SeedMoney News: New funding opportunities 💰for gardens & getting ready to celebrate next month 🎉

 

View in browser The Global Garden Refugee Training Farm in Chicago raised $7560 in grants and donations in last year's SeedMoney Challenge. Their farmers grow standard crops like tomatoes, peppers, and carrots, plus favorites from their own traditions including opo squash, bitter melon, amaranth, and bokchoys. The program's farm and markets offer refugees a way of celebrating and holding onto their food cultures by sharing them with others. Dear , If you've been subscribed to SeedMoney's mailing list for a while, you know we only write when we have useful things to share. In these times of information overload, I hope you appreciate that restraint! Now that our last SeedMoney Challenge (our main fundraising opportunity) is several months behind us and the next one is appearing on the horizon, I will be in touch more often in the months ahead, next month in particular.  June 2023, you see, represents a milestone month for SeedMoney as we'll be celebrating our 20th birthday with well-wishes from around the world. We would love for you to be a part of celebrating the diverse and beneficial impacts that food gardens have in our society. Even though it's still the early spring here in Maine, I'm already enjoying the first harvests from own backyard garden: chervil, of all things! My wife is from French-speaking Belgium. Part of the deal we made over 20 years ago when we moved from Europe to Maine was that I would grow some of her favorite European foods in our Maine garden to keep her culinarily-connected to her culture. These include Brussels sprouts, Belgian endives, shallots and leeks, among others.  Late last summer, I tried planting chervil for her for the first time. If you've never tried it before, chervil has a subtle flavor that is reminiscent of a combination of parsley and tarragon. I assumed I did it wrong because I only got stunted plants that didn't add up to any real harvest. To our surprise last month, those little plants not only survived the Maine winter without any protection, they started to thrive. The Belgians make a beloved pureed "green soup" (soupe verte in French) using a variety of green herbs and vegetables. My wife threw three generous handfuls of chervil into last night's soup before pureeing it and the taste transported her back home faster than any jetplane ever could.  Many of the garden projects SeedMoney supports each year offer immigrants and refugees an opportunity to reconnect with their culinary roots. That is just one of the benefits public food gardens offer that we'll be celebrating next month, so please stay tuned and connected! Happy gardening, Roger Doiron SeedMoney Founder & Weeder-in-Chief Funding Opportunities for Gardens The SeedMoney Challenge Over 400 grants of $100 to $1000 are up for grabs in this year's SeedMoney Challenge. The Challenge is open to any public food garden project located anywhere in the world. To date, we've helped over 2500 projects raise $2.3 million and we can help yours too! Deadline: November 12, 2023 Lots of Compassion Grants Mrs. Meyer's Clean Day and KidsGardening.org are offering 10 grants of $20,000 each to transform vacant lots into gardens. US states and territories only. Deadline: June 2, 2023 News from the SeedMoney Blog A Pea-sy Guide to Growing Peas From the delightfully sweet snap peas to the classic English garden peas, these little green gems are a must-have in any vegetable garden. Top 10 Crops for School Gardens These crops are not only easy to grow, but they're also engaging for young minds and taste buds. The Growing Importance of Food Bank Gardens in Combating Food Insecurity There has been a growing recognition of the importance of food bank gardens in providing fresh and healthy food to those in need. Congrats to Our Latest Grantees We are pleased to announce the 505 recipients of SeedMoney grants from the previous year's SeedMoney Challenge. Our exceptional grantees come from a variety of projects in 47 states in the US and 40 different countries. Food for Thought Curated News and Opinion Articles about Food, Gardening, Health and Sustainability New York Times: In Parched Arizona, the Produce Gardens Bloom In the face of a historic drought, gardeners and small farmers across Arizona are growing produce with a surprisingly scant amount of a precious ingredient: water. Washington Post: An extra 10 minutes at dinner may help kids eat more healthy foods A study found that children who were given bite-sized fruits and vegetables during extended family meals ate more of them, and the researchers emphasized the importance of eating together for longer.  Just For Fun Videos, GIFs, and images about the lighter side of food and gardening SeedMoney 3 Powderhorn Drive, Scarborough, Maine, USA 04074 We are a 501c nonprofit helping healthy food gardens thrive in the US and abroad. Contact: Roger Doiron | Email: roger@seedmoney.org Phone: (207) 956-0606 | EIN: 56-2389230