Gardening with the Common Ground Garden Program

The Common Ground Garden Program
We help limited-resource families learn how to grow their own food. We offer workshops, training and volunteer programs focused on edible gardening for Los Angeles County residents.

What Common Ground Offers
Vegetable gardening workshops are offered through our Grow LA Victory Garden Initiative. These four-session classes cover the basics of gardening and held at locations throughout the county every spring and fall. Training and technical assistance for school, community and home gardeners are provided by our UC Master Gardener volunteers.

We maintain e-lists to provide updates on gardening events, resources and upcoming sessions of the Grow LA Victory Garden Initiative and Master Gardener Volunteer Training Program.

For assistance, please contact Common Ground Program Manager Yvonne Savio at ydsavio@ucanr.edu, (626) 586-1981.

Also, Los Angeles County residents can send their gardening questions/concerns and photographs to the Master Gardener Helpline.

Helpful online resources: Vegetable Gardening, Community Gardens and School Gardens

Our Mission and History
Since 1978, UC Cooperative Extension's Common Ground Garden Program has made gardening possible for many Los Angeles County residents, particularly for low-income and traditionally underrepresented families. The program goals are to improve nutrition; increase access to fresh, low-cost produce; offer gardening education; build bridges between neighbors and communities; help create employment opportunities; and encourage a cleaner, greener Los Angeles.

Our work is powered by our UC Master Gardener volunteers! In 2011-12, 247 Master Gardeners volunteered 19,329 hours, serving 118,199 Los Angeles County residents at 319 locations.

Since 1993, we have trained 1,025 Master Gardeners, who have a volunteered 143,912 hours, serving 992,924 Los Angeles County residents.

Would you like to make a tax-deductible donation to the Common Ground Garden Program?