Community Gardens

Community Gardens Mini Grant

UWCI helps facilitate a mini grants process for organizations or government entities to apply for funding. 10–25 sites across central Iowa are funded with this grant each year. Priority is placed on gardens serving communities with limited access to healthy foods, such as high-poverty or food desert neighborhoods.
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Community Garden Directory

A tool for searching for community gardens and demographic information, displaying them in a map and directory is provided to help improve access to fresh, locally grown produce.
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Resources

Explore our selected collection of resources to support your gardening journey, whether you’re starting new or enhancing an existing garden. Find guides, toolkits, and educational materials to help you cultivate a thriving garden and engage with community.
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What is a Community Garden?

A community garden is a shared space where individuals collectively grow plants or raise animals. These gardens can be situated on either public or private land and are maintained by local residents. They may serve a general neighborhood or focus on specific groups, such as a school garden involving students, teachers, and parents, which supports educational activities. Alternatively, a community garden might be run by a nonprofit organization in a neighborhood, bringing neighbors together to enjoy fresh produce, especially in areas lacking access to fresh food within half a mile.

Benefits of Community Gardening

(Information from American Community Garden Association)

Improves the quality of life for people in the garden
Provides a catalyst for neighborhood and community development
Stimulates Social Interactions
Encourages Self-Reliance
Beautifies Neighborhoods
Produces Nutritious Food
Reduces Family Food Budgets
Conserves Resources
Creates opportunity for recreation, exercise, therapy, and education
Reduces Crime
Preserves Green Space
Creates income opportunities and economic development
Reduces city heat from streets and parking lots
Provides opportunities for intergenerational and cross-cultural connections

Our garden partners have achieved notable success in feeding their neighbors.

In 2023, our community gardens reported:

Benefits of Expanding Fresh Produce Access for Low-Income and ALICE Households

Families below poverty level are those whose income falls below a set threshold determined by the federal poverty level (FPL). This means their earnings are not sufficient to meet basic needs such as food, housing, and healthcare. These families often qualify for various forms of government assistance to help cover essential expenses.

In central Iowa (Polk, Dallas, and Warren counties), there are 58, 864 people below the federal poverty level (Source: US Census Bureau ACS 5-Year 2018-2022).

ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) may be a neighbor. You may be ALICE. As cashiers, waiters, childcare providers, and other members of our essential workforce, ALICE households earn above the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) but cannot afford the basic cost of living in their county. Despite struggling to make ends meet, ALICE households often do not qualify for public assistance.   These struggling households are forced to make impossible choices each day.

How can you get involved?