Grants of up to $5,000 are available to support community-led projects that:
PollinateTO supports projects that directly result in the creation of publicly-visible pollinator habitat in Toronto. Community education and engagement components of projects inspire others and extend the reach of pollinator stewardship locally. PollinateTO advances the principles and priorities of the City’s Pollinator Protection Strategy and Biodiversity Strategy.
Since 2019, PollinateTO has helped create 500 gardens!
Since 2019, PollinateTO has:
View the PollinateTO Project Sites Map to see where primary project gardens are located.
PollinateTO funded projects are listed below by ward, neighbourhood and Neighbourhood Improvement Area (NIA) or Emerging Neighbourhood (EN).
| Year | Ward | Neighbourhood | NIA or EN | Group Name | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 13 | Cabbagetown-South St. Jamestown | Not an NIA or EN | 40 Homewood Gardening Committee | The 40 Homewood Avenue Gardening Committee is expanding their pollinator garden at 40 Homewood Avenue to convert even more of their property to native plants. The 20-meter stretch of garden will host native plants blooming throughout the seasons for residents, neighbours, and passers-by to appreciate and learn from. |
| 2024 | 5 | Mount Dennis | NIA | Bala Garden Committee & School Advisory Council | This project at Bala Avenue Community School will work towards creating a native woodland garden where students can explore and learn about plants, pollinators and decomposers in our native ecosystems. |
| 2024 | 21 | Eglinton East | NIA | Bendale Butterflyway | This three-garden project in Scarborough will create a pollinator pathway at Knob Hill Park. Outreach events and informative signage will welcome community members from Knob Hill Public School and nearby residents to learn about the importance of native shrubs, flowers and grasses for pollinator habitat. |
| 2024 | 20 | Scarborough Village | NIA | Mason Road PS Eco Club | The Eco Club at Mason Road Public School is creating new school learning gardens and doing their part to help pollinators survive and thrive. They are reimagining old garden beds with native plant species and relocating native plants in closed-bottomed containers into the ground where they can take root. |
| 2024 | 25 | Highland Creek | Not an NIA or EN | Highland Creek Eco Team | The Ecoteam at Highland Creek Public School is creating a native plant garden in a sunny area at the front of their school to enrich educational and environmental efforts by fostering ecological diversity in their outdoor classroom. Their project seeks to cultivate positive environmental attitudes and empathy in students through pollinator stewardship. |
| 2024 | 12 | Casa Loma | Not an NIA or EN | Hillcrest Green Team | The Hillcrest Green Team is working with school staff, students, and community members at Hillcrest Community School to expand existing garden beds and create Native Pollinator Learning Gardens on both sides of the school’s main entrance. This project is the first phase of a larger plan to create a pollinator pathway. |
| 2022 | 1 | Rexdale-Kipling | Not an NIA or EN | The PACT Urban Peace Program | The PACT Program’s Grow-To-Learn Pollinator Garden at Thistletown Collegiate Institute will serve as an invaluable educational resource for both students and the community. PACT will develop pollinator workshops which will be delivered to students (Grades 1-12) during school hours, and to the community at our weekly markets. PACT will offer TDSB staff and students access to the pollinator space, and will provide all visiting classes a detailed self-guided tour with the help of QR codes, sitemaps and digital information. |
| 2024 | 1 | West Humber-Clairville | Not an NIA or EN | Melody Pollinates | The Melody Pollinates project will create a native plant garden at Melody Village Junior School, strategically positioned alongside a community walkway. The garden will include native plants carefully selected to bloom in different seasons, not only promoting biodiversity but also providing a vital habitat for local pollinators. |
| 2024 | 24 | West Hill | NIA | Blooming Partners | Blooming Partners are tackling native pollinator decline through the creation of a pollinator garden at BGC East Scarborough. Native plants blooming spring through fall will provide continuous pollinator food supply and year-round habitat. |
| 2024 | 23 | Miliken | Not an NIA or EN | Blue Pond Gardening Club | The Blue Pond Native Garden Project aims to transform an underutilized cul-de-sac turf grass island along Blue Pond Place into a place teeming with colours and pollinator activity, and a peaceful oasis for community learning and gathering. |
| 2024 | 24 | Golfdale-Cedarbrae-Woburn | NIA | CHPS Pollinator Propagators | 2024 At Churchill Heights Public School, the Pollinator Propagators Bees, Butterflies and Birds Garden is taking advantage of their location next to a hydro corridor on Brimorton Drive to host thriving pollinator habitat, add colour to the schoolyard to inspire students, parents, caregivers, and community members to learn about pollinators and native plants. |
