About Us
Community Gardening - Tampa Bay Area
The Coalition of Community Gardens is a non-profit organization, (501(c)3) formed for the purpose of supporting community gardening. Board of Directors are Lena Young Green, Kitty Wallace, Michele Ogilvie, and Travis Malloy.
1) Kitty Wallace, retired educator (supervisor of Exceptional Student Education), is past President of the Tampa Garden Club. She co-founded Tampa Heights Community Garden, which was twice named best community garden in Florida by the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs and tied for best community garden in the Deep South region of the National Garden Club. She is co-founder of the Coalition of Community Gardens – Tampa Bay. Kitty was also named “Inspired Gardener” by the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs for her work with community gardens. She received Hillsborough County Fair Harvest Award for community service. 2) Lena Young Green is a longtime community activist, residing in Tampa, Florida. She worked for the State of Florida for almost 20 years, where she assisted in passage of many laws and state policies for community improvement. She has dedicated many years towards enhancing the quality of life for citizens and served as a member of the Citizens Advisory Committee. with the Hillsborough Planning Commission’s (HPC) Comprehensive Planning, among others. Lena worked with the HPC to create the Tampa Heights Neighborhood Plan which was the first in the City of Tampa to be ratified by Tampa City Council and signed by the mayor. She is founder of the award winning Tampa Heights Community Garden, and along with Kitty Wallace, is co-founder of the Coalition of Community Gardens – Tampa Bay.
3) Michele Ogilvie, serves as a Director of the Coalition and project chair of the Garden Steps Project. A graduate of USF and longtime Tampa resident, she recently retired as Executive Planner for the Hillsborough Metropolitan Planning Organization. 4) Travis Malloy serves as a Director of the Coalition of Community Gardens, Inc. He is an electrical engineer who spent 2 decades building circuit boards for the aerospace industry, before cashing in his retirement plan to buy the 8 acre TrailBale Farm in 2013. He quickly embraced the local food movement selling directly to steady customers through his newsletter and at farmer’s markets where he’s become well-known for his efforts. He founded the Temple Terrace Farmer’s Market and won the city’s Citizen of the Year award in 2017. Travis coordinated with the organic vegetable growers from Waldenponics to plan and open the Meacham Urban Farm as part of Encore, a 40 acre state designated as a Community Redevelopment Area (CRA).
The Coalition of Community Gardens is a non-profit organization, (501(c)3) formed for the purpose of supporting community gardening. Board of Directors are Lena Young Green, Kitty Wallace, Michele Ogilvie, and Travis Malloy.
1) Kitty Wallace, retired educator (supervisor of Exceptional Student Education), is past President of the Tampa Garden Club. She co-founded Tampa Heights Community Garden, which was twice named best community garden in Florida by the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs and tied for best community garden in the Deep South region of the National Garden Club. She is co-founder of the Coalition of Community Gardens – Tampa Bay. Kitty was also named “Inspired Gardener” by the Florida Federation of Garden Clubs for her work with community gardens. She received Hillsborough County Fair Harvest Award for community service. 2) Lena Young Green is a longtime community activist, residing in Tampa, Florida. She worked for the State of Florida for almost 20 years, where she assisted in passage of many laws and state policies for community improvement. She has dedicated many years towards enhancing the quality of life for citizens and served as a member of the Citizens Advisory Committee. with the Hillsborough Planning Commission’s (HPC) Comprehensive Planning, among others. Lena worked with the HPC to create the Tampa Heights Neighborhood Plan which was the first in the City of Tampa to be ratified by Tampa City Council and signed by the mayor. She is founder of the award winning Tampa Heights Community Garden, and along with Kitty Wallace, is co-founder of the Coalition of Community Gardens – Tampa Bay.
3) Michele Ogilvie, serves as a Director of the Coalition and project chair of the Garden Steps Project. A graduate of USF and longtime Tampa resident, she recently retired as Executive Planner for the Hillsborough Metropolitan Planning Organization. 4) Travis Malloy serves as a Director of the Coalition of Community Gardens, Inc. He is an electrical engineer who spent 2 decades building circuit boards for the aerospace industry, before cashing in his retirement plan to buy the 8 acre TrailBale Farm in 2013. He quickly embraced the local food movement selling directly to steady customers through his newsletter and at farmer’s markets where he’s become well-known for his efforts. He founded the Temple Terrace Farmer’s Market and won the city’s Citizen of the Year award in 2017. Travis coordinated with the organic vegetable growers from Waldenponics to plan and open the Meacham Urban Farm as part of Encore, a 40 acre state designated as a Community Redevelopment Area (CRA).
