The city’s 550 community gardens—and the countless green-fingered New Yorkers who tend them—are a reminder of NYC’s rich agrarian history.
These gardeners are teachers and students, parents and young people, neighbors and activists. They steward spaces that would otherwise be underutilized, offering a variety of benefits in neighborhoods across the city.
Community Gardens
Community gardens are like front porches and backyards in an urban landscape, offering a place for neighbors to meet, relax and grow food in neighborhoods across the five boroughs. They started in the 1970s and ’80s when residents of low-income, minority neighborhoods began to salvage abandoned, rubble-strewn lots by clearing them for garden beds. The city, which had little use for the land, granted them temporary leases through its Green Thumb program. The gardens have since evolved into places for cultural expression, learning opportunities and social gatherings.
Many community gardens feature park-like amenities not found in the average back-yard vegetable garden, such as arbors, gazebos and a variety of flowering trees and bushes. The majority of the gardens surveyed also offer some form of food production, from vegetables to fruit to herbs.
Gardeners come from all walks of life, reflecting the diversity of New York City. They include parents and teachers, young people and elders, singles and families. They are volunteers, and members of community organizations and neighborhood groups. They occupy space that was formerly blighted and forgotten, and they contribute to making the city a more beautiful and sustainable place for all.
The majority of the gardeners surveyed said that their community garden is open to all members of the community, and many noted the importance of creating an inclusive environment as they navigate the stresses of gentrification in their neighborhoods. For example, at Hart to Hart in Bedford-Stuyvesant, garden leaders seek to promote an environment that is welcoming of newcomers without alienating existing members.
Nearly all of the gardeners whose spaces were threatened by sale or demolition said they had been involved in efforts to save their gardens. They cited a wide range of activities, including attending and speaking at community meetings and rallies, writing letters to the Mayor and City Council members, participating in a petition drive, hosting community events, displaying photographs, appearing on local television programs and putting up posters.
The findings of this survey demonstrate how valuable and unique community gardens are to neighborhoods throughout the City. The results of Question 11 suggest that any public decision to destroy community gardens must carefully examine whether alternatives, such as vacant lots and private yards, exist in the neighborhoods where they are located to ensure that the community has access to locally accessible open space for these vital experiences.
School Gardens
School gardens are an important educational tool for promoting healthy lifestyles and increasing food literacy among students. They are also an effective way to engage students and the community in gardening and promote environmental sustainability. A growing number of schools in NYC have begun to implement and expand their school gardens, with the aim of making gardening a permanent part of their curriculums. However, there is limited research on the implementation and integration of school gardens in the context of curriculum and culture. This observational study seeks to explore how school gardens become institutionalized by exploring the varying degrees to which garden components are incorporated into classroom learning.
In NYC there are over 550 community gardens on city-owned land and 745 school gardens that are part of the New York City Department of Education’s Edible Schoolyard program. These gardens provide a variety of benefits to communities: they beautify and stabilize neighborhoods; increase access to nutritious foods; educate and empower residents on food sovereignty; combat environmental racism and the effects of urban decay on low-income households, especially minorities; and serve as a social gathering place.
Historically, many of the first school gardens were built on private and public property by citizens who sought to use their land for the benefit of their communities. These early gardens were a response to the economic disrepair that took hold of New York City in the 1960s and prompted residents to steward city-owned, unused space, creating an urban green revolution.
The school garden movement was inspired by the work of Frances (Fannie) Griscom Parsons (1850-1923), who founded the Children’s School Farm in Manhattan in 1902 to encourage children to eat healthier, learn about their environment and grow their own food. The garden helped children develop a love for gardening that lasted a lifetime.
Research shows that children who are exposed to gardening and eating their own homegrown produce have a better understanding of where their food comes from. Additionally, a recent study in HortTechnology found that elementary school students with gardens in their schools performed significantly higher on science achievement tests than those without them. Teachers who are involved with school gardens experience greater job satisfaction and morale.
Commercial Urban Agriculture
Whether it’s a rooftop garden, a family farm, or a commercial food business, urban agriculture is growing in New York City. The city’s urban farms and gardens produce fresh, local food that supports the health of city residents, creates jobs, beautifies neighborhoods, contributes to the ecosystem, and much more.
With the help of local and federal funding, a number of community-based organizations have started urban farms to meet the demand for high quality local food while addressing other environmental and economic problems. These farms provide a variety of products including meat, fish, eggs, vegetables, fruits, and herbs. They also host educational programming and offer tours to the public.
For many people, gardening is a way to reconnect with nature and the outdoors. The City’s parks, such as Wave Hill, are a favorite spot for urban farmers to enjoy nature and get away from the hectic pace of city life.
Wave Hill offers year-round programming that allows visitors to see what a working farm is like and participate in activities such as planting, a hayride, or fishing.
Since the 1970s, there has been a significant growth in community-based urban agriculture in NYC. In the late 1990s, then-Mayor Rudolph Giuliani attempted to sell a number of city-owned parcels that were currently hosting community gardens (Reynolds and Cohen 2016). A movement of community members stepped up and organized to save these sites and in the end, these spaces were kept available for gardening by the Department of Parks and Recreation’s Operation Green Thumb program.
Today, there are over 600 registered or permitted community gardens throughout the city. These spaces are stewarded by neighbors, parents and teachers, young and old, from diverse backgrounds who come together to nurture the soil and grow a garden of their own. These gardens, located on their blocks, stoops, and in vacant and underutilized spaces, are more than just growing space — they serve to strengthen social connections, heal the environment, and build more vibrant communities.
In 2021, Mayor Adams created the Office of Urban Agriculture and named Qiana Mickie as its first director. The office works with community groups and others to support, advocate for, and develop climate-based strategies for urban agriculture in the City. The office is currently working on a website and portal that will house the results of this work, as well as other resources for New Yorkers interested in urban farming.
Urban Farming
In this city of skyscrapers, subways, and cabs, where nature seems scarce and difficult to find, there are many people who work hard to create small patches of lush greenery, to nourish themselves, and to make a difference in their community. These are the farmers and gardeners who are part of a growing alternative agriculture scene in New York City, ranging from rooftops to basements.
Whether they grow for their own families, sell at local markets, or donate to food pantries, these urban farms are changing the face of NYC. They are working to reduce poverty and hunger, promote resiliency, and foster community.
The City of New York is a leading voice for urban farming in the country. Its Mayor’s Office of Urban Agriculture (MOUA) is committed to research, policy development and advocacy, working with city agencies and community groups to address the critical issues facing urban agriculture in the five boroughs.
MOUA’s programs and initiatives are designed to support community gardens and urban farms, strengthen the City’s climate resiliency, foster economic activity, and empower communities through education. The office is also working to establish a tool lending library and seed library for city gardeners, as well as support community-led food justice campaigns and other projects that serve the needs of urban growers.
Urban farms are generally larger than community gardens and focus on food production. These sites may operate as a farm stand, sell at local farmer’s markets or CSA programs, or provide food to community-run kitchens and the Elder Box program. Some urban farms are located in abandoned buildings or formerly industrial land and require permits from the City.
For some, the inspiration for urban farming comes from personal experiences. For others, it’s an environmental issue that has become a passion. The desire to eat more locally-grown food is not just for the environment; it’s also about social justice and making sure that all New Yorkers have access to fresh, healthy foods. For urban farmers and gardeners, the rewards are clear: food security, environmental health, and a sense of pride in accomplishment.
