The Community & School Garden Development Institute (CSGDI) is a series of practical and hands on sessions for groups interested in starting and maintaining organic gardens in community settings. The Institute will cover key aspects of developing and sustaining gardens, emphasizing how your garden team can effectively plan, start & maintain garden. Sessions will not cover horticultural skills outside of basic garden design. Groups are responsible for building and maintaining their own gardens.

• Institute sessions will cover information on how to start and sustain community gardens, including goal setting, group leadership, site design & garden construction, and recruiting community involvement.
• To qualify for the Institute interested groups must have at least 5 dedicated garden team members, at least 4 of whom must attend all four Institute sessions. Groups can be neighborhood or community groups, faith-based organizations, non-profit agencies or service clubs, schools, groups of neighbors, or businesses.

We're looking forward to new gardens and expanding gardens from our last two years' of the CSGDI. This spring, three apartment complexes managed by Washtenaw Affordable Housing Corporation will be developing gardens with resident leadership. We look forward, too, to St. Matthew's United Methodist Church's new garden in Ypsilanti Township near Erickson Elementary. This'll be the second year of the West Willow Community Garden, the Frog Island Community Garden. The next Community and School Garden Institute will be in the fall of 2008. Please get in touch if you are interested in participating!.

Is there a group you'd like us to present to about the CGSDI or Growing Hope in general? Please, get in touch by emailing us at michelle@growinghope.net.