Hello All,
Here are some ways our program gets tools... 1) Fiskars, located here in Madison, WI has Orange Thumb grants they give away each year...money and/or high-quality Fiskars-brand tools. Application is fairly short and easy, and they love community gardens, and/or kids gardens. 2) Solicit demonstration and/or "test" tools from various tool manufacturers, garden supply stores, hardware stores, etc. For example, we have gotten large boxes of various brand-name tools (hoes, pruners, shears, shovels, etc.) from Fiskars. They are tools that Fiskars buys to test and compare against the products they make, in order to assure they produce higher quality, more effective tools. Other companies probably do the same. We have received smaller donations from other local manufacturers...Always begin local!! 3) Make real friendly-like with your local Landscape Contractor's Association (or individual company), Construction companies, University, greenhouses/nurseries, etc. They like to use sharp and shiny tools...and don't always like to repair or mess with old tools. Make sure that you stress things like "community use", "will give you recognition", i.e. in your newsletter, sign at garden, or other public props to them, "will not be re-sold", and the BIG ONE..."tax write-off for you". When they realize a donation will increase their own visibility, help the community, and get them a tax break while allowing for their own shiny new shovels, they will be much more likely to donate to you. We've gotten numerous roto-tillers, lawn mowers, etc. for our city-wide program over the years. 4) Look for estate sales, auctions, etc...get there early or call ahead and try to cut a good deal for a package...again, stress what a benefit your garden is to the community, etc. as above. All of these will work best if you stay local...people are inherently more apt to be generous to their own community, as it builds pride for them, and gives them great, local publicity they can use to their advantage...hope this helps y'all. Be well->benny Benjamin Sommers Agency & Garden Technician Community Action Coalition for South Central Wisconsin, Inc. 1717 N. Stoughton Rd. Madison, WI 53704-2605 (608) 246-4730 ext. 238 mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] www.cacscw.org/food_gardens/index.htm Check out our Community Garden Organizer's Handbook for useful information on keeping your garden running smoothly! www.cacscw.org/gardens/handbook/index.htm -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Alliums Sent: Thursday, March 23, 2006 5:29 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: [cg] Finding money for tools. . . Hi, Folks! Ryan wrote: <<There is very little funding for this garden>> Heh, heh, heh -- welcome to community gardening, where we all learn to scrounge for whatever we can! ;-D <<(just enough to pay the water bill)>> That's your most important bill -- do look into rainwater collection -- Texas Department of Agriculture has some great rainwater collection plans! <<and we are in desperate need of new tools and repairs to the fence.>> Don't we all! Here was my plea to Fiskars earlier this year, which apparently fell on deaf ears: ************************* St. John's United Church of Christ Organic Community Garden and Labyrinth, including our program of teaching adjudicated youth four times a week in the spring, summer and fall, is completely volunteer-run - there is no paid staff or fees for any of our services. While most of our plants come through contacts with Seed Savers Exchange, tools are hard to come by - and teenage boys are very, very hard on tools! Most of our adjudicated youth, whether from inner-city Philadelphia via St. Gabriel's Hall or from surrounding towns via Chester County Juvenile Probation have never gardened before. A significant number of these youth suffer from ADHD or ADD; therefore, they tend to drop or otherwise lose tools on days their disability is giving them problems. While we find it extremely rewarding to teach these youth new skills (and most of them do enjoy learning how to care for plants), most of them have a "learn by doing" style which means that they tend to try both the "right" and "wrong because it either won't work that way or it's going to break the tool" way to use any particular tool before they truly understand why the "right" way is "right." Although once these youth understand why the "right" way is "right." (their tool use is perfect afterwards), getting the youth to that point usually means at least one tool gets broken (fiberglass handle or not!). Since we do not have a dedicated funding source for tools, we are forced into a hodgepodge of borrowed tools, good tools purchased from local stores and poor tools picked up from yard sales, all of which break as new youth are added, especially with the Mitchell Program's 4 month cycle. We would love to be able to teach our youth how to use and care for proper tools - and have enough left over both to reward our low-income gardeners who also do not have the funds to buy high-quality tools and to replace the tools our youth break or lose (totally without meaning to!) as they struggle to master a completely new and foreign set of skills. ************************* You can get plants, you can get seeds, you can even find old piles of manure laying around someone's back 40, but I have to say, after 16 years in this "activity" that is it nearly IMPOSSIBLE to get tools -- especially good tools. The only way I've EVER been able to get a new tool for my community garden is when I wrote the grant for the labyrinth and added the costs of as many tools as I figured I could get away with. Of course, now that I've complained and made poor Phillip wonder just where he went wrong, wandering into an abandoned garden and thinking that fixing it up would be a socially acceptable enterprise (welcome to the fraternity, Phillip! :-)), somebody show me that I'm completely wrong and where Phillip (and I) can completely restock our tool sheds! :-D Dorene Dorene Pasekoff, Coordinator St. John's United Church of Christ Organic Community Garden and Labyrinth A mission of St. John's United Church of Christ, 315 Gay Street, Phoenixville, PA 19460 ______________________________________________________ The American Community Gardening Association listserve is only one of ACGA's services to community gardeners. To learn more about the ACGA and to find out how to join, please go to http://www.communitygarden.org To post an e-mail to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your subscription: https://secure.mallorn.com/mailman/listinfo/community_garden ______________________________________________________ The American Community Gardening Association listserve is only one of ACGA's services to community gardeners. To learn more about the ACGA and to find out how to join, please go to http://www.communitygarden.org To post an e-mail to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, unsubscribe or change your subscription: https://secure.mallorn.com/mailman/listinfo/community_garden
