Adopt-a-Garden

Adopt-a-Garden

Do you enjoy gardening, being outside, or helping the community? Are you a resident or vested community member of Grosse Pointe Woods? Consider adopting a garden in Grosse Pointe Woods. The goal of the Grosse Pointe Woods Adopt-a-Garden program is to develop a well-organized program that mobilizes a corps of volunteer gardeners to plant and maintain beautiful gardens in the parks and public spaces around the city.    

Garden Adoption Locations
Courthouse garden bed (to right of courthouse under the windows)
Median at Vernier and Helen/Canton (welcome to the city)
Brys Drive at the west entrance city sign

*Gardeners may also suggest garden sites

General Overview
Gardens are assigned on a first-come, first-serve basis and approved based on the application process through the Beautification Advisory Commission (BAC)
Once the site has been assigned, it is assumed the gardener will continue maintaining the site until the BAC coordinator is informed otherwise. 
All planting, maintenance, and supplies are the responsibility of the group/individual adopting the garden
If an individual would like to participate and cannot take on an entire garden attempts will be made to connect individuals together or to a group. 

Garden Expectations and Considerations
Garden plan must be provided and approved
Dense, mass plantings are encouraged. Try to pick plants that are appropriate to the site conditions of your garden. (i.e., tolerates drought, shade/full sun, etc.) 
Note: Most soil in the area is on the alkaline side.
Be mindful of maintenance required when making selections. No invasive species or hard to maintain plants are allowed.

Garden must be maintained: 
To keep the gardens looking beautiful, gardeners should plan to spend at least one hour per week trimming, edging and deadheading as needed. 
Gardening tools are the responsibility of the group/individual adopting the garden, water may not be easily accessible 
DPW can provide mulch, compost, and bagged yardwaste pickup. Contact DPW directly to coordinate.
Chemical policy - Pesticides are not permitted and only natural fertilizers should be used (ex. bone, meal, worm castings).

Plants for inspiration:
Perennials: A few examples of perennials coreopsis, turtlehead, wild geranium, aster, wild ginger, hyssops, prairie dropseed
Annuals: A few examples of bright colored flowers that can be lower maintenance: zinnias, lantana, cosmos, petunias

* If circumstances require you to take a temporary leave from your garden (i.e., health problems, extended travel, pregnancy, etc.), please notify the Beautification Advisory Commission. We will try to find an assistant to maintain your site during your absence.
* If an entire summer passes with little to no activity at a garden site and the garden appears neglected, attempts will be made to contact the gardener to determine the situation. It will be at the discretion of the BAC coordinator and the City to assess the situation and possibly reopen a garden for adoption, if necessary.

Which best applies to you/your group? *
Are you an individual looking to join a group?
If you are a group, is your group willing to add other individuals that would like to join a group?
Please provide the name, phone number, and e-mail address for each volunteer. This information will remain confidential. It will be used to communicate if the application is approved and to share other relevant information about the Adopt-a-Garden program.
What location are you interested in planting your garden? Please try to be specific - provide cross streets and any other information that helps explain the location.
The Garden Plan can be a digital or hand drawn sketch. You can also send a photo of the desired location or combine your files into a pdf prior to submission. Below is a list of the file types we accept:
Files must be less than 5 MB.
Allowed file types: gif jpg jpeg png bmp tif pdf docx pptx.
Planting List. Add a list of plants that will be included in the garden. If you would like to request funds to help cover the cost of plants, please include an approximate amount you intend to request.
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