Metro Gardens Community Club exists to cultivate more than just vegetables—we grow community, knowledge, and connections that nourish both body and spirit. Through shared soil and collaborative effort, we create a space where neighbors become friends, novice gardeners become experts, and fresh food becomes accessible to all.
What started as a conversation between three neighbors concerned about food access in our downtown neighborhood has blossomed into a thriving community of over 80 member families. The original trio—Sarah Chen, Marcus Rodriguez, and Dorothy Peterson—noticed the lack of green space and limited access to fresh, affordable produce in our urban area.
With support from the city’s urban agriculture initiative, Metro Gardens was born on a previously vacant 2-acre lot. The first year was all about infrastructure: soil testing, bed construction, and establishing water access. Those early volunteers put in countless hours turning a weedy lot into productive growing space.
As word spread about our community garden, membership grew rapidly. We expanded from 20 initial plots to our current 48 individual growing spaces, while adding specialized areas:
Metro Gardens now serves as a model for urban community gardening, hosting visits from other cities and organizations interested in replicating our success. But we haven’t forgotten our roots—we remain focused on serving our immediate neighborhood while sharing knowledge broadly.
“Every seed planted is an act of hope and community.”
Sarah brings 15 years of professional horticulture experience to Metro Gardens. A certified master gardener and permaculture design consultant, she manages our growing systems while coordinating educational programming. Sarah’s background includes work with botanical gardens and sustainable agriculture nonprofits. When not at Metro Gardens, you’ll find her experimenting with native plant propagation or teaching environmental science at the community college.
“The magic happens when neighbors work together toward shared goals.”
Marcus handles volunteer coordination, event planning, and community outreach. His background in nonprofit management and social work helps ensure Metro Gardens serves gardeners of all experience levels and backgrounds. Marcus is fluent in Spanish and English, helping us maintain strong connections with our diverse neighborhood. He’s also our resident expert on fundraising and grant writing.
“Gardening wisdom grows best when shared between generations.”
Dorothy is one of our founding members and brings over 50 years of gardening experience to our community. A certified master gardener and longtime environmental educator, she leads our mentorship program and specializes in heirloom varieties and seed saving. Dorothy’s extensive personal seed library has supplied many of our most successful garden varieties.
“Great soil is the foundation of everything we grow here.”
Tom manages our composting systems and soil health programs. With a background in environmental science and waste management, he’s transformed our approach to organic matter recycling. Tom’s composting workshops are among our most popular educational offerings, and his three-bin system produces all the compost our gardens need.
We are committed to 100% organic growing practices. No synthetic pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers are permitted in our gardens. Instead, we build healthy soil through composting, use companion planting for pest management, and encourage beneficial insects through habitat creation.
Metro Gardens strives to make community gardening accessible to all neighbors, regardless of income, experience level, or physical ability. We offer sliding-scale plot fees, wheelchair-accessible raised beds, and extensive mentorship programs for beginning gardeners.
Our practices reflect our commitment to environmental sustainability:
We embrace the diverse backgrounds of our members, recognizing that different cultural traditions bring valuable gardening knowledge and techniques. Our programming includes workshops on traditional growing methods, international cuisine preparation, and heritage seed preservation.
Metro Gardens operates as a living laboratory where members experiment, learn, and teach each other. We document successful techniques, share failures as learning opportunities, and maintain extensive resources for both beginning and experienced gardeners.
Our gardens produce over 2,000 pounds of fresh vegetables annually. Through our surplus sharing program, excess produce is available to any community member, ensuring fresh food access extends beyond our membership.
We offer 20+ workshops annually covering topics from basic gardening to advanced permaculture techniques. Our programs serve gardeners from across the metropolitan area, with many participants starting their own community gardens.
Perhaps most importantly, Metro Gardens creates space for meaningful relationships to develop. From casual conversations over garden beds to organized potluck dinners, we foster the kind of neighbor-to-neighbor connections that make communities resilient.
Metro Gardens thrives thanks to partnerships with local organizations:
Location: 1847 Oak Street, Downtown Metro District
Open Hours: Saturdays 9 AM-2 PM, Wednesday evenings 5-7 PM
Contact: hello@metrogardens.community
Phone: 555-GARDEN (555-427-3368)
Become a Plot Renter: Applications open each fall for the following growing season. Plot fees range from $50-80 annually plus a refundable deposit.
Volunteer: Join our Saturday morning work crews or help with special events. No experience necessary—we’ll teach you everything you need to know.
Attend Events: Community members and neighbors are welcome at our seasonal festivals, educational workshops, and monthly garden walks.
Follow Our Journey: Read our blog for updates, growing tips, and community stories. Photos and additional resources are available through our social media channels.
As Metro Gardens enters its seventh growing season, we’re expanding our impact while staying true to our community-focused mission. Plans for 2025 include:
Metro Gardens proves that when neighbors come together around shared purpose, incredible things grow. We invite you to be part of our story—whether as a plot renter, volunteer, workshop participant, or simply someone who believes in the power of community.
Come visit us during open hours to see what we’ve built together, and imagine what we might grow next! 🌱
Metro Gardens Community Club is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible and support our programming, infrastructure, and community access initiatives.