Tender Heart Gardens is a queer and trans growing collective, founded in 2017. We began growing on city lots leased from the Ingham County Land Bank on Lansing’s Eastside. We are currently growing in the Urbandale floodplain, on a 1/3 acre parcel of land on South Foster. In 2023, thanks to donations from members and friends, we were finally able to purchase the lot on which we grow, ensuring that we can continue working in relationship with this place far into the future.
THG now operates as a collaborative on different projects with a shared vision, coordinated by a volunteer planning team. We are also a registered community garden with the Greater Lansing Food Bank’s Garden Project.
Our harvest is shared among growers and community members. We sell a limited amount of produce commercially to financially support our growing efforts. At least 10% of our gross sales are shared with local nonprofits, including the Nokomis Cultural Heritage Center, returning to the Anishinaabe people on whose land we work.
Our Principles:
All people deserve quality food.
Land is essential to social justice.
Outdoor education is an investment in our future.
Stewardship is a gift and a responsibility.
In the 2023 growing season, we plan to complete a hoop house structure; install rainwater harvesting; and install a memorial garden, along with a mandala garden focusing on perennial edible, dye, and fiber crops.
Tender Heart Gardens 