We want to give out garden grants in 2022!

by Kathy Bildner
Chair, Grant Committee

St. Louis Wild Ones had no grant requests in 2021. This year because of the COVID precautions, our chapter had no meetings open to the public and we did not do tabling events. Sadly, we did not have the opportunity to meet new people and explain to them why we plant native plants in our yards and how to get started on their own gardens. We were not able to tell them about our grant program. In previous years we awarded 8 to 9 grants a year. For 2022, we have the money, as a result of our successful fund-raising plant sale in the spring of 2021. Much of this money is set aside to help start public native plant gardens.

St. Louis Wild Ones native plant grants help get native plants into public places. Since we started the grant program in 2007, we have helped fund grants to over 60 gardens. These gardens are planted in public places like schools, churches, parks, community centers, nature areas, community gardens, health departments, libraries, nature centers, day cares, airports and even a neighborhood planter. If needed, we also offer advice on what, where and how to plant.

I am asking you, Wild Ones, including this years 164 new members, if you know an organization who may be interested in applying for a grant to plant and manage a native plant garden in a public space, have them apply for a grant by visiting our website, and finding the “Grants and Landscape Challenge tab”.

This is a good time to plan for a spring planting!

See a list of all of our grant gardens here:
https://stlwildones.org/grants/past-grant-awards/

Here are a few examples.