Youth Garden Grant

Since 1982, the Youth Garden Grant has supported school and youth educational garden projects that enhance the quality of life for youth and their communities. In early 2026, 50 organizations will be awarded $750 in funding for their youth garden program.

Youth Garden Grant

Since 1982, the Youth Garden Grant has supported school and youth educational garden projects that enhance the quality of life for youth and their communities.

In early 2026, 50 organizations will be awarded $750 in funding for their youth garden program.

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Eligibility

Any organization in the United States or US Territories planning a new or improving an existing garden program that serves at least 15 youth between the ages of 0 and 18 is eligible to apply.

KidsGardening grantees from any 2024 - 2025 grant program (Budding Botanist, Waterwise Garden, Youth Garden, GroMoreGood Grassroots, and Lots of Compassion) are not eligible to apply.

Organizations must:

Support, work with, or serve under-resourced communities
(those most impacted by systemic inequities and situational hardships.)
Have fifteen or more youth participate in the garden program.
Have received less than $10,000 in grants for the garden program in 2025 so far.

Funding Priorities

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: How 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? Organizations affected by multiple socioeconomic and sociodemographic factors are given priority.

Program Funding and Support: Does an organization have access to consistent, substantial monetary support or prior grant funding? Or are pre-existing resources (financial or otherwise) limited? Organizations experiencing the latter are given priority.

Impact: Will grant funding dramatically expand learning opportunities for program participants? Does the intended impact reflect the needs of the community? Organizations working with more than 50 youth will be given priority.

Award Packages

The 2026 Youth Garden Grant is made possible by KidsGardening’s generous donor base and sponsorships from our partners.

A total of fifty programs will be awarded $750.

Ten winners will receive the Bluestone Perennials School Garden Award

The Bluestone Perennials School Garden Award will support ten school garden programs with a $750 grant to kick-start or maintain their garden. This award is sponsored by our friends at Bluestone Perennials.

Five winners will receive the Crescent Garden Container Gardening Award

The Crescent Garden Container Gardening Award will support five youth garden programs with a container gardening package, valued at $1,675. This award is sponsored by our friends at Crescent Garden.

An image with 8 small images of garden tools and planters.

Thirty-five winners will receive the Garden Champions Award

The Garden Champions Award will support thirty-five youth garden programs with a $750 grant to kick-start or maintain their garden. This award is sponsored by B.B. Barns, Woodland Tools, and individual donations.

How to apply

The deadline for application submission is Friday, December 12, 2026, at 11:59 PM PT. All applications must be submitted online.

KidsGardening has streamlined its grant application process and created a Common Application form. To apply for the Youth Garden Grant, use our Common Application form and apply by the deadline.

You can download a copy of the questions below.
2026 KidsGardening Grant Opportunities Common Application Questions - Word Doc
2026 KidsGardening Grant Opportunities Common Application Questions - PDF
Solicitud de subvenciones de KidsGardening 2026 - Documento de Word
Solicitud de subvenciones de KidsGardening 2026 - archivo PDF

We strongly advise answering and saving the questions in a Word document 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 in January 2026. A list of winners will also be posted on KidsGardening.org. Checks will be distributed in February 2026.

Grant Recipient Requirements

Grant awardees are required to complete a brief grant-end report by June 15, 2026. These reports help KidsGardening and the sponsors determine the overall impact of the grant program. You can download a copy of the grant-end report as a Word document or PDF file.

Winners will be provided with a link in May 2026 to the 10-question online form.
Grant-end reporting requirements include:

Digital images of the garden
A quick video of the garden
Parental release forms to accompany images of children
A short narrative about the impact of the garden program

If you do not feel that you will be able to comply with these reporting requirements, please do not apply.

Frequently Asked Questions

What makes a good Youth Garden Grant application?

The Youth Garden Grant supports school and youth educational garden projects that enhance the quality of life for youth and their communities. As such, a competitive application will demonstrate a clear picture of how the new or existing youth garden will benefit your community.

We also encourage you to explore our Grant Application Support page for advice on how to craft a standout grant application.

What are my chances of winning a Youth Garden Grant?

The Youth Garden Grant is our most competitive funding opportunity. Last year, we received more than 1,000 applications.

My program has previously been awarded a grant from KidsGardening. Am I eligible to apply for and receive a Youth Garden Grant?

Programs that were previously awarded a grant from KidsGardening in 2024 or 2025 are ineligible. Programs that were funded in 2023 or earlier are welcome to apply.

How does KidsGardening’s Common Application work?

KidsGardening has streamlined its grant application process, and applicants can now apply for multiple grants at the same time using the 2025 Common Application form. We recognize it takes time and energy to complete a grant application, and as such, this change will reduce the burden of submitting multiple grant applications within the same grant cycle year.

Complete the application by the grant deadline to be considered for that grant. If you plan to apply for multiple grants, complete the application by the first deadline. If you are only applying for one grant, apply by its deadline.

How do I know if I’ve successfully submitted my application?

You will receive a confirmation email from [email protected] when you submit your application on our application platform, JotForm. Occasionally these emails end up flagged as Spam, so we recommend checking your Spam box.

What if I have started my application but have not finished it? Will it be reviewed?

Started but not submitted applications will not be considered for the award.

What if I need to update my submitted application?

To edit your submission, click the “Edit Submission” link at the top of the confirmation email sent from [email protected]. If you can not find the confirmation email, please complete a new application. We will only review the last application submitted by an organization.

What if I submit more than one application for the same organization?

The last application submitted will be reviewed.

How do you select grant winners?

We have a team of grant readers who evaluate applications and supporting materials. A single application typically goes through three rounds of evaluation before being selected as a winner. This takes approximately one month.

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.

What can we use the $750 in funding on?

You may spend the grant funds on gardening materials such as raised bed materials, soil, plants, seeds, compost materials, tools, fencing, greenhouse or hydro/aquaponic materials, curriculum, watering supplies, observation tools, garden decor, cooking supplies, garden field trip expenses, and programming. This is not an exhaustive list but merely an example of how the funds can be used.

A maximum of 50% can be budgeted to cover salaries or stipends.

I didn’t receive an email in January, the day of the winner announcement. Does this mean my program hasn’t been awarded a grant?

We send a notification email about the winner selection to the primary contact listed on your application. Emails are sent to both the grantees 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 primary contact’s Spam box. If you have unsubscribed from our newsletter list, there may be a delay in receiving grant communication. We encourage you to check your Spam box if you do not receive a notification email on the announcement day or to visit the KidsGardening 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].

Grant Sponsors

The 2026 Youth Garden Grant is sponsored by the following partners:

BB Barns
Bluestone Perennials
Crescent Garden
Woodland Tools
& MORE TO COME