The City of Philadelphia has named this region America’s Garden Capital. One Germantown organization wants to contribute to its reputation through collective learning.

Germantown Residents for Economic Alternatives Together (GREAT) has created a learning series on how to start community and cooperative gardens in Philadelphia. Starting this month, participants are attending several sessions and hearing from speakers about the intricacies of greening the projects.

Community gardens have become a way for residents to beautify their neighborhoods and repurpose some of the city’s 40,000 vacant lots. In a community garden, people oversee their individual garden plot, while cooperative farms are a shared responsibility among members.

Lindsay Stolkey, a founder of GREAT, hopes the sessions will help empower people to expand the gardening network in Germantown, once they learn about the process and what resources are available. The organization has a 1,900-square-foot cooperative garden at Awbury Arboretum.

“We have our cooperative farm, but we can’t start 50 of those throughout Germantown. That’s just not realistic. But through learning circles and other programming we do, we could support potentially 50 other people to start their own projects,” Stolkey said.

GREAT is a grassroots, neighborhood-led organization and its learning circles began around the group’s formation in 2018, Stolkey said. Each one spans a few months and offers additional materials for people to read if they choose. There’s a discussion facilitator, but the goal is for participants to share their expertise with one another, hence the “circle” component, Stolkey said.

“Everyone’s bringing something to the table, and everyone can be both a learner and a teacher,” Stolkey said.

The series have inspired people to pursue projects beyond the circle, form friendships and become more involved with GREAT. The organization has hosted sessions on housing and gentrification and types of economic alternatives, such as time banking or tool libraries. Each circle stems from rising community interest.

In addition to the community garden series, GREAT is hosting a learning circle about gardening techniques led by horticulturalist Celeste Preston, which will last through September.

Some people get overwhelmed by the maintenance of their gardens, Preston said. Her series shows them effective pruning techniques and how to start on small plots of land such as home entrances or walkways.

“A space for us to gather has seemed to be the biggest need for Germantown right now,” Preston said. “A couple of people said they tried to organize something in previous years, but it just never took off. I’m confident that more people will join in and do similar things throughout the city as well in other neighborhoods.”

The cooperative garden series is facilitated by Christina Smith of Nicholson Church Lane Garden and welcomes several speakers, including Preston and Anthony Webb, a GREAT member who helps coordinate the farm cooperative at Awbury.

The circle will teach participants how to choose a space for gardening, identify the owner and figure out if it can be purchased, leased or reserved for growing food. Most vacant properties are privately owned.

“It’s also going to be important for folks to learn the use of the land in the past. So if it was a very industrial area, it might not be a good location for growing food maybe in the ground. But maybe garden beds could be created, and then new soil can be brought in so they can grow food organically,” Preston said.

Members of City Council, along with organizations like Neighborhood Gardens Trust and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS), have advocated for policy changes to protect community gardens in Philadelphia. The city lost 140 gardens and farms from 2008-2019, according to the 2023 Philadelphia Urban Agriculture Plan.

Many community gardens are built on tax-delinquent, vacant land at risk of being sold to speculators or developers at sheriff sale, according to PHS.

City Council passed a bill in 2024 that gave the Philadelphia Land Bank — a quasi-government agency in charge of turning vacant land into gardens and other community open spaces — priority bid over tax-delinquent properties through sheriff sale. The Land Bank can then transfer the garden parcels to groups like the Neighborhood Gardens Trust.

Stolkey has experienced the benefits of urban green spaces firsthand while living near Wissahickon Valley Park and through her involvement with Emerald Street Community Farm in Kensington.

Community gardens can help clean neighborhoods, as vacant lots attract illegal dumpers, and provide residents with access to food that’s free from pesticide residue.

The learning circle aligns with GREAT’s work to enhance climate resilience, Stolkey said. Green spaces help manage stormwater and cool down cities as average temperatures rise due to climate change, she said. Studies have linked urban green space to lower crime rates and better health outcomes.

“The benefit of people having spaces where they can gather and have connections and relationships … that is a really important part of mental health and general well-being,” Stolkey said.

Preston started a community garden for her building during the pandemic. She said it has “transformed this space tremendously,” attracting birds and other pollinators.

She said it’s also affordable. She gets her equipment and supplies for free through Buy Nothing Facebook groups, and the Fairmount Park Organic Recycling Center offers free compost.

Preston’s gardening techniques circle teaches people how to use recyclable materials in their home. And growing one’s own food helps her save money on groceries.

“Things are becoming a little bit more difficult to source,” she said. “I really want us to focus on what we have an abundance of already within our houses, so that we can still be able to provide for ourselves.”

Abby Weiss is an environmental reporter for the Local and a Report for America corps member. She can be reached at abby@chestnuthilllocal.com.