The Milwaukee Grows Garden Network is a constellation of more than 80 active community gardens facilitated by Groundwork Milwaukee. Each of these gardens has been started and maintained by ambitious residents with a desire to activate unused space in their neighborhoods. Most of the gardens are just that, gardens, with fresh produce growing in raised garden beds while others serve as recreational
greens pace and still others function as full-scale farms. Groundwork collaborates with gardeners to provide legal and safe access to city-owned vacant space, materials and labor for garden builds and maintenance, and planning and training of health-based educational and recreational programming in the gardens. Below is a map of all the currently active gardens in the Milwaukee Grows Garden Network. Click around to explore some of the beautiful spaces that have been transformed by Groundwork’s community of gardeners. Previously, Milwaukee Grows was known as Milwaukee Urban Gardens (MUG), and was founded in 2000 by a group of individuals who lost their gardens when the properties were used for development. They incorporated and began advocating for the long-term protection of community gardens and neighborhood green space in urban Milwaukee. Today, the Milwaukee Urban Garden Network exists as a program of Groundwork Milwaukee as the Milwaukee Grows Garden Network. Groundwork Milwaukee's Role:
As a land trust, Groundwork Milwaukee acquires land for the purpose of community gardens and resident engagement. Our Milwaukee Grows Garden Network maintains insurance to protect gardeners and is a member of the Land Trust Alliance, the national organization of land trusts. The purpose of the Milwaukee Grows Garden Network is to establish a single point of contact and streamline the process for establishing community gardens and sustainable urban agriculture on city land. The program seeks to connect the dots between all the efforts that make up Milwaukee's local food system and to build partnerships around local food production and food security. The program's broader goals include providing leadership, education, policy analysis, and project development support for the City of Milwaukee's community-based food system. We’re working to improve access to healthy foods in these neighborhoods by:
-Liability insurance for gardeners and garden property up to $1 million.
-Assistance on Community Improvement Project application and reimbursement
Rainwater harvesting structure construction (through Community Improvement Project process)
-Assistance in event execution in the garden (ex: Movie Nights)
-Access to Groundwork Milwaukee’s volunteer groups
-Advertising for Garden related events on Groundwork Milwaukee’s social media accounts
-First access to seed, soil, and plant donations received by Groundwork from donors
-Kick off event and cross-city networking events
