A PROTECT initiative
Neighborhood Grow Network
Growing food, skills and income right where we live. Neighbors host growing stations and greenhouses, trained local growers tend them, and the harvest feeds families, a community farmers market and a trading program.
Food security starts on our own block
A community that can grow its own food is ready for whatever comes, from rising grocery prices to supply disruptions. The Neighborhood Grow Network turns backyards, side lots, rooftops and community spaces into small farms, and trains residents in every kind of growing. We’re planning our first pilot sites for spring 2027.
How It Works
1. The Grow Corps
We find and recruit the best growers in the city to teach and mentor residents. Apprentices train hands-on and earn a badge for each growing method.
2. Host sites
Residents, churches, apartment communities and businesses offer space. A lead farmer checks the site and picks the best setup: raised beds, a hoop house, a greenhouse or an indoor system.
3. Farmers market
Harvest from host sites and local growers comes to a community farmers market, starting as pop-ups and growing to a weekly market that welcomes SNAP/EBT.
4. Trading program
Hosts, growers and volunteers earn grow credits to trade for produce, seedlings, classes and supplies, alongside our Barter Exchange.
Every Way to Grow
Our lead farmers teach the methods that work best in Atlanta’s yards and homes:
- Outdoor raised beds and in-ground gardens
- Hoop houses and small greenhouses
- Indoor and hydroponic growing
- Aquaponics (fish and plants together)
- Mushrooms, herbs and microgreens
- Fruit trees, pollinators and composting
Hosting a Grow Site
What hosts share
- A sunny yard, side lot, rooftop or indoor space
- Access for growers on set days and hours
- Water access (we’ll work out costs together)
What hosts get
- A share of the harvest
- Free growing classes and hands-on learning
- Grow credits for the trading program
- A greener, more food-secure neighborhood
Every host signs a simple written agreement that covers access, safety and harvest sharing. AHC provides and maintains the equipment and removes it if a host leaves the program. Renters need written permission from their landlord.
Get Involved
Sign up below and we’ll reach out as the pilot takes shape.
Host a grow site
Have a yard, lot, rooftop or indoor space to share? Tell us about it.
Join the Grow Corps
Experienced farmer, home gardener, or ready to learn? Sign up to grow with us.
Support the program
Help fund kits, seeds and greenhouses for the first pilot sites.
Offer Your Space
Takes about 3 minutes. Nothing is built until you’ve reviewed and signed a host agreement. Fields marked * are required.
Join the Grow Corps
For experienced farmers, home gardeners and beginners ready to learn. Fields marked * are required.
Questions or ideas? Join the conversation on our Discord.