Find a community garden near you
MANATEE
ALLIED ENTITIES:
The following organizations/businesses are affiliated members of the coalition:
City of Tampa, Hillsborough County Public Schools, Hillsborough County Commissioners, Hillsborough County Planning Commission, Hillsborough Extension Service, Hillsborough Metropolitan Planning Organization, Hillsborough Soil & Water Conservation District, Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful, Sustany Foundation, Tampa Bay Network to End Hunger, Tampa Garden Club, WellFed Community, Whitwam Organics,
For more information:
AMERICAN COMMUNITY GARDENING ASSOCIATION https://communitygarden.org/resources/10-steps-to-starting-a-community-garden/
IFAS Institute of Food and Agricultural Science, University of Florida. There are loads of articles on topics of interest: here are a few:
Matching grant - new garden start up funds or established garden expansion funds.
up to $600. see https://sustany.org/community-gardens-matching-fund/
Community Gardening
The benefits of community gardening--
The Coalition of Community Gardens - Tampa Bay, brief history
The Coalition of Community Gardens was the result of a brainstorming session in August, 2015. Representatives of 6 Hillsborough County community gardens and allied professionals were present. Original members: Plant City Commons, Seeds of Faith, Seminole Heights, Tampa Eden Project, Tampa Heights, Temple Terrace, Temple T. Farm 2 Sch, University Area CG, Extension Agents from Hillsborough & Polk County, David Whitwam, Rebecca Blanco. At the next planning meeting, April 2016, we drafted the mission and goals. We have steadily been working to accomplish those goals. We became a 501(c)3 organization. Board of Directors are Lena Young Green, Kitty Wallace, Michele Ogilvie, Travis Malloy.
Organization’s achievements, 2016-2021.
4 th Annual Grow Gardens Conference
Plant City Hillsborough Community College, 1206 N Park Rd., Plant City, Oct. 22, 2021, 9:30-4:30, reception and garden tour to follow.
We salute our presenters; 10:00 Welcome: Dr. Martyn Clay, Ph.D., President of HCC , Plant City
Keynote: Florida Commissioner of Agriculture, Nikki Fried
10:30 Community Gardens Panel: Apollo Beach Community Garden & Food Forest; VISTA Gardens, Tampa; St. Pete Youth Farm
11:30 Health – Gardening Impact:
Mental Health: Kyaien Conner, Ph.D.;
Chronic Disease Prevention: Hillsborough Dept. of Health
12:30 – 1:00 lunch
1:00 Policy Impacts on Community Gardens:
Dell deChant, USF Urban Food Sovereignty, Pasco Florida Food Policy Council;
Toni Young, Ph.D., Personal & Community Garden Policy
2:00 Developing Communities of Gardeners : Karen Elizabeth, Garden Steps, Tampa; Lisa Hickey, Plant-a-Pail, Manatee County IFAS/Extension
3:00 Tour of Urban Agriculture in Eastern & Mid-Atlantic States: Chris Kenrick, Joni Spencer, Sweetwater Organic Community Farm, Tampa.
4:00 – Reception & Garden Tour at Plant City Commons Community Garden
3rd Annual Grow Gardens Conference, held virtually
May 15, 2020
Shouting OUT a big "thank you" to all who attended the Grow Community Gardens Conference 2020!
Hopefully you were able to participate in this "virtual conference" on Friday, May 15, 2020. This was an interactive conference which provided information and inspiration in 3 key areas. It was recorded on You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otJZ1utgbG8.
These are 3 essential areas important to the health of our community and to the success of community gardening.
HEALTH - presenters will inform on the impact of community gardening/food systems on the health of our community:
POLICY - presenters will share key policy issues that impact community gardening
Grow Gardens Virtual Conference, 2020: Thanks to Garden Steps Partners who presented at the webinar. Thanks to those who attended! Information and inspiration on the impact of gardening on health, the impact of policy on food security/food sovereignty.
