Housing Authority of Billings - Community Gardens Project

The Housing Authority of Billings established the Community Gardens Project in 2012 in collaboration with AmeriCorps VISTA members serving through the Billings Metro VISTA Project.

The goal of the Housing Authority of Billings - Community Gardens project is to alleviate food insecurity among the low-income community in Billings by providing gardening opportunities; empowering people to gain the knowledge, skills, and tools needed to make healthy nutritional choices; and fostering a sense of community. The Community Gardens project promotes essential community gardens and community food security programs that help people save money, access affordable and nutritious food, learn valuable skills, and supports a healthy community.

Housing Authority of Billings - Community Gardens Programs

• Whitetail Run Garden: This 7,000 square-foot garden is located at the Whitetail Run Apartments in the Heights. It offers 50 plots for individuals/families, children, and communal use. It also features an herb bed, an Americans with Disability Act – approved bed, and a pumpkin patch. Located next to a park, this garden is the primary site for various HAB summer events and parties.
• Pleasantview Garden: This garden features 20 standing, raised beds for Pleasantview Apartments’ elderly population. Three in-ground community beds were also added in 2014 to offer residents strawberries, potatoes, rhubarb, and wildflowers.
• St. Johns Garden: This garden began with two raised beds in 2013. Two additional beds were added in 2014. Residents at the St. Johns Apartments may communally harvest such vegetables as tomatoes, peas, pumpkins, salad greens, and flowers.
• Bucket Garden Program: Many people face space limitations when it comes to gardening. To accommodate such limitations, HAB offers clients the opportunity to garden in compact buckets. “Bucketeers” receive without charge a bucket full of healthy soil, hand tools, gloves, a selection of seeds, and plant care guidelines.
• Kids’ Summer Gardening Education Program: HAB provides kids the chance to learn about gardening, nature, and good nutrition while curbing summer learning loss. Kicked off in the summer of 2014, the program reaches children at each garden site once a week from June to August.

For more information, please find the project online at the following website and Facebook page.
*HAB is an equal opportunity housing provider.