Community gardens come in all sizes and shapes, and are filled with a diversity of crops and gardeners alike. Community gardens play a valuable role in creating healthier communities by increasing community involvement and interaction between neighbors, providing fresh fruits and vegetables, and increasing opportunities for healthy outdoor physical activity. In their simple grassroots way, community gardens are making a growing contribution to the local food movement, to food security, and to food justice. Community gardens build relationships that last beyond the growing season. A community garden can help transform people who happen to live in the same place into a united community. It celebrates diversity in individual plots while creating opportunities for people to work together and learn from each other—about gardening, food preparation, and more. They learn to respect each others’ differences and to appreciate what they have in common.
Forsyth County Community Gardens
The Forsyth Community Gardening program mission is to support residents in establishing and sustaining community gardens, primarily by developing local leaders’ skills in community organizing and sustainable horticulture. By growing gardens and garden leaders, we seek to improve residents’ access to fresh produce and nutrition, enhance environmental quality, provide outdoor educational opportunities for all ages, and promote social well-being.
Our program supports the growing efforts of almost 90 community and school gardens. Check out the online map of community gardens to find one close to you!
Don’t see your garden? Fill out the Garden Directory Update form or contact the Community Gardening Program Coordinator.
Want to volunteer with an existing garden? Fill out the Volunteer Interest Form.
What is a community garden?
A community garden is any piece of land gardened by a group of people. Community gardens are as varied as the places in which they are located. They can be found at schools, parks, housing projects, places of worship, vacant lots, private properties, or anywhere there is open land and lots of sunlight. Each is developed to meet the needs of the people who come together to grow fruits, vegetables, flowers, herbs and other plants on common ground. A community garden can be any size or shape, ranging from just a few raised beds to two or three acres. (excerpt from “Eat Smart, Move More: Growing Communities through Gardens“)
Community Gardening Quick Links
- How to get involved
- How to start a community garden
- How Forsyth Cooperative Extension supports community gardens
- Horticulture resources