2nd Annual Grow Gardens Conference, 2019
DEEP APPRECIATION FOR the garden leaders who participated in the sessions:
1st Grow Gardens Conference, 2018:
DEEP APPRECIATION FOR the garden leaders and city/county officials from across the region who participated in the panel discussion: Thom Snelling/City of Tampa, Raleigh Barnes/Hillsborough Parks & Rec., Cheri Donohue/City of Temple Terrace, Bill Bilodeaux/Sustainable Urban Agriculture Coalition Pinellas , Robyn Keefe, Pinellas Parks Dept., Alana Brasier, Renaissance Planning, Michele Ogilvie/Garden Steps, Tampa. We were so sorry that Ava Deveaux, Bartlett Park/Pinellas, had a family emergency and could not attend.
· THANKS to—Joseph W. Dorsey, Ph.D., USF Patel College of Global Sustainability: Growing Gardens, Raising Communities: Movement, Moment, Momentum
·THANKS to members for presenting their projects: 1)Lee Elementary school garden, 2)Homebiogas—Tracy Tippin, 3) Blake HS school garden & biodigester; 4) Sustany Foundation, Seed to Sustenance ; 5) Rodrick Taylor, fresh chef; 6) Fresh Market HART/Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful; 7) Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences; 8) Clearwater Marine Aquarium; zero waste plan; 9) Karissa Raymond, U of F.
·THANKS to members for presenting information
Thank you to our sponsors: Sustany Foundation and Garden Steps.
THANKS to Shell's Feed & Garden Supply for sponsoring our hospitality table.
MANATEE
- Manatee Square Community Garden, Mack Lessig, mlessig@ufl.edu,
- Neal Garden, Terrie Hodges <terriehodges@aol.com>; Cathy Cuthbertson <catcom3@verizon.net>; Vicky Followell <vfollowell@tampabay.rr.com>
- Farmden & Community Garden, 15029 14th Street, Pasco County
- Friendship Farms & Fare, 6119 Illinois Ave., New Port Richey
- Grand Gardens, New Port Richey
- Watson Park Community Garden, Dade City
- Bartlett Park Community Garden, St. Pete. 1443 Highland St. S, St. Pete, Ava, goodhearted25@gmail.com.
- Beacon Food Forest Community Garden, 2470 Nursery Rd., Clearwater, Jay Hardman
- Clearwater Community Garden, 2333 Grove, Howard Warshauer, captainhw@gmail.com
- Daystar Life Center Community Garden, 1055 28th Street S., St. Petersburg, Robin Clemmons, robinpclemmons@gmail.com,
- Dunedin Community Garden, 1040 Virginia St, Dunedin, FL, Elizabeth Faubert, dunedingarden@gmail.com
- Euclid Heights Community Garden, · 5000 10th St., N., St. Pete, Bill Richkus, brichkus@gmail.com,
- 15th Street Community Garden, 302 15th Street N, St. Pete, Bill Bilodeau, bbilodeau40@gmail.com
- Cops 'N Kids , Tarpon Springs, Ryan Farley, canyoudigit560@gmail.com
- Faith Garden in Dunedin, 455 Scotland Street, Dunedin, Brenda Thomas, drwbt1969,gmail.com,
- Indian Rocks Community Garden, Bob Brotherton, rhbrother@verizon.net
- Oldsmar Organic Community Garden, 423 Lafayette Blvd, Oldsmar, oldsmarorganicgarden@gmail.com,
- St. Pete Youth Farm, 1664 12 Street South, St. Petersburg, FL, Carla Bristol, comegrow@stpeteyouthfarm.org
- 1Body Ministries Community Garden, 124th Avenue & Tinsley Terr., Amanda, amanda@1bodyministries.com
- 813 Hood Garden - Dee, 813hoodgarden@gmail.com, 10004 N 11th Street.
