Grow Your Own
Helping families grow their own fresh food while building a community of growers who care about their health, the environment, and community well-being.
about grow your own
Grow Your Own (GYO) is a gardening program for first time farmers. It is a needs-based program, meaning it is focused on helping families gain knowledge, networks, and their own fresh food. Grow Your Own folks grow for themselves, their neighbors, food pantries, and the market.
Every year around January, applications open for approximately 25 spaces. Since this is a needs-based program, selection for participation is based on specific criteria. Plus, folks who apply but are not selected can still attend workshops virtually.
What we ask of you:
🌱 To be in the program, we ask that you live within 25 miles of Abingdon. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out!
🌱 Our classes will be once a month at 6 pm in person at a local community center. At every class, we will provide additional free supplies to participants when they submit their harvest records. This will be the amount measured in the grocery bag full of each type of produce you harvested that month.
🌱 We will also ask that you submit a small writing about your experience and how it has assisted you in gardening for our website blog!
Grow your Own 2026 class schedule
Garden Planning – 2/24/26
All classes start at 6pm EST and are 1 hour in duration
This lesson with provide a guide to warm weather and cold weather crops, plus appropriate garden spacing. You will also learn about “companion plants”, which are plants you can utilize to help get nitrogen back into your soil. Additionally, you will learn the difference between sowing and transplanting seeds.
WHEN: Feb. 24th, 2026 (2/24/26)
WHERE: FIA Garden Abingdon, VA
Seed starting/propagation – 3/31/26
All classes start at 6pm EST and are 1 hour in duration
This class is an introduction for starting germination from seeds to prepare for planting!
WHEN: March 31st 2026 (3/31/26)
WHERE: FIA Garden Abingdon, VA
garden planting – 4/28/26
All classes start at 6pm EST and are 1 hour in duration
This lesson with provide a guide to warm weather and cold weather crops, plus appropriate garden spacing. You will also learn about “companion plants”, which are plants you can utilize to help get nitrogen back into your soil. Additionally, you will learn the difference between sowing and transplanting seeds.
WHEN: April 28th 2026 (4/28/26)
WHERE: FIA Garden Abingdon, VA
garden maintenance – 5/26/26
All classes start at 6pm EST and are 1 hour in duration
This lesson provides the fundamental understanding of WISP which stands for Weed suppression, Integrated pest management, Soil health, and Plant health. You and your plants won’t want to miss it!
WHEN: May 26th 2026 (5/26/26)
WHERE: FIA Garden Abingdon, VA
food preservation – 6/30/26
All classes start at 6pm EST and are 1 hour in duration
This will be an in-person workshop, where we will have a guest come show us the basics principles of preserving our produce. The focus of this class will be food fermentation and we will have samples!
WHEN: June 30th 2026 (6/30/26)
WHERE: FIA Garden Abingdon, VA
heart healthy cooking – 7/28/26
All classes start at 6pm EST and are 1 hour in duration
The goal of this class is to focus on foods that promote cardiovascular health by reducing the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. This style of cooking emphasizes the use of nutrient-rich, heart-healthy ingredients and healthy cooking methods.
WHEN: July 28th 2026 (7/28/26)
WHERE: FIA Garden Abingdon, VA
Composting – 8/25/26
All classes start at 6pm EST and are 1 hour in duration
This lesson will explain why we compost, how to compost, and the many benefits of using your own compost in your garden.
WHEN: Aug. 25th 2026 (8/25/26)
WHERE: FIA Garden Abingdon, VA
Season EXTENSION – 9/29/26
All classes start at 6pm EST and are 1 hour in duration
Learn about techniques used to extend the growing season for plants! This lesson will allow gardeners to grow crops for a longer period of time, either earlier in the spring or later into the fall.
WHEN: Sept. 29th 2026 (9/29/26)
WHERE: FIA Garden Abingdon, VA
herbs & wild edibles – 10/27/26
All classes start at 6pm EST and are 1 hour in duration
This class will provide a comprehensive list of garden and wild medicinal and edible herbs.
WHEN: Oct. 27th 2026 (10/27/26)
WHERE: FIA Garden Abingdon, VA
What are the benefits of growing your own food?
Reduced grocery bill, controlling your nutrition, being outside…
Most of our 2023 GYO participants had very specific reasons for learning to grow their own food. We interviewed some of them – Kayla and Chandler, Janet and Herb, and Terra – and realized that although their stories are different, they all found so many of the same benefits.
Member Onboarding Materials
Get Involved
Stay in the know by joining the Grow Your Own mailing list.
Show your support for the Grow Your Own program by donating!
Learn more about growing your own on the Grow Appalachia blog.
Contact The Program coordinator
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