LAND STEWARD GRANT PROGRAM
About the Grant Program:
Healing Roots Design (HRD) is pleased to announce the launch of The Healing Roots Design Land Steward Grant Program! We are accepting applications from August 10, 2026 - September 10, 2026. Please read all grant information provided here before you apply. The grant application link is provided at the bottom of this page.
The Healing Roots Design Land Steward Grant Program supports the need for community gardens and resilient gardeners in Greater Asheville. The goal of the Land Steward Grant is to create or expand existing gardens in the communities where we serve, cultivating accessible and thriving habitats and food ecosystems for people and the planet. In providing plants and mentorship, Healing Roots Design (HRD) seeks to accelerate a community initiative restoring soil health, water stewardship, healing, and strengthening the local productive perennial food systems.
WHAT THE GRANT PROVIDES:
Plants: Healing Roots Design will provide a total of 125-150 plants, including native, edible, pollinator, and perennials.
Mentorship: Healing Roots Design will provide monthly consultations for troubleshooting and guidance, in November & December 2026 and March-October 2027.
Total Value: $8-10K value of plants and mentorship.
GRANT REQUIREMENTS: Grant recipients are required to use regenerative agriculture and sustainable practices. Essential yields of the project completed through this grant may include: growing fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs, expanding opportunities for community members to include local food in their diets, enhancing perennial food systems, converting lawns to habitats, soil health improvement and composting, wellness community initiatives, initiating community seed banks, community education and development, vocational training for land and farming stewards, strengthening CSAs, Food Banks, Food Forests and Community Orchards.
Grant recipients are also required to:
ELIGIBLE ORGANIZATIONS:
ELIGIBLE PROJECT LOCATIONS: Eligible locations are within 15 miles of downtown Asheville. This includes N, S, W, E Asheville, Woodfin, Weaverville, Candler, Fairview, Swannanoa & Black Mountain.
GUIDELINES FOR CANDIDATES:
APPLICATION DEADLINES:
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EVALUATION CRITERIA:
The following criteria will be used to score your proposal:
APPLICATION REVIEW PROCESS:
The HRD team will review the projects. All applicants will receive a decision letter.
AWARDS + NOTIFICATIONS:
ABOUT HEALING ROOTS DESIGN - UPLIFTING the Earth Steward in All of Us
Established in 2009, Healing Roots Design (HRD) is a woman-owned natural landscape design company, providing transformative, regenerative, and ecologically intelligent solutions for residential, community, and commercial landscapes. Uplifting the steward in all of us, our full service company designs, installs, and educates, weaving earth care with community care. Our mission is to be in service to the whole, to be builders and collaborators of a more beautiful world, and to be consistently adaptable.
Questions? Contact Keri Evjy, CEO, by phone: 828 581 9030 or email (please put Land Steward Grant in the subject line)
Sponsorships: There are limited sponsorship opportunities to support the Land Steward Grant program. Please email Keri Evjy, CEO to participate.
The Healing Roots Design Land Steward Grant Program supports the need for community gardens and resilient gardeners in Greater Asheville. The goal of the Land Steward Grant is to create or expand existing gardens in the communities where we serve, cultivating accessible and thriving habitats and food ecosystems for people and the planet. In providing plants and mentorship, Healing Roots Design (HRD) seeks to accelerate a community initiative restoring soil health, water stewardship, healing, and strengthening the local productive perennial food systems.
WHAT THE GRANT PROVIDES:
Plants: Healing Roots Design will provide a total of 125-150 plants, including native, edible, pollinator, and perennials.
Mentorship: Healing Roots Design will provide monthly consultations for troubleshooting and guidance, in November & December 2026 and March-October 2027.
Total Value: $8-10K value of plants and mentorship.
GRANT REQUIREMENTS: Grant recipients are required to use regenerative agriculture and sustainable practices. Essential yields of the project completed through this grant may include: growing fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs, expanding opportunities for community members to include local food in their diets, enhancing perennial food systems, converting lawns to habitats, soil health improvement and composting, wellness community initiatives, initiating community seed banks, community education and development, vocational training for land and farming stewards, strengthening CSAs, Food Banks, Food Forests and Community Orchards.