| 2024 | 5 | Beechborough-Greenbrook | NIA | Charles E Webster PS Eco Club | At Charles E Webster Public School, the Eco Club will create four garden beds to increase the number of pollinator plants on the grounds of their inner-city school. The gardens will support native pollinators, create hands-on learning opportunities for students and provide space for Indigenous knowledge keepers and elders to plant and harvest medicinal herbs. |
| 2024 | 14 | Danforth | Not an NIA or EN | DCTI EcoClub | The Danforth Collegiate and Technical Institute garden is a curriculum-extension project set on school grounds. The group’s previous work planting native plants in place of invasive and ornamental plants will be expanded through this project. Students will be involved through project-based learning. |
| 2024 | 16 | Banbury-Don Mills | Not an NIA or EN | DMA Green Gang | The Don Mills Seniors’ Apartments (DMA) Green Gang is creating pollinator habitat in the overlooked greenspace in their front entrance and courtyard. This project will give residents an opportunity to engage with the community while inspiring others to undertake pollinator garden projects. |
| 2024 | 14 | Playter Estates-Danforth | Not an NIA or EN | East End United Regional Ministry | The goal of the East End United Regional Ministry is to educate the community on the benefits of pollinators and pollination gardens through youth-created art in their garden, which will be a combination of open plantings and raised beds. |
| 2024 | 14 | Danforth-East York | Not an NIA or EN | East Yorker Gardeners | The “Our Home is YourZZZ Home” project aims to create a vibrant pollinator garden at the East Yorker Condominium. The garden location is adjacent to two TTC bus stops and will welcome community members to stroll through, sit, and enjoy the native foliage and pollinator activity. |
| 2024 | 9 | Oakwood Village | Not an NIA or EN | FCJ Refugee Centre | The FCJ Refugee Centre is incorporating native plants into their existing gardens while establishing a new pollinator garden. Their four gardens will contribute to local ecosystem health and biodiversity and will also create a welcoming environment for staff, clients, and the public. A bench will be located in the garden for members of the community to enjoy. |
| 2024 | 25 | Rouge West | Not an NIA or EN | Fernie Works | Fernie Works is a program at Fernie Youth Services that trains youth for landscaping and gardening employment through hands-on experience and engagement with the community. To grow the next generation of pollinator-aware landscapers, Fernie Works is transforming lawn space into a teaching garden. |
| 2024 | 9 | Caledonia-Fairbank | Not an NIA or EN | FH Miller Junior Public School Naturalist Club | At FH Miller Junior Public School, the Naturalist Club will create a garden where students can apply theoretical knowledge from subjects like biology, natural sciences, and Indigenous history through experiential learning. Their garden will support biodiversity, foster ecological awareness, and build community. |
| 2024 | 16 | Parkwoods-O’Connor Hills | Not an NIA or EN | Flemingdon Park Ministry | The urban farm at Flemingdon Park Ministry will promote community education on native plant species, while emphasizing the important connection between food production and wild pollinators. Their project will expand existing native pollinator gardens and invite the community to participate in plantings. |
| 2024 | 13 | Regent Park | NIA | Fred Victor | The upcoming project at Fred Victor will create two new pollinator gardens and revitalize a third near their existing communal food and teaching gardens. These gardens will educate the community on wild pollinators and urban agriculture, and the importance of native plants. |
| 2024 | 21 | Dorset Park | EN | General Crerar’s EcoSquad | At General Crerar Public School, the EcoSquad is establishing three pollinator gardens that will provide food, nesting and overwintering sites for pollinators like butterflies, native bees, moths, beetles and more. Students will participate in planning the garden’s layout and plants, incorporating their own skills, identities, and experiences. |
| 2024 | 13 | Church-Wellesley | Not an NIA or EN | Church and Gloucester Pollinator Garden | 2024 Located at the corner of Church St. and Gloucester St., the Church and Gloucester Pollinator Garden will create a winding walking path with pollinator plants on both sides of the path, a bench for seating, information about each plant to turn an unused space into a green oasis and community focal point. |
| 2024 | 4 | High Park North | Not an NIA or EN | Humberside Environmental Action Team | The Humberside Environmental Action Team is establishing a new pollinator garden near their existing vegetable gardens at Humberside Collegiate Institute. The project aims to enhance students’ connection to nature and provide learning opportunities across various classes and clubs. |
