GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant
The GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant, brought to you by The Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation and KidsGardening, is designed to bring the life-enhancing benefits of gardens to communities across the United States. In 2023, 160 programs will receive $500 - $1,500 in funding.
Looking for the 2024 GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant?
GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant
The GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant, brought to you by The Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation and KidsGardening, is designed to bring the life-enhancing benefits of gardens to communities across the United States. The Grassroots Grants are part of The Scotts Miracle-Gro’s larger GroMoreGood initiative, which will bring the life-enhancing benefits of gardens and greenspaces to 10 million children by the end of 2023.
In 2023, 160 programs will receive funding to start or expand their youth garden or greenspace. A total of $95,000 will be awarded.
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Eligibility
Any nonprofit organization, school district, university, government entity, or tax-exempt organization, such as religious organizations and Tribal governments, in the United States and US Territories serving at least 15 youth is eligible to apply. Applicants must be planning to use the funds to install new or improve existing youth gardens or greenspaces.
Applicants must provide proof of 501(c)(3) status or qualify as tax-exempt. If your organization has not achieved 501(c)(3) or tax-exempt status, you may apply for a GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant by partnering with a fiscal sponsor who has achieved this status.
Previous winners of the GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant must wait two years after receiving an award to apply again.
We prioritize the following when selecting winners…
The selection of winners is prioritized based on demonstrated need and program impact. KidsGardening considers a variety of factors when determining needs, including:
Socioeconomic & Sociodemographic Factors: Does the program exist within or engage a community that has been systematically denied resources, whether physical assets and money or representative leadership and community services?
Program Funding and Support: Does a program have access to consistent, substantial monetary support or prior grant funding? Or are pre-existing resources (financial or otherwise) limited? Programs experiencing the latter are considered higher need.
Impact: Will grant funding dramatically expand learning opportunities for program participants? Does the intended impact reflect the actual needs of the community?
GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant Award Packages
In 2023, 160 programs will be awarded $500 to start or expand their youth garden or greenspace. Programs will also have the opportunity to apply for additional funding through the following specialty award categories:
- Plus Specialty Award: Designed to fund new and existing garden programs that have greater funding needs due to, but are not limited to, financial, environmental, safety, health, and regulation challenges. The award will provide five programs an additional $1,000, for a total of $1,500 in funding.
- Pride Specialty Award: Designed to fund new and existing garden programs that serve a majority of LGBTQ+ youth. The award will provide five programs an additional $1,000, for a total of $1,500 in funding.
- Equity Specialty Award: Designed to fund new and existing garden programs led by people of color that serve a majority of youth of color. The award will provide five programs an additional $1,000, for a total of $1,500 in funding.
How to apply
The deadline for application submission is Friday, February 10, 2023, at 11:59 pm PT.
All applications must be submitted online. You can download a copy of the questions as a Word document or PDF file. We strongly advise saving the questions and then pasting the answers into the online application rather than composing your answers directly into the online form. Many browsers timeout after 30 minutes of inactivity (or sometimes sooner) so you may lose your work if it takes longer than your browser's setting to complete or save your entry.
Award Notification and Fulfilment
Winners will be announced and contacted by email by Friday, March 17, 2023. A list of winners will also be posted on KidsGardening.org on that date. Awards will be distributed in April 2023.
Grant Recipient Requirements
Grant awardees are required to complete a year-end report by December 15, 2023. These reports help KidsGardening determine the overall impact of the grant program. Winners will be provided with a link in November 2023 to the 10-question online form to complete.
Year-end reporting requirements include:
- 5-10 digital images of the garden
- Parental release forms to accompany images of children
- A narrative about the impact of the garden program
If you do not feel you will comply with these reporting requirements, please do not apply.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are my chances of winning a GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant?
My program has previously been awarded a grant from KidsGardening, am I eligible to apply for and receive a GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant?
Previous winners of the GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant must wait two years after receiving the award to apply again. Programs that have previously been awarded other grants from KidsGardening are welcome to apply and are eligible to be selected. That being said, given the high number of applications we receive for our various grant funding opportunities, it is unlikely you will be awarded multiple KidsGardening grants in a single calendar year or in back-to-back years.
How do I apply for the specialty award categories: Plus, Pride, or Equity?
As you complete your GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant application, you will find the additional questions for the specialty categories.
Are we required to provide documentation of our 501(c)(3) status?
Yes. During the application process, you will be required to upload verification documents of your nonprofit status. 501(c)(3) organizations may include their IRS Determination Letter or Formation Document or Organization's Charter. Schools can submit a letter on school district letterhead, signed by a school district official, stating that the school in question falls under the jurisdiction of the school district. For other tax-exempt organizations such as government agencies, religious organizations, and Tribal governments, please provide a letter on official letterhead stating that you are designated as an automatically tax-exempt organization and thus exempt from needing a 501(c)(3) documentation to claim nonprofit status with the US government.
What makes a good GroMoreGood Grassroots application?
The GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant is designed to bring the life-enhancing benefits of gardens to communities across the United States. As such, a competitive application will demonstrate a clear picture of how the new or existing youth garden or greenspace will benefit your community.
We also encourage you to explore our Grant Writing Tips resource for general advice about crafting a standout grant application.
Can I apply for multiple specialty award categories?
Yes, you are welcome to apply for multiple specialty award categories. That being said, given the high number of applications we typically receive, it is unlikely you will be awarded in multiple categories.
How do I know if I’ve successfully submitted my application?
You will receive a confirmation email from JotForm following the submission of your application. Occasionally these emails end up flagged as Spam, so we recommend checking your Spam box.
How do you select grant winners?
We have a team of grant readers that evaluates applications and supporting materials over the course of about a month. A single application typically goes through three rounds of evaluation before being selected as a winner. In the initial round, a single reader will review an application, using a standardized scoring rubric, judging it on assorted criteria including but not limited to demonstrated need, program sustainability and impact, and clear fit with grant objectives. High quality applicants are then selected to undergo a second round of evaluations. In this phase of the review process, each member of the grant selection committee reads all second round applications before meeting to engage in group deliberation and finalist selection. These finalists are then recommended to grant program sponsors, who review application materials and confirm winner selections.
I didn’t receive an email on Friday, March 17, 2023, the day of the winner announcement. Does this mean my program hasn’t been awarded a grant?
We send a notification email about GroMoreGood Grassroots selection to the main contact as listed on your application. Emails are sent to both winning programs and those that were not selected for this year’s grant. Because these emails are sent out en masse, this communication is frequently flagged in the main contact’s Spam box. We encourage you to check your Spam box if you do not receive a notification email on the day of the announcement or to visit our website to view a list of Grant Winners.
Grant Application Technical Support
If you have any questions that were not addressed in the above Frequently Asked Questions section, please contact KidsGardening Program Director Sarah Lane at [email protected].
About the Grant Sponsor
The Scotts Miracle-Gro Foundation is committed to bringing the life-enhancing benefits of gardens and greenspaces to more people and more communities, especially those that need them most. Working with a wide range of innovative partners, including KidsGardening, they are ensuring that today's generations, and the ones that come after, will experience a world made better through gardens and greenspaces.
GroMoreGood Grassroots Grant
Application Period: January 4, 2022 - February 10, 2022
Award Announcement: March 17, 2023
Grant Application Support
Grant writing tips and how to navigate our online grant application platform
More Grant Opportunities
Additional grant opportunities from other organizations
Grant Winners
Meet our amazing grant winners, listed by award
