22 September 2025
5 min read
How to get started with community growing
Thinking of creating a community growing project? Need some inspiration to take your project to the next level? The Grow Wild Guide is for you.
Since 2014, Kew’s national outreach programme Grow Wild has supported more than 400 community groups and organisations across the UK to transform local spaces through growing.
To help as many people as possible spend time in nature and experience all its benefits, Grow Wild has created a new guide to help you get started on your own community growing project.
The guide presents the first-hand experiences and knowledge from community groups, along with tips from scientists and horticulturists working at Kew and beyond, to help your community create a growing space to benefit both wildlife and people.
How to set up your community growing project
One of the first things you’ll need when you’re starting out is a clear vision. What is the most important aspect of this project for your group? What makes you feel excited? What change are you hoping to make and who will benefit?
As your project progresses, this initial goal might change as you think about what to focus on next.
A community growing project is about people. To find volunteers, community centres and local volunteer hubs are excellent places to start.
It can also help to reach out to local charities that have existing established relationships with groups in your area, to help get people involved more easily.
The Charities Aid Foundation provides useful information about attracting volunteers.
Preparing the perfect space
But people are only half the equation. You’ll also need to identify where your growing space is going to be.
If you’ve a spot in mind, make sure you seek permission from the landowner (if it isn’t you) before getting started. You’ll also need to check that the area is safe to work in, and that your use of the area doesn’t affect any species already calling it home.
You’ll want to conduct a simple site survey before getting stuck in. Spend time in the space, look around and observe the area in detail, recording everything you see, hear or smell. Take photos or videos showing what the space is like before you begin.
See if you can identify what plants, fungi and animals are already in the space, as this might affect what new plants you can add, or even give you a head-start on growing!
Right plant, right place, right purpose
Once you’ve got your people and your place, it’s time to start thinking about what you’d like to grow.
You might be setting out to grow edible fruits and vegetables to help reduce food poverty. Some easy hedge species such as blackberry (Rubus fruticosus), hawthorn (Cretaegus monogyna) and dog rose (Rosa canina) will provide delicious fruits, berries and even edible flowers throughout the year.
UK native herbs, such as dandelions (Taraxacum officinale), wild garlic (Allium ursinum) and wild thyme (Thymus drucei), can be harvested for use in drinks and food.
As an added benefit, all of these species will also support wildlife like insects by providing them with food and shelter.
Growing crops such as tomatoes, broad beans, or courgettes can help overcome food poverty and encourage people to learn about the importance of a healthy and sustainable diet. If you end up growing more food than your group can use, you could donate it to a community kitchen or food bank.
Supporting the people on your community growing project
To make your project a success, you’ll want to nurture the people involved in your growing project, along with the plants!
Many people will be happy to help with whatever needs doing. But some people might need more motivation to get involved. Giving people specific responsibilities can help them invest more into the project.
It’s important to make your project as accessible as possible. Take a walk through your site with accessibility in mind. How would the journey be for someone in a wheelchair, or with reduced sight or mobility – and how might you make it easier?
But there are many barriers that people face that aren’t physical. Some groups might simply think that gardening ‘isn’t for them’, because of their ethnicity, gender, class or income.
If there is an unengaged group within your community who you would like to involve, talk to them and ask how you can make them feel welcome and supported.
How to share your community growing project success
Taking the time to record and share what your project has achieved is a perfect way to celebrate the work you’ve accomplished.
By documenting your project, you’ll create a record of your efforts, capturing the progress you’ve made, the challenges you’ve overcome and successes you’ve achieved along the way.
Try to highlight the people who have been crucial in making your growing space a success. Capture their stories and motivations through interviews, to showcase the personal impacts the project has had.
There are various ways to share your story with the world. Use a website or social media to put the word out. Build up a photo or video diary that shows the changes in the space as you work there. Just be sure to get consent from anyone who appears in your photos or videos, for safeguarding and GDPR reasons!
These really are just the starting points for your community growing projects. To discover more in-depth advice and guidance, check out the full Grow Wild Guide below.