| 2024 | 4 | Junction Area | Not an NIA or EN | Maher Circle Pollinator Garden Project Team | The Maher Circle Pollinator Garden Project Team is a group of residents who are joining forces to transform Maher Circle Park into a biodiverse oasis. Their project will expand pollinator habitat, add informative signage, and provide support in nurturing two native Pawpaw trees. |
| 2024 | 14 | North Riverdale | Not an NIA or EN | MCCT Garden Faeries | This project will transition the grounds of the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto into a pollinator and native species learning garden for the Riverdale community. The project will highlight diverse native plants and pollinator species and showcase native plants as aesthetic alternatives to mass produced hybrid plants. |
| 2024 | 13 | Moss Park | Not an NIA or EN | Native Women’s Resource Centre of Toronto (NWRCT) and Friends of Allan Gardens | NWRCT and Friends of Allan Gardens are partnering to revive their beloved medicine garden that has been hidden by construction fencing at Allan Gardens. With the end of construction nearing, they will revitalize this garden and turn it into a thriving space. The project focuses on cultural preservation, community engagement and ecological impact. |
| 2024 | 10 | Kensington-Chinatown | Not an NIA or EN | OCAD University | OCAD University hopes to expand a previous pollinator garden on campus to continue engaging students, staff, and faculty to learn about pollinator habitat, urban ecologies, Indigenous knowledges, and land-based learning for art & design curriculum. Their project will increase awareness of the artist and designer’s role to engage with and protect ecological systems. |
| 2024 | 17 | Hillcrest Village | Not an NIA or EN | Ravel Church Properties | Ravel Church Properties will install gardens in four locations, with the primary garden at St. Cyprian’s Anglican Church. Gardens will engage passers-by, and replace turf lawn space. Their tri-church community will participate in creating and maintaining the garden while encouraging others to adopt the same principles for their own gardens. |
| 2024 | 8 | Englemount-Lawrence | EN | Residents First | Residents First will be engaging local seniors by hosting workshops on pollinators and native plants, ecological health and best practices for gardening through the Lawrence Heights TCH community. They will be creating ten “pollinator patches” along Flemington Road for local pollinators to land, rest and nest. |
| 2024 | 14 | South Riverdale | Not an NIA or EN | Riverdale Environmental Action League | The Riverdale Environmental Action League is planting a pollinator garden along Jones Avenue outside Riverdale Collegiate Institute. With the support of Indigenous Knowledge keepers, they will highlight the traditional significance and uses of many native plants and share a diverse perspective on the importance of urban biodiversity. |
| 2024 | 25 | Centennial Scarborough | Not an NIA or EN | Rouge Butterflyway Group | The Rouge Butterflyway Group has worked with the Tony Stacey Centre for Veterans since 2020 to help enhance the gardens for the enjoyment of residents, staff, visitors and pollinators. The group is excited to expand their project by weeding new areas and introducing more native plants to the centre’s expansive grounds. |
| 2024 | 5 | Rockliffe-Smythe | NIA | Santa Maria School | Santa Maria School has a large unused green space where staff and students wish to apply their knowledge of native plants and pollinators to create a thriving habitat. The garden will be in partnership with students from Bishop Romero who will lend their skills, and efforts to the project. |
| 2024 | 4 | High Park-Swansea | Not an NIA or EN | St. Joseph’s Pollinator Garden Committee | The St. Joseph’s Pollinator Garden Committee will transform an underutilized area along Sunnyside Avenue into thriving pollinator habitat. The fence that serves as the backdrop for the garden will feature an Indigenous mural during phase two of their project. |
| 2024 | 9 | Junction-Wallace Emerson | Not an NIA or EN | St. Luigi School Garden Brigade | The new pollinator gardens at St. Luigi Elementary School are an outcome of the collaborative efforts between the school administration, Dovercourt Boys & Girls Club, and the parent council. The memorial garden, honouring Holly Jones, will be re-planted with native plants and a patch of lawn will be converted into new habitat for pollinators. |
| 2024 | 24 | West Hill | NIA | TCH SCHC EarlyON Child and Family Centre | This project at the Scarborough Centre for Healthy Communities EarlyON Child and Family Centre will create a pollinator pathway near an existing meditative area. With the help of existing EarlyOn families, local students, volunteers and residents, they will enrich community mental health and well-being whilst helping the environment. |
