Budgeting & Funding

Creating a budget and fundraising plan is an important step in the garden planning process. Consider not only how you will fund the initial garden installation, but also annual maintenance costs and future improvements. Check out this Detailed Guide from Monterey County, CA, on estimating quantities of garden materials and supplies. Or, view the sample garden budget below for installing and maintaining a simple, raised bed garden design. Prices change frequently, so be sure to check local retailers for current pricing information. Once you have a budget, you can assess what is available from your school’s budget and what funds you need to raise from outside resources.

Budgeting

View the spreadsheet below to learn more about creating a budget for your initial garden installation, as well as planning for maintenance costs over the years.

Funding Sources

At the bottom of this page, you can view local and national opportunities to secure funding for your garden project.

Sample School Garden Budget

Once you have developed your budget, create a plan for fundraising. There are many local and national programs and grants that offer funding for school garden projects. The links and table below have a few ideas. Note, each program has a different deadline, so find a grant program that works for your timeline.

  • Kids Gardening provides a list of current grant opportunities for installing or enhancing educational gardens.

  • USDA Food and Nutrition Service offers Farm to School grants and provides a helpful graphic showing types of USDA grants available to different organizations.

  • DonorsChoose is a website that enables teachers to request items for your classroom project through internet donations.

School Garden Grants