Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Community Gardens topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Craft and Community Farm reports new grants, expanded beds and volunteer needs
Summary
The Craft and Community Farm reported two annual grants, new raised beds and orchard supplies, expanded volunteer engagement and plans for additional water storage and pollinator plantings; volunteers and non‑garden help (photography, outreach, building) were requested.
Andrea Marque, founder and garden leader of the Craft and Community Farm, updated the council on the garden’s operations and recent grants.
Marque said the group continues to receive regular support from Grow Pittsburgh and this spring received about $300 worth of seeds and seedlings; she described additional fall grants for orchard supplies and a new metal raised bed to model different growing techniques. "We had 796 person hours worked, 92 pounds of harvest," she reported for the 2025 season, and described experimental crops including loofah gourds and winter melons. She also described a pollinator garden planted last year that is already blooming.
Marque said volunteers come from Craftton and neighboring towns and that the garden had positive youth engagement from local camps. On infrastructure, she said the farm will install three new cistern-style water storage tanks totaling roughly 990 gallons with overflow to support plantings; the group will take time to ensure installations are appropriate.
Marque asked for help beyond planting—photography, social media, outreach and light construction support—and council members offered to help publicize volunteer opportunities through borough platforms.
Why it matters: The garden supplies food, volunteer opportunities and environmental education to the borough and nearby communities and leverages small grants and volunteer labor to stretch public investments.
