Funding available for urban conservation gardens and high tunnels

Temple, Texas, October 31, 2017 – In an effort to address food deserts and educating urban citizens and youth on the benefits of locally grown fresh produce and greening of the urban landscape, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA-NRCS) is accepting applications to establish community and pollinator gardens and seasonal high tunnels through the Texas NRCS Urban Conservation Project.

The Texas NRCS Urban Conservation Project is an effort to challenge community organizations, educational institutions and Indian tribes to establish community and school gardens across Texas. Addressing hunger with an urban garden can bring communities together and initiate other positive outcomes for people. Pollinator habitat planned with urban gardens can provide an increase in harvest potential while providing food and habitat for declining insect communities in Texas.

“The simple act of planning a garden can help unite neighbors in a common effort and inspire locally-led solutions to challenges facing our state,” said Salvador Salinas, Texas NRCS State Conservationist. “The challenges that can be addressed with locally-led solutions can be diverse in an urban setting.”

Grants are available up to $4,000 for a community garden and $6500 for a seasonal high tunnel. Community gardens and seasonal high tunnel projects must be located in one of the following counties: Bexar, Brazos, Cameron, Dallas, El Paso, Galveston, Harris, Hidalgo, Jefferson, Lubbock, Maverick, McLennan, Nueces, Polk, Potter, Tarrant, Travis, Webb and Wichita to be eligible for funding.

Grants are available for up to $3000 for Monarch butterfly gardens. Preference will be given to Monarch butterfly gardens in the following counties because of their strategic location within the Monarch butterfly’s flight paths during their spring and fall migrations: Atascosa, Bastrop, Bell, Bexar, Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Comal, Dallas, Ellis, Gillespie, Guadalupe, Hays, Johnson, Kaufman, Kendall, Kerr, Lee, Limestone, Llano, Navarro, McLennan, Palo Pinto, Parker, Tarrant, Travis, Williamson, and Wilson.

Applications for the Urban Conservation Project are due by December 15, 2017. The Notice of Funding Opportunity is available at https://www.grants.gov offsite link image . The Opportunity number is USDA-NRCS-TX-UCP-18-01, and the title is Texas NRCS Urban Conservation Project. Applicants can also enter the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number 10.902 to search for this grant. Questions can be directed to Bertha T. Venegas, (830) 249-3508 extension 103.