Manhattan Community Gardens

The Manhattan Community Gardens are a cooperative gardening project located in the south part of Manhattan, Kansas. Land is provided by the City of Manhattan and by Riley County. UFM Community Learning Center supervises the project. Garden sites are located in southern Manhattan at 9th and Riley Lane and at 1435 Collins Lane. A small plot rental fee is charged to cover costs of operating the program. Signups occur November to March each year or until all plots are rented.

COLLINS LANE GARDEN
RILEY LANE GARDEN

 

Email The Community Garden

Announcements

Manhattan Community Garden Annual Meeting:
November 9th, 2019
Collins Lane Garden
Cleanup Work Day 9 – 11 a.m.
Returning Gardener Signup for 2020 at 10:00 a.m. [checks or cash ONLY]

Review the Proposed By-law Changes

Sign-Ups

Returning Gardeners:

2019 MCG gardeners who are in good standing have registration priority for the 2020 season. Following are the sign-up dates for returning gardeners:

  • November 9 (Saturday), 10:00-11:30 a.m., before annual meeting, Collins Lane
  • December 4 (Wednesday), 6:30-7:30 p.m., UFM Solar Addition
  • January 13 (Monday), 5:30-6:30 p.m., UFM Solar Addition
Returning gardeners have priority until January 31, 2020. After that date, returning gardeners may still register their 2019 plots if they have not been claimed or they may choose different plots that are available.

New Gardeners:

New gardeners are able to rent unclaimed plots on and after February 1, 2020. New gardeners require orientation and must register during one of the following sign-up dates:

  • February 1 (Saturday), 9:30-10:30 a.m., UFM Solar Addition
  • February 25 (Tuesday), 5:30-6:30 p.m., UFM Solar Addition
  • March 16 (Monday), 5:30-6:30 p.m., UFM Solar Addition
  • April 11 (Saturday), 9:30-10:30 a.m., UFM Solar Addition
Returning gardeners wanting additional plots must select and register the additional plots during a New Gardener sign-up event.

Volunteer Opportunities

Two volunteer activities for the good of the gardens are required by each gardening family.

Work Days & Socials

Below are the workdays for 2020.
Work will take place at both Riley and Collins Lane. Socials and the UFM workday are noted with an asterisk.

Sunday, March 8th, 2-4 p.m.
Saturday, April 4th, 9-11 a.m.
*Saturday, April 4th, 11 a.m. – Social at Riley
Saturday, May 9th, 9-11 a.m.
*Saturday, May 9th, 11 a.m. – Social at Collins
*Sunday, May 17th, 2-4 p.m. – UFM
Saturday, June 6th, 7:30-9:30 a.m.
Sunday, June 21st, 2-4 p.m.
Saturday, July 11th, 7:30-9:30 a.m.
Saturday, August 8th, 7:30-9:30 a.m.
Saturday, September 5th, 7:30-9:30 a.m.
Sunday, September 20th, 2-4 p.m.
Saturday, October 10th, 9-11 a.m.
Sunday, October 18th, 2-4 p.m.
Saturday, November 7th, 9-11 a.m. (make-up day ONLY); Annual Meeting at Collins

Mowing

Riley Lane

May – Oct

Collins Lane — Push Mower

May – October

Collins Lane — Riding Mower

May – October

Other Opportunities

Equipment Committee
Tilling Committee
Other Approved Service

Quicklinks & Downloads

Plot Rentals

Prices vary by plot on Riley Lane. Fees on Collins Lane are $50 per plot at full pay and $25 for low income gardeners. For more information on plot rental pricing and reduced fee guidelines, see the links below. If you have any questions please contact us at UFM.

Collins Lane Garden
Riley Lane Garden

History

The Manhattan Community Garden began in 1974 with a mini grant from ACTION, coordinated by UFM. The land was purchased by Urban Renewal and was 150 ft from the Union Pacific Railroad tracks. This space was zoned as green space for the next 20 years.

The City and many volunteers cleared the old houses and trees from the site. A local nursery provided a tractor and fertilizer to turn the soil and the City agreed to install water meters and spigots at the site. The City agreed to donate water and a local bank donated seeds for the first year. During that first year, they had 60 plots planted.

A shed was donated by a developmental center and a small grant from Social Rehabilitation Services assisted during the first years. Later, in 2004, a new shed was donated by D&R Construction.

The lease on the two acres of gardening space is held by UFM Community Learning Center and renewed by the City of Manhattan every five years. A new site, Collins Lane, was added in 2012, is leased from Riley County and is open to anyone in the county.

The Manhattan Community Garden is grateful to the Riley County Commission for providing the land, to Howie’s Trash and Recycling Services for providing labor and financial resources to help develop the new site and to the City of Manhattan Parks department for helping develop the second acre at Collins Lane for gardening in 2013.

Currently, the Riley Lane Garden has 132 plots and Collins Lane has 152 plots. A plot renewal is charged on a sliding scale to cover garden expenses.