- Apollo Beach Community Food Forest and garden, Apollo Beach County Park, Paula, apollobeachgardenclub@gmail.com,
- Forest Hills Presbyterian Church Community Garden,709 W Linebaugh Ave., Linda Swiger, lswiger@tampabay.rr.com
- Healthy 22nd Street community of gardeners, demonstration garden at Chelsea St/22nd St., kittwal@aol.com
- HOPE Community Garden, Suzette Dean, 4902 N. 22 St., Tampa, bministr@yahoo.com,
- Meacham Urban Farm, 1108 E. Scott St., Tampa, Travis Malloy, travismalloy@gmail.com, www.meachamfarm.org,
- Mustard Seed Garden at Lutz Community Church 601 Sunset Lane, Ardell ONeal, adosr6@gmail.com,
- New St. Paul AME Church, 4603 N. 42 St., Pastor RJ Stevenson, admin@newsaintpaul.org,
- Plant City Commons Community Garden. Karen Elizabeth, 2001 E Cherry St. Plant City, 12circle8@gmail.com
- Progress Village Community Garden, 677-7074
- Robles Park Village Community Garden. Reva Iman, 3518 N Avon Avenue, Tampa
- Seeds of Faith Community Garden at Bay Life Church, 1017 N Kingsway Rd, Brandon, John Dukes, Steve McKinnon, seedsoffaithgarden19@gmail.com,
- Seminole Hts Community Garden, Colleen Parker, 6114 River Terrace., Tampa, info.shcg@gmail.com
- Seffner Community Garden, 406 N Kingsway Ave., Seffner. Joy.ingram@verizon.net
- Sweetwater Organic Community Farm, 6942 W Comanche Ave., Chris Kenrick, Joni Spencer. chriskenrick195@gmail.com
- Sulphur Springs Community Garden, 1506 East Eskimo Ave., Whitwamorganics.com,
- Sustainable Living Project, 918 W. Sligh Ave., Tampa, Georgea Snyder, slpgeorgea@gmail.com
- Tampa Bay Community Garden at St. Mary’s Ethiopian Church, Fr. B, 679-4982 (not in operation at this time)
- Tampa Hts Community Garden, Kitty Wallace, Lena Young Green, 992-0940, kittwal@aol.com,
- Temple Terrace Community Garden, 329 S Riverhills Dr., Temple Terrace, Valerie, ricoflash@gmail.com,
- University Area Harvest Hope Community Garden, Alex Baron, abaron@uacdc.org, , 14013 N 22 Street, Tampa.
- Vincentian Faith & Grace Garden, 9807 N 56 Street, Temple Terrace, Kelly Seeley, kellymseeley@gmail.com,
- VISTA Gardens, Carrollwood, Jennifer Grebenschikoff, 13572 South Village Dr., Tampa, jengreb@gmail.com,
- Waters Avenue Church Community Garden, 609 W Waters Ave., Jessica Brenner, jeccabrerr@gmail.com,
- Wellswood Community Garden, 4918 N Mendenhall Dr., Tampa, Kitty Wallace, kittwal@aol.com.
- Ybor Street, 2429 Ybor Street, Tampa, Jessica Brenner, jeccabrerr@gmail.com,
- Om Grown Community Garden, 4242 Lake in the Woods Drive, Spring Hill, Michael Bonanno, www.omgrowngarden.com
ALLIED ENTITIES:
The following organizations/businesses are affiliated members of the coalition:
City of Tampa, Hillsborough County Public Schools, Hillsborough County Commissioners, Hillsborough County Planning Commission, Hillsborough Extension Service, Hillsborough Metropolitan Planning Organization, Hillsborough Soil & Water Conservation District, Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful, Sustany Foundation, Tampa Bay Network to End Hunger, Tampa Garden Club, WellFed Community, Whitwam Organics,
For more information:
AMERICAN COMMUNITY GARDENING ASSOCIATION https://communitygarden.org/resources/10-steps-to-starting-a-community-garden/
IFAS Institute of Food and Agricultural Science, University of Florida. There are loads of articles on topics of interest: here are a few:
- Florida Vegetable Gardening Guide: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/vh021
- compost - http://sarasota.ifas.ufl.edu/compost/quick-tutorial.shtml
- growing heirloom tomatoes: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs174
Matching grant - new garden start up funds or established garden expansion funds.