| 2024 | 19 | The Beaches | Not an NIA or EN | The Church of St. Aidan | St. Aidan’s Church in the Beaches will transform an unused, sandy space adjacent to the church into a vibrant rain and pollinator garden with pathways and gathering spaces. The group will host community events and workshops to educate visitors about the value of native plants and storm water management. |
| 2024 | 11 | Annex | Not an NIA or EN | The Church of the Messiah and Partners | This community group has worked together to maintain vegetable gardens for over ten years at The Church of the Messiah. They are now looking to engage their communities of parish members, food bank volunteers and recipients, children and students in native plants and pollinators. |
| 2024 | 7 | Glenfield-Jane Heights | NIA | Topcliff’s ECOclub | Topcliff’s Pollinator Corridor will be located at the front of Topcliff Public School, where two existing gardens are in need of revitalization. The new native plant habitat will educate students, staff and families about the importance of biodiversity and pollinator stewardship. |
| 2021 | 1 | West Humber-Clairville | Not an NIA or EN | Fr. Henry Carr Environmental Club | The Father Henry Carr (FHC) Environmental Club’s BEE-U-TIFLY Done project will be a collaborative effort supported by FHC students, parents, staff, and community members. The project’s goal is to increase the ecological value of the school’s existing greenspace by planting native plants to create new habitat for native pollinator species. This natural setting will also serve as an inclusive cross-curricular outdoor education resource, providing an opportunity to enjoy and learn about nature. |
| 2022 | 1 | Elms-Old Rexdale | NIA | Braeburn Neighbourhood Place & Boys and Girls Club | The Braeburn Neighbourhood Place & Boys and Girls Club’s project focuses on climate action learning for children. Children will be creating a pollinator garden alongside adult allies and youth mentors. Participants will have fun and interactive opportunities to deepen their understanding about interconnectivity of pollinators, biodiversity, human stewardship, where our food comes from and why it matters for our future. |
| 2023 | 1 | Elms-Old Rexdale | EN | The Elms JMS Community Initiatives Group | The Elms JMS Community Initiatives Group will create multiple pollinator teaching gardens where students can learn about pollen producing plants and their crucial importance to the larger ecosystem. The project will involve the environmental sciences curriculum through hands-on learning. The Elms After School Cooking Club will also utilize the garden by educating participants on the importance of pollination and its connection to growing food. |
| 2023 | 2 | Islington | Not an NIA or EN | Our Lady of Peace Elementary School | Peace Gardens will be created on the school grounds of Our Lady of Peace School and will create a pollinator habitat and an interactive and educational gathering space for students, families, and the community. The school community will be involved in designing, planting, and caring for the gardens. The project will extend learning beyond the curriculum and classroom, promote student engagement, and strengthen kinship with the natural environment. |
| 2023 | 2 | Kingsview Village | NIA | The Westway | The Westway Butterfly Brigade The Westway Butterfly Brigade will expand and rejuvenate existing garden areas at Westway Junior School to attract pollinators and provide habitat for pollinators to eat, rest and hydrate. They will create signage to identify pollinator plants within the garden, the pollinating species that may visit the garden, and the importance of pollinators to local and global ecosystems. |
| 2023 | 2 | Humber Heights-Westmount | NIA | Westmount JS Pollinator Club | The Westmount JS Pollinator Club will create a pollinator garden for the enjoyment and education of Kindergarten through Grade 5 students on the importance of pollinators, native plant species, and gardening skills. The pollinator garden will also be a space where families and community members can come together to enjoy gardening, observe the natural cycles of the species who live there, and beautify the school grounds together. |
| 2020 | 3 | Stonegate-Queensway | Not an NIA or EN | Stonegate Community Health Centre, Bell Manor Park Community Garden & ArtsEtobicoke Pollinator Garden Partnership | This project will create a pollinator community garden in Bell Manor Park. Bell Manor Park Community Pollinator Garden, which is part of the Community Health Centre’s Food Access Program, addresses the lack of space for growing in lower-income neighbourhoods and provides an alternative food source and access to community activities and connections among many culturally diverse circles. |
| 2020 | 2 | Willowride-Martingrove-Richview | Not an NIA or EN | CSPC – Transfiguration | The parent council at Transfiguration of our Lord Catholic School will lead the creation of Transfiguration Pollinator Teaching Garden at the school. The goal is to provide pollinators with an additional resource in the neighbourhood and to educate the community on the ecological importance of pollinators. |
