The Giving Grove Blog

From farmer's frustration to orchard game-changer, Twigeeze limb spreaders by Miller Creek are cultivating healthier, more productive trees in community orchards across the US. Join The Giving Grove as we explore the power of innovation in growing a future where everyone can harvest their own fruitful bounty.

Giving Grove horticulturist Matt Bunch discusses choosing and growing cherries!

Giving Grove’s youngest orchard steward explains in his own words why planting trees is important!

The history of black farmers is filled with generational stories of fortitude and struggle.  In honor of Black History Month, we highlight a few agricultural trailblazers and their contributions to food equity and justice.

Published quarterly, The Serving covers backyard orcharding, fruit tree management, helpful harvest tips, and Giving Grove updates. Thank you for helping make a big impact with little orchards!

The langauge we use when speaking about hunger and food equality matters. In this blog, communications manager Sarah Sikich explains the shift from “food desert” to “food apartheid.”

Fish fertilizer is an essential ingredient for a fruit tree holistic spray. Guest blogger, Casey Schoenberger, explains why this fish-tastic fertilizer is not only the best you can offer your trees, but also the best for the environment as well.

Melinda Dillion, Giving Grove Community Engagement Coordinator, tells the extraordinary story of how her mother paid for college by picking pecans.

Check out the latest in Giving Grove news including new affiliate city announcements, save the date for 2021’s Gather+Grow short film premiere, and the grand opening of the Giving Grove store!

The Giving Grove recently hosted Joel Berg, CEO of Hunger Free America, and local anti-hunger advocates, organizations, and elected officials for a discussion on ending food insecurity.

Canning is a tried and true method for preserving harvests for months after picking. In this guest post, recipe developer and blogger Kolika Simmons shares water bath canning basics and a unique recipe for pickled Asian pears using Giving Grove fruit. If you enjoy this blog, consider subscribing to The Serving, Giving Grove’s quarterly newsletter, and visiting Kolika’s blog, Wanna B. Gourmade.

Some of the things that probiotics do for fruit trees (and trees in general) are a lot like what they do for your digestion. Each teaspoonful of probiotics contains millions of microbes that quickly spread over the roots or leaves of a plant. There they crowd out other organisms that might not be good for the health of the plant, just like our gut biotic products help establish healthy biomes in your intestines.

Gabriella Sonnenschein shares her experience at the Mitzvah Garden KC Giving Grove orchard in Overland Park, Kansas. This orchard is responsible for donating 1,000’s of pounds of fresh produce every year to local food banks and pantries. It is a place for fellowship and memory with a tree dedicated to the shooting victims of the 2014 attack on the Overland Park Jewish community.

Few metropolitan areas escaped the devastating effects of redlining. Decades later, areas deemed “hazardous” or least desirable (primarily neighborhoods with people of color) are still facing the long-term effects of redlining, such as faulty infrastructure, lack of green space, and limited access to fresh, healthy food. The Giving Grove is committed to helping address these disparities. For that reason, we recently analyzed the location of Giving Grove orchards in relation to neighborhoods impacted by redlining. In this blog, a Giving Grove intern reflects on the findings of this research.