up to $600. see https://sustany.org/community-gardens-matching-fund/
Community Gardening
The benefits of community gardening--
- Adds to the quality of life
- Exercise
- Fresh , organically grown veggies
- Get to know your neighbors
- Provides opportunities for social engagement & education
- Intergenerational interaction, cross cultural connections
- Children learn where their food comes from
- Beautifies the neighborhood
- Reduces crime
- Improves property values
- Benefits the environment
- Eating local reduces carbon footprint
- Improves the viability of soil
The Coalition of Community Gardens - Tampa Bay, brief history
The Coalition of Community Gardens was the result of a brainstorming session in August, 2015. Representatives of 6 Hillsborough County community gardens and allied professionals were present. Original members: Plant City Commons, Seeds of Faith, Seminole Heights, Tampa Eden Project, Tampa Heights, Temple Terrace, Temple T. Farm 2 Sch, University Area CG, Extension Agents from Hillsborough & Polk County, David Whitwam, Rebecca Blanco. At the next planning meeting, April 2016, we drafted the mission and goals. We have steadily been working to accomplish those goals. We became a 501(c)3 organization. Board of Directors are Lena Young Green, Kitty Wallace, Michele Ogilvie, Travis Malloy.
Organization’s achievements, 2016-2021.
- Organized quarterly meetings, visiting each other's gardens, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020 (until the pandemic)
- established a logo
- started a website
- Established goals at our first organizational meeting 4/16 coalition_workshop__4-16-16_kw.docx
- Participated in Hillsborough County Neighborhood Conference
- Participated in Sustany Buzz
- Participated in the State Fair, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021
- Participated in Garden Steps, one of 50 counties to receive $10,000.00 in Aetna Foundation's Healthiest Cities/Counties Challenge to improve the health of our community. Following 2 years, Garden Steps came in runner up and was awarded $50,000.00 to implement the Garden Steps action plan over the next 3 years.
- completed year 1 of Garden Steps Project implementation with installation of the Healthy 22nd street demonstration garden, Middleton HS school & community garden, 5 community partner gardens, and 16 residential front yard gardens as well as 14 community workshops.
- Article in Tampa Bay Times in September, 2021
- Created a brochure promoting community gardening for the Department of Health public_health_pamphlet_hillsb.pub.pdf
- Made numerous presentations to neighborhood groups;
- Participated in Hillsborough county center wellness display, Earth Day week.
- Collaborated with university partners to expand the field of knowledge; UF research and USF research, UT research.
- encouraged Youth Gardening opportunities; partnered with local Elementary School to establish their school garden;
- connected with government agencies to streamline process
- connected with allied organizations to support existing gardens
- Received Best of the Best, Hillsborough County Soil/Water Conservation award
- connected with Extension to develop educational supports for inner city gardens; inaugurated classes in the fall of 2019.
- Made a presentation at the Annual Conference of the American Community Gardening Assoc., Sept. 2019
- collaborated with the Sustany Foundation to establish a source of funds to aid groups in starting a new garden or enhance an existing one; presented checks to 5 garden start-ups: Apollo Beach, Urban Progress Alliance, Forest Hills Presbyterian Church, 1Body Ministries, and University Area Community Garden (Harvest Hope Park)
- met with City of Tampa Parks/Rec Director, Planning & Devel Director, Paul Dial and staff to establish a framework of collaboration, utilizing selected property in City of Tampa Parks for community gardening.
- First community garden is located in a City of Tampa Park, Wellswood Community Garden - 2/2021
- hosted our annual Grow Gardens Conference, 2018, 2019, 2020 (virtual), 2021 (hybrid)
4 th Annual Grow Gardens Conference
Plant City Hillsborough Community College, 1206 N Park Rd., Plant City, Oct. 22, 2021, 9:30-4:30, reception and garden tour to follow.
We salute our presenters; 10:00 Welcome: Dr. Martyn Clay, Ph.D., President of HCC , Plant City
Keynote: Florida Commissioner of Agriculture, Nikki Fried
10:30 Community Gardens Panel: Apollo Beach Community Garden & Food Forest; VISTA Gardens, Tampa; St. Pete Youth Farm
11:30 Health – Gardening Impact:
Mental Health: Kyaien Conner, Ph.D.;
Chronic Disease Prevention: Hillsborough Dept. of Health
12:30 – 1:00 lunch
1:00 Policy Impacts on Community Gardens:
Dell deChant, USF Urban Food Sovereignty, Pasco Florida Food Policy Council;
Toni Young, Ph.D., Personal & Community Garden Policy
2:00 Developing Communities of Gardeners : Karen Elizabeth, Garden Steps, Tampa; Lisa Hickey, Plant-a-Pail, Manatee County IFAS/Extension
3:00 Tour of Urban Agriculture in Eastern & Mid-Atlantic States: Chris Kenrick, Joni Spencer, Sweetwater Organic Community Farm, Tampa.
