The California Native Garden Foundation (CNGF) makes native garden design grants to schools, colleges, museums, and other public spaces and non-profit organizations across California.
Through the School Garden Design Grant Program, CNGF offers grants for gardens that feature California native plants, including edible plants, ornamental horticulture or both.
Along with professional design services, grant recipients will receive assistance with creation of a garden installation and maintenance time line and budget. Types of support include garden design services, in-kind donations of plants and landscape materials, volunteer assistance, and direct financial assistance.
Grant Timeline and Amount
- A typical grant cycle is about 5 months.
- Grant amounts are limited to $1,000 for in-kind assistance, $500 in direct cash assistance, and $5,000 for design services. Grant applications are reviewed and grants are awarded by the CNGF board.
- In addition to design services, each grant recipient becomes a Partner School in the ELSEE Garden Project.
The proposed garden project must have a stewardship team in place. The garden’s success depends on what happens in the years to come AFTER the day that it is planted. All garden projects receiving grants must demonstrate that there is a project stewardship team in place — several individuals who are accepting responsibility for the stewardship of your garden.