Gather & Grow

The idea behind The Giving Grove is almost surprisingly simple: plant food where people can pick it. We’re proud to support their nationwide network of little orchards, planted and cared for alongside communities facing high rates of food insecurity. There’s a real thrill in watching fruit trees, nut trees, and berry brambles provide free, fresh food while turning urban spaces into greener places for neighbors to gather and grow.

Little orchards with a lot to give

In the latest episode of Wyld Works, we joined The Giving Grove and volunteers in St. Louis to help plant peach, pear, and apple trees in a community orchard. While we were there, Director of Strategic Partners, Aleah Likas, told us something amazing: a typical Giving Grove orchard contains around 15 trees and can produce about 6,000(!) servings of food in a single year.

But the impact goes beyond what winds up on the table. Growing fresh fruit right in the neighborhood gives people the chance to see where their food comes from, learn how to grow it themselves, and eventually share what they’ve grown with friends, family, and neighbors.

Growing food and community together

The Giving Grove describes its orchards as gathering places where “neighbor meets neighbor,” with communities growing alongside the trees and brambles. Today, its nationwide network includes more than 847 orchards, with the potential to produce more than 8 million servings of free, fresh food annually. As the trees grow, so can the community around them, through shared work, shared knowledge, and eventually, shared food.

And then there are the impacts that are harder to count. One story shared with us in St. Louis concerned a community bulletin board covered with public notices and advertisements. Among them was a handwritten message: “This place saved my life.”

That’s a pretty good reminder that the impact of these orchards can extend well beyond the food they produce.

Why Wyld works with The Giving Grove

Fruit has always been an important part of our world. So there’s something especially fitting about supporting an organization using fruit to help communities become greener, more connected, and better supplied with fresh food.

More importantly, we love the way The Giving Grove works. The organization goes where it’s invited, working alongside neighborhood volunteers to create sustainable sources of free, organically grown food that communities can care for and make their own.

It’s just a few trees at a time, in a fairly small space. But it’s something that can keep growing for years.