We work to make fresh produce accessible.

Mission Statement:

The Giving Garden is committed to building food sovereignty in Alachua County by providing horticultural education for traditionally under-resourced communities and by growing produce to enable regional fresh food access.

What do we do?

The Gainesville Giving Garden, a community-led nonprofit farm, strives to enable equitable access to healthy food and the benefits that come with local eating.

Giving Garden harvests are donated to individuals who have identified as food-insecure. This is achieved by partnering with mutual aid organizations that pick up and deliver our vegetables to folks wanting fresh produce.

We offer horticultural experiences to marginalized individuals wanting hands-on experience growing food. We work to empower underserved community members with the knowledge of how to grow and eat locally.

The Giving Garden is a hub for learning - which in turn bolsters local food access - with leadership development centered around growing organic food for those in need.

We open our farm to the entire community on Sunday Volunteer Days, during which folks of all shapes, sizes, backgrounds, and experiences come together to take care of the land and grow quality food. Read our Volunteer Page for more information.

Tell me more:

Quality food shouldn’t be exclusive to a specific income bracket. We believe that eating local, choosing organic, and supporting sustainable is key to a better world; one in which people and the environment are healthy, happy, and connected. Access to organic, fresh produce should be a right, not a privilege. We’re on a journey to bridge the gap between underserved community members and local, quality food. Our adventure began during Covid-19 with one acre of land, a dedicated team, and families wanting access to healthy food choices.

At the Gainesville Giving Garden, we believe that food is medicine - for our bodies, for our minds, and for healing our disparate communities. Our donation farm partners with organizations working directly with our audience, so that we fill gaps rather than recreate what’s already in existence. We know that we can’t go it alone to achieve real impact. The organizations we partner with are led by community leaders who inform how we operate to best serve our audience and the Earth. These partnerships were established in an effort to not only learn from those already tapped into our community’s needs, but ultimately to allow our farm to expand access to food as medicine in Gainesville.

We take our land stewardship seriously, and are mindful to make locally-supportive decisions as we operate. We partner with our local seed bank, Working Food, to bolster local seed sovereignty. In this way, we grow resilient, regionally-adapted crops, and provide an educational growing site for our seed stewards. Buying local also reduces the environmental impact of material transportation.

We utilize a range of techniques to promote sustainable gardening. As often as possible, we use mulch - leafs and straw - to retain water, and irrigate using drip lines to reduce water waste. When needed, we use overhead watering to ensure crops are hydrated throughout the Florida heat. By growing in a bio-intensive fashion, we create microclimates within our growing spaces to allow for maximum harvest potential and also to retain water. In addition to our collaboration with Working Food, we partner with local composting business, Beaten Path Compost. Through this partnership, we use quality humus on a regular basis to ensure our plants grow in nutrient-rich, mycelium-dense soil. We are proud to use Beaten Path’s compost, as it not only serves our garden well, but also allows for a beneficial, closed-loop system within our community. Our neighbors’ food waste becomes plant food for the next cycle of vegetables provided to those who are food insecure.

We can’t forget the power of pollinators! Our vegetable beds are surrounded by pollinator gardens, all of which attract beneficial insects that help to reduce pests in our garden. Pest reduction is made possible by growing flowers like marigolds within our vegetable beds. The garden’s beauty attracts birds, bees, and humans alike!

Our Story:

In Spring 2021, we were donated land to transform it into a working farm. The property was a forgotten lot in town, with a decrepit, abandoned parking lot covering half of it. As we worked to transform this forgotten space into a thriving farm, we came in contact with neighborhood residents who were elated to see what they described as a 'site for crime’ changed into a productive space. In May 2021, we demolished an abandoned parking lot and brought in over 160 cubic yards of topsoil and compost from local businesses. What was once a site of crime and litter became a space for community and abundance. We began hosting weekly volunteer days in the Fall of 2021, and since that point have brought in between 15-50 volunteers on a weekly basis. We amended the land by growing diverse cover crops that naturally fertilized the soil that was brought in. Since the farm’s inception, our team has managed the entire operation organically in order to grow the highest quality vegetables and to avoid using harmful materials in our community.

In its first two seasons, the Gainesville Giving Garden harvested roughly 3,000 pounds of food, donated to recipients. Harvest bags were full of seasonal, organic vegetables and paired with recipe cards to inspire easy and exciting meals.

Our local aid partners:

In our first year, we partnered with Family Promise of Gainesville to distribute vegetables to families in need of healthy food. Family Promise is a nonprofit organization that provides shelter and comprehensive support for homeless families with children. In addition, we harvested vegetables on a weekly basis for the Equal Access Clinics - enabling patients to receive both free healthcare and access to quality produce.

In our second year, we partnered with the Free Grocery Store, a Gainesville mutual aid organization serving roughly 300 residences. Each week, vegetables are harvested and delivered to the Free Grocery Store to distribute to those in need.

Entering 2023-2024 growing season, we have three major food-distribution partners:

UF Health Shands Pediatrics Clinics
Gainesville’s Free Grocery Store
Swarthy East GNV

These organizations deliver our fresh food to a wide range of community members, coming from all walks of life and facets in our county.

How can I help?

Donate! The Giving Garden relies on donations by those who believe in this cause. Donations go towards purchasing tools, materials, and the necessary resources to keep our farm operating and providing access to good food.

The Giving Garden is always open to tool and material donation. Here are a few examples of helpful gifts to the farm: