HWB knows that food access is as important as herbal access. Food is medicine, and food justice is health justice. Lack of access to fresh food can greatly impact a community. And without healthy food and good nutrition, herbal support is only half a program. By growing food in our communities we can teach people about growing healthy food, give people access to education and experiences about growing food, we can connect people to the land that our food grows on, and, we can give people fresh food.

Many HWB Chapters, Clinics, and Projects grow HWB community gardens. Community gardens don't have to be a plot in a public space, but can be a row that a farmer is sharing for medicinal herb growing, a network of herbalists and gardeners growing extra to donate to local food pantries, a plot donated and dedicated to HWB and herbal education at a local farm or on the land of a member. Public gardens are nice as we can invite people to events and activities and have people participate with us, but that can happen in parks and private land, too.

HWB has seen many models - from local historical societies growing gardens for visitors, to small farms growing a plot of herbs, from small towns allowing HWB groups to install a raised bed that the community can take what they need from, from tribal elders installing a healing garden for the community, to Chapters growing seedlings and sharing pots to the community of salsa kits to grow on urban balconies. Wherever you live, whatever access you have, food can be grown on any scale and shared back to the community.

HWB member US coordinators can apply, and receive small or large seed kits. Visit the coordinator portal to access the application form and to find out more information and in order to download eGuides & other resources to get your garden started!

Seed Grant Kits open early each year, and the scale is based on the scale of incoming donations. We will send an email out to all Coordinators when the program launches each year. If you are interested in finding out more, email office@hwbglobal.org

In 2020 HWB Groups hosted 141 garden events and had over 90 gardens growing!

HWB Technical Support

HWB offers technical support to members around the globe who want to create community garden models. We have several eGuides available with Information, and our member portal has hundreds of resources. We also have a seed grant kit program In the US where we Intake donations of seeds from seed companies, and share those with HWB Chapter, Clinics, and Projects throughout the US and territories, to grow gardens for medicinal herbs, education, and to get fresh food to communities that need it.

By centralizing donations and sharing out in seed grant kits, we optimize our resources, share plants that are appropriate for the type of garden being grown and the climate, and also create a reservoir of seeds that can be mobilized instantly after disasters such as fires or hurricanes that destroy food and medicine gardens in a region to get them growing again.