About
Join Brockton's Promise, The Farm at Stonehill & the City of Brockton in our community garden programming to ensure the safety, improvement, and health of our city.The significant benefits of community gardens for myriad populations (the elderly, those who have experienced trauma, students, families, recent immigrants, etc.) cannot be understated. Through funding from our sponsors and incredible partnerships, we have created this website to house all things gardens! Explore and contact us when you decide to Get Dirty and Give Back in the gardens.
BROCKTON COMMUNITY GARDEN PROJECT:
While there have been interested groups and excited community members involved in gardening and urban development around community for years, never before have we seen such a beautiful and comprehensive movement taking "root" in the City of Champions, Brockton- Massachusetts. First through a Mass in Motion grant, followed by three installments of funding from the CHNA 22 (now known as the Greater Brockton Health Alliance,) and then finally funding from our newest partner- The New England Grassroots Environment fund, the project has taken on different iterations. Beginning with school based gardens, and then extending to community sites, we are now creating a network that extends to all neighborhoods and parts of the city.
The garden network currently:
- Meets monthly from March through November to network, share events, and talk about best practices
- Publishes a newsletter during the summer showing the progress of the gardens during the growing season
- Can support purchasing of resources for already established beds
- Will help with the planning and mapping of new beds at sites with volunteer participation
- Spreads the word around all garden/ urban agriculture programs and news in the city
- Supports grant applications, curriculum development, and sustainability plans per site.
- Maintains resources, creates and will translate a garden project guide
WHAT WE'VE ACHIEVED
- Expanding the number of garden beds in the city to over 23 sites
- Revitalizing the beds which have become overgrown or left unattended
- Sent 6 community members to various Urban Garden Education conferences in the New England region
- Currently updating an interactive map that shows where the gardens are active
- Planned 4 cleanups in the 2017 spring season at various garden sites
- Provide 5 workshops on myriad topics from May-October, open to the public
- Support the development and resources needed to ensure gardens' success for over 10 sites
- Create a comprehensive, collaborative network for new and experienced gardeners in the city.