Members work 8 hours each season per assigned plot for the upkeep of the Ithaca Community Gardens, or pay $10 per hour not worked. Work hours or payment for work hours is due by December 1 of the current season. Gardeners with special circumstances can apply to the board for a work waiver.
The work requirement (minimum of 8 hours) can be fulfilled by coming to at least four of the regular monthly Saturday workdays (see details below). Two of the 8 hours can be fulfilled by attendance at one board meeting. You may choose to work individually, too, doing a special job such as mowing. You can join one of the Gardens committees/work teams, or become a team coordinator. You can even consider running for the board of directors, as there are often openings.
It is the member’s responsibility to sign in on workdays, and report any other hours via this link (also found on the website homepage) in order to be credited with work hours. Each gardener is also expected to attend at least one member meeting, board meeting, social gathering or educational event per season.
Please review the many fun work options presented in this section in detail. We strongly encourage all gardeners to pitch in with more than the minimum requirement of 8 hours, if you can. Your work contribution is essential to the sustainability of the Gardens; please do your part to keep this precious resource available! Feel free to contact the Board with any questions.
REGULAR SATURDAY WORKDAYS
From April to October, our regular workdays are the last Saturday of the month from 10 am to noon. Since the Gardens reopened in summer 2022, we have offered many extra workdays. Gardeners sign up for at least two workdays to fulfill the minimum work requirement, but many gardeners come more often (even once a month) for the camaraderie, exercise, and free snacks! Drop-ins are always welcome. Workdays are announced to everyone via our group email list. New: alternate workdays. We try to offer one mid-month workday per month: one Sunday afternoon/month (~3-5 pm) during April, May, Sept and October, and one weekday evening/month (5:30 to 7:30 pm) during the hotter months of June to August. Volunteers are needed to organize one of these alternate workdays!
SPECIAL JOBS
These shorter, non-workday tasks are good for those who can’t attend regular workdays, or who prefer to work independently! These can encompass mowing, clearing and digging plots needing renovation, etc. Check our Special Jobs page for more details or contact the Board. Let us know if you have an idea for another job that would benefit the Gardens and better fit your skills & scheduling needs.
COMMITTEES
Volunteer on one of the committees (Communication/Outreach, Education, Elections/Annual Meeting, Finance/Fundraising, Operations, Membership) to help spread vital tasks among more of the membership. Committees are a great place to apply your planning and organizing skills, with a more flexible schedule than Saturday workdays, and a wide variety of tasks to suit your interests. Full details on committee work are found here. If interested please contact the board to discuss!
Be a (Co-)COORDINATOR
Help make the gardens run smoothly. The plot fee ($25 or $45 depending on plot size) is waived or refunded for these positions and all required work hours fulfilled by the work that you do. Jobs will likely take at least 8 hours. In general, committee coordinators convene and facilitate committee meetings as needed to identify projects and tasks, match individuals with jobs, help set task timelines, and liaison with the board. Other coordinators organize bigger garden tasks such as compost, mowing, elections, publicity, and special jobs. Full details on coordinator positions are here. You are welcome to take on one of these positions with a friend.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Consider running for the Gardens board of directors, or attending board meetings regularly as an understudy. Elections are held at the annual member meeting in the fall. All gardeners are welcome to attend board meetings, currently being held either the 3rd or 4th Monday of the month from 6:00 to 8:00 pm (contact secretary@ithacacommunitygardens.org to confirm the next meeting time. Gardeners often present proposals to the board, and attending meetings regularly is a good way learn more about the Gardens and how to become a board member. You can email the board at ithacagardensboard@gmail.com or phone 607-216-8770 (leave a message), or send mail to Ithaca Community Gardens, PO Box 804, Ithaca, NY 14851. To email a board member individually, please see the list below. The board can have up to 11 members.
Nine-Member Board (2-year term of service)
President: Laurie Worrall (Fall 23 to Fall 25) laurieworrall@
Vice President: Peter Fry (Fall 23 to Fall 25) peterfry@
Treasurer: Sheryl Swink (Fall 23 to Fall 24) sherylswink@ithacacommunitygardens.org
Secretary: Lena Franklin (Fall 23 to Fall 24) secretary@ithacacommunitygardens.org
Board member: Joel Abrams (Fall 23 to Fall 25) joelabrams@
Board member: Dan Hoffman (Fall 23 to Fall 24) danhoffman@ithacacommunitygardens.org
Board member: Cinder Lyon (Fall 23 to Fall 25) cinderlyon@
Board member: Vacant as of 3/11/24 (Fall 23 to Fall 24)
Board member: Vacant as of 3/11/24 (Fall 23 to Fall 24)