Grant recipients are also required to:
- Create regular social media posts about the project, linked to HRD
- Put the HRD logo on their website
- Place HRD signage on the project site
- Organize at least one community event during the project term
- Submit a final report upon completion of the project
ELIGIBLE ORGANIZATIONS:
- Non-profits
- Watershed and mountain stewardship organizations
- Community associations
- Schools and institutions
- Faith based organizations
- Established community groups in environmental justice and food sovereignty, etc
- Priority will be given to organizations that are visible and accessible in their respective communities
ELIGIBLE PROJECT LOCATIONS: Eligible locations are within 15 miles of downtown Asheville. This includes N, S, W, E Asheville, Woodfin, Weaverville, Candler, Fairview, Swannanoa & Black Mountain.
GUIDELINES FOR CANDIDATES:
- Has land held in common by the city (as a non profit, etc) in one of the locations noted above
- Can show demonstrated leadership and follow through
- Can provide volunteers for approximately 200 upfront hours of labor and installation.
- Has water
- Has own materials (compost, labor, mulch, soil, gardening tools, fertilizers, etc)
- Has permits and insurance, if applicable
- Has a soil test from within the last 5 years or knowledge of the historical use of the land
- A site visit is also required to view the site’s preexisting conditions.
APPLICATION DEADLINES:
- August 10, 2026 APPLICATIONS OPEN
- September 10, 2026 APPLICATIONS CLOSE
- October 15, 2026 WINNER IS ANNOUNCED
- Within 3 weeks of announcement, grant obligations are fulfilled by HRD
Sign up for our newsletter to keep up to date on HRD news and grant information.
EVALUATION CRITERIA:
The following criteria will be used to score your proposal:
- What is the mission?
- How does this project adhere to sustainable practices, community and ecological health?
- Please describe how this project will have lasting community engagement, ecological, education enrichment, and resiliency.
- Will additional resources be needed to maintain the value of the project?
- How can this project be used as a model or pilot project for future efforts and adaptations?
- What is your installation process once the plants arrive? Are your volunteers ready to install the plants in November? Are there any key partnerships that this installation requires?
- Do you have a soil test for the project site? If not, can you describe in detail the historical use of the land?
- A site visit is also required to view the site’s pre-existing conditions.
APPLICATION REVIEW PROCESS:
The HRD team will review the projects. All applicants will receive a decision letter.
AWARDS + NOTIFICATIONS:
- 1 qualified garden project will receive the grant for the 2026-27 year.
- HRD will send an award agreement with the award conditions and due date of contingencies and reports.
- HRD will deliver the plants by the first week of November.
ABOUT HEALING ROOTS DESIGN - UPLIFTING the Earth Steward in All of Us
Established in 2009, Healing Roots Design (HRD) is a woman-owned natural landscape design company, providing transformative, regenerative, and ecologically intelligent solutions for residential, community, and commercial landscapes. Uplifting the steward in all of us, our full service company designs, installs, and educates, weaving earth care with community care. Our mission is to be in service to the whole, to be builders and collaborators of a more beautiful world, and to be consistently adaptable.
Questions? Contact Keri Evjy, CEO, by phone: 828 581 9030 or email (please put Land Steward Grant in the subject line)
Sponsorships: There are limited sponsorship opportunities to support the Land Steward Grant program. Please email Keri Evjy, CEO to participate.
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Keri and the HRD team are long revered local teachers of high integrity and know their subject. They are resourceful, professional, compassionate and timely. Bring them in early to a project to expertly discern red flags, limitations, and opportunities of a site. As they have consulted and installed vibrant landscapes with clients I have worked with, they listen deeply and can reimagine a landscape or start from scratch building a plan of sustainability that collaborates with the client and the earth." ~ Kate H.