational spaces that are woven into the fabric of Central Harlem.
This event is part of NYC Parks GreenThumb’s Open Garden Day 2021, a day where we celebrate community gardens and where many are open to the public at the same time. This year, Open Garden Day is taking place on World Environment Day.
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 the 2021 GreenThumb GrowTogether Conference? Are you looking for past workshops, and other tutorials from GreenThumb? They are all available on our new NYC Parks GreenThumb YouTube channel! Click here for all the videos. Please subscribe to our channel to be notified of new videos and stay up to date.
Upcoming webinars include:
Please click the link to RSVP and receive information on how to join the webinar.
Saving Seeds in NYC: Local Seed Keeping Initiatives Panel
Tuesday, May 11, 5:30 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Keeping seeds connects us to our past and to our collective future. This virtual panel will highlight the various ongoing seed keeping initiatives in and around New York City that community gardeners can get involved with. Learn how to connect with larger ongoing efforts to save and share seeds for food and herbs in our region.
They Only Come Out at Night: Inviting Bats to your Garden
Wednesday, May 12, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Bats love eating mosquitoes, so we love bats! Join NYC Urban Park Ranger Dan Tainow for a workshop on how to create bat habitat in your garden. We’ll discuss bat house design and installation. Co-presented with GrowNYC Education.
Open Orchard School: Heirloom Apples and Pears
Thursday, May 13, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
The Open Orchard School series gives participants a hands-on, behind-the-scenes view of the creation of The Open Orchard, a future public orchard containing 100 trees and hundreds of rare and heirloom varieties once grown in the NYC region, but which have disappeared due to climate change and industrial agriculture. In this webinar, artist and orchardist Sam Van Aken will share the often lost or forgotten stories of these rare fruits—stories that are woven into the story of NYC itself. Learn about his decades-long project of collecting these varieties and grafting them onto living trees in order to preserve them, the process that will bring The Open Orchard to life.Facilitated by Sam Van Aken, The Open Orchard.
Planning a Zero Waste Garden Event (Part 1 – virtual)
Thursday, May 20, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Join Earth Matter NY to learn how to plan a zero waste garden event. As stewards of our earth, we should be mindful of the types and amount of resources we consume and strive to reduce the amount of waste we produce. During this workshop, we will introduce the concept of zero waste and teach you what goes into planning and hosting a zero waste event in your garden.
Open Orchard School: Heirloom Stonefruit
Friday, May 21, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
The Open Orchard School series gives participants a hands-on, behind-the-scenes view of the creation of The Open Orchard, a future public orchard containing 100 trees and hundreds of rare and heirloom varieties once grown in the NYC region, but which have disappeared due to climate change and industrial agriculture. In this webinar, artist and orchardist Sam Van Aken will share the often lost or forgotten stories of these rare stonefruits (such as peaches, plums, apricots, nectarines, and cherries)—stories that are woven into the story of NYC itself. Learn about his decades-long project of collecting these varieties and grafting them onto living trees in order to preserve them, the process that will bring The Open Orchard to life. Facilitated by Sam Van Aken, The Open Orchard.
Planning a Zero Waste Garden Event (Part 2 – in person)
Monday, May 24, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Governor’s Island
This workshop will go over the basics composting your garden waste and paper products from events to turn into black gold to apply on your garden beds to promote soil health and vibrant plants. We will take you on a tour of our space on Governors Island and dive into the various components of our Zero Waste Island Initiative, a partnership between Earth Matter NY and the Trust for Governors Island. Space is very limited, and masks will be required. We will be managing a waitlist, so if you register for a ticket and no longer plan to attend, please cancel your ticket or let us know. Participants will be invited to take the 11am or 11:30am ferry to Governor’s Island. Full details will be shared with registrants as the date gets closer.
Saving Seeds in NYC: Basics of Saving Dry and Wet Seeds
Thursday, June 3, 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Keeping seeds connects us to our past and to our collective future. Learn the basics of how to save both dry and wet seeds of common garden veggie crops and herbs. Saving the seeds from the crops you grow can help save money, preserve heirloom varieties, and more. Facilitated by Owen Taylor and Zainab Muhammad, Truelove Seeds.