4:00 – Reception & Garden Tour at Plant City Commons Community Garden
3rd Annual Grow Gardens Conference, held virtually
May 15, 2020
Shouting OUT a big "thank you" to all who attended the Grow Community Gardens Conference 2020!
Hopefully you were able to participate in this "virtual conference" on Friday, May 15, 2020. This was an interactive conference which provided information and inspiration in 3 key areas. It was recorded on You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otJZ1utgbG8.
These are 3 essential areas important to the health of our community and to the success of community gardening.
HEALTH - presenters will inform on the impact of community gardening/food systems on the health of our community:
- Dr. Ayesha Johnson, Hillsborough County Department of Health
- Monica Petrella, Hillsborough County Food System Coordinator
- Session 1: Health 9:00 to 10:30am -
- facilitator: Renee Wallace, public health USF.
- Karen Elizabeth, Plant City Commons Community Garden
- Ardell O'Neal, Mustard Seed Community Garden, Lutz
- Session 2: Resources 10:45am to 12:15pm -
- facilitator: Susan Webb, regional extension agent for UF/IFAS Extension, community/school gardens
POLICY - presenters will share key policy issues that impact community gardening
- Lena Young Green, lifelong community activist, legislative aide for local representatives for 20 years
- Michele Ogilvie, Executive Planner for the Hillsborough Metropolitan Planning Organization
- Del DeChant, professor of Religious Studies, USF; member of the Florida Food Policy Council executive board
- Session 3: Policy 2:00 to 3:30 pm. -
- facilitator: Toni Young, USF College of Global Sustainability
Grow Gardens Virtual Conference, 2020: Thanks to Garden Steps Partners who presented at the webinar. Thanks to those who attended! Information and inspiration on the impact of gardening on health, the impact of policy on food security/food sovereignty.
2nd Annual Grow Gardens Conference, 2019
DEEP APPRECIATION FOR the garden leaders who participated in the sessions:
1st Grow Gardens Conference, 2018:
DEEP APPRECIATION FOR the garden leaders and city/county officials from across the region who participated in the panel discussion: Thom Snelling/City of Tampa, Raleigh Barnes/Hillsborough Parks & Rec., Cheri Donohue/City of Temple Terrace, Bill Bilodeaux/Sustainable Urban Agriculture Coalition Pinellas , Robyn Keefe, Pinellas Parks Dept., Alana Brasier, Renaissance Planning, Michele Ogilvie/Garden Steps, Tampa. We were so sorry that Ava Deveaux, Bartlett Park/Pinellas, had a family emergency and could not attend.
· THANKS to—Joseph W. Dorsey, Ph.D., USF Patel College of Global Sustainability: Growing Gardens, Raising Communities: Movement, Moment, Momentum
·THANKS to members for presenting their projects: 1)Lee Elementary school garden, 2)Homebiogas—Tracy Tippin, 3) Blake HS school garden & biodigester; 4) Sustany Foundation, Seed to Sustenance ; 5) Rodrick Taylor, fresh chef; 6) Fresh Market HART/Keep Tampa Bay Beautiful; 7) Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences; 8) Clearwater Marine Aquarium; zero waste plan; 9) Karissa Raymond, U of F.
·THANKS to members for presenting information
- Healthy Gardens—Koreen Brennan, Permacul tur e, Grow Permaculture.com·
- Healthy gardeners—Ayesha Johnson, Ph.D. /DOH, Health issues in Food Desert Areas·
- Healthy community—Bardine Hicks,/Senior Connections, Gardening w Seniors
Thank you to our sponsors: Sustany Foundation and Garden Steps.
THANKS to Shell's Feed & Garden Supply for sponsoring our hospitality table.
| 2021_conference_program.pdf |