Updates and Resources from Partners
Working with NYC Parks: How to Build Relationships
Wednesday, May 12, 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m
Community groups who support neighborhood parks and green spaces are most effective when they understand how NYC Parks operates and develop relationships with staff. NYC Parks can be a challenging system to navigate; this webinar will help lay the groundwork for a mutually beneficial relationship so you can best advocate for projects in your community. If you have any questions, contactacademy@cityparksfoundation.org.Join us to learn:
- Examples of successful community group relationships with NYC Parks staff.
- How NYC Parks is structured, centrally and in each borough.
- Tips on how to build successful working relationships.
- Relevant COVID-19 updates to NYC Parks policies.
Is 501(c)(3) for Me? For Community Groups Interested in Becoming a Nonprofit
Tuesday, May 25, 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m
The rewards of starting a nonprofit are enticing: tax-exempt status, expanded grant opportunities, and tax-deductible contributions. Beneath these advantages are complicated logistics and costs which often beg the question—does incorporation make sense at this time? This webinar, facilitated by Partnerships for Parks and the Lawyers Alliance for New York, will go step-by-step through the process of incorporation and tax exemption, leaving you with a better picture of whether or not 501(c)(3) is right for you. We will also discuss alternatives to starting a nonprofit, such as seeking fiscal sponsorship.
CitizensNYC All In Neighborhood Grants Available
Grassroots organizations responding to the immediate needs of struggling New Yorkers will receive unrestricted grants of up to $10,000 to open food pantries, distribute surgical masks, arrange elderly check-ins, or design other projects to meet their neighborhoods’ urgent needs amid the COVID-19 crisis. This grant program is a renaming of our keystone Neighborhood Grants program, which for decades has been awarding micro-grants to resident-led groups to improve the quality of life in their neighborhoods. Grants supported projects in arts, health, environmental justice, beautification, tenants’ rights, and more. Groups do not need 501c3 status to apply and receive the funding. CitizensNYC quickly shifted the focus of this program after findings of a survey we conducted of our extensive grassroots network highlighted five urgent priorities across the city: financial assistance, food, care for older adults, mental health care, and physical health care.
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. You can learn more about the grant, sign up for an info session and apply here
High Tunnels for NYC Gardeners, Growers, & Farmers
If you’ve ever thought about incorporating high tunnels or hoop houses into your garden or farm to extend the growing season, or if you’re curious to learn more about these structures, take five minutes to fill out a short survey from Farm School NYC. Your responses will help inform New York City-wide interest in high tunnels for growing more food and developing a roadmap for urban farmer mentoring and training. With help from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and Farm Service Agency (FSA), technical support and grant opportunities will be available for planning and funding of materials and labor.
New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets Community Growers Grant
The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets is now accepting proposals for projects of up to $50,000 for their 2021 Community Growers Grant Program. For program overview, proposal format and a budget template, please visit here. Applications should be received no later than July 1st. For any questions about this funding, please contact: Kimberly J. Vallejo, Director – New York City, NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets at 718-722-2668 /kim.vallejo@agriculture.ny.gov.
Green Guerillas is seeking gardeners for their Council of Gardeners
All community gardeners and allies of open spaces are invited to join the Council of Gardeners, an inclusive, cross-borough group of community gardeners coming together to voice their needs, initiate collective action, seek funding opportunities and to build social capital. More information about getting involved and upcoming meetings is available here.
Gowanus Canal Conservancy’s Weekend Plant Sales & Compost Givebacks
Saturday, May 8, 10:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, May 22, 2:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
For spring 2021, the Gowanus Canal Conservancy is thrilled to be holding 3 weekend public plant sales and beginning in April a weekly pick-up day for online orders, on Wednesdays 11am-1pm. Native and urban-adapted plants grown in Gowanus, Brooklyn will be available. All proceeds support Gowanus Canal Conservancy’s mission-based programs. If you are ordering online, at check-out please select a date to retrieve your order using the date picker so that we will have it ready for you. During the weekend plant sales, you can browse the nursery, purchase plants + soil and pick-up limited quantities of free compost from Big Reuse!
Plant sales and pickups are located at our nursery, located at the Salt Lot in Gowanus at 2 Second Avenue, 11215. For more information, please visit the Gowanus Canal Conservancywebsite or email plants@gowanuscanalconservancy.org.
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.