| 2020 | 3 | Humber Bay Shores | Not an NIA or EN | David Hornell Junior School & Mimico Residents Association | David Hornell Elementary School and Mimico Residents Association will create three pollinator garden spaces within the school grounds. This initiative will help to revitalize outdoor classrooms and provide students with important eco-learning opportunities. This project will also provide significant benefit to neighbouring communities. |
| 2020 | 3 | New Toronto | Not an NIA or EN | FJR Pollinator Project | Father John Redmond Secondary School will create a pollinator garden to provide benefits to the school, the Ken Cox Community Centre and the greater Lakeshore community through pollinator protection and education. It will include the collaborative efforts of the biology department, Eco-club, and the parent council to build and maintain the garden. |
| 2023 | 3 | New Toronto | Not an NIA or EN | Lakeshore Environmental Gardening Society (LEGS) | Taking place at the Daily Bread Food Bank (DBFB), the Lakeshore Environmental Gardening Society will expand a pollinator habitat and develop educational programming which will bring in local community partners for tours and workshops, as well as self-guided tours for DBFB clients and staff. They will raise awareness about the importance of saving native species and habitats as an important link to food security in urban Toronto. |
| 2023 | 3 | Kingsway South | Not an NIA or EN | Our Lady Of Sorrows School | Our Lady of Sorrows School will include a pollinator garden into their overall school playground design. The garden will support native pollinator species and as will be an experiential teaching tool for students and the surrounding community. The school’s Eco Team and Nature Appreciation Club will be stewards of the garden and ambassadors for environmental sustainability. |
| 2020 | 4 | South Parkdale | NIA | The Argonaut Rowing Club | The Argonaut Rowing Club is constructing a pollinator garden near the Martin Goodman trail. The project will create plant identifiers and signage that is easily visible from the trail. The project is supported by a dedicated team of gardeners and volunteers. |
| 2020 | 4 | Runnymede-Bloor West Village | Not an NIA or EN | King George Junior Public School Parent Council | The King George Junior Public School Parent Council is creating a pollinator teaching garden at King George Junior Public School. The garden will space for students to engage in active learning about biodiversity, ecology, and stewardship. The garden will also be presented as a demonstration garden that encourages residents in the area to consider how their plant choices and gardening practices impact native pollinator species. |
| 2020 | 4 | High Park North | Not an NIA or EN | Ravina Community Garden | The Ravina Community Garden group will transform an existing lawn bowling club space and create an experience for community members to directly engage with the plant and wildlife growing in the garden. The project proposes the creation of a stone wall for cavity nesting native pollinators. There will be educational opportunities for members of this intergenerational community garden to learn through hands-on experiences. |
| 2020 | 4 | High Park-Swansea | Not an NIA or EN | Windermere United Church and Friends’ Pollinator Project | The Windermere United Church and Friends’ Pollinator Project will create a pollinator garden at Windermere United Church. The project will engage children from the church school, community cooking class, the on-site daycare (Windermere Kids) and the Swansea School of Dance, as well as many other groups that use the church building during the week. |
| 2021 | 4 | Runnymede-Bloor West Village | Not an NIA or EN | 75th Old Mill Scouts | The 75th Old Mill Scouts will create a pollinator garden at St. Paul’s Church. This space will provide education for the Beavers, Cubs and Scouts as well as to the church parish and local community. It is hoped that this garden will inspire others to plant native pollinator plants to create an ever-expanding pollinator pathway within our city. |
| 2021 | 4 | South Parkdale | NIA | JBV Gardening Committee | Located in the heart of South Parkdale, John Bruce Village (JBV) Housing Cooperative is fortunate to have garden space that is shared by 40 mixed income households. The JBV Gardening Committee will enhance this existing green space by creating Pollinating South Parkdale: A Cooperative Community Garden that is comprised of native plants, and captures rain water efficiently. The project aims to foster a shared commitment to stewarding our natural spaces. |
| 2021 | 4 | South Parkdale | NIA | South Parkdale Pollinators | South Parkdale Pollinators will create a woodland garden in South Parkdale on a corner adjoining five houses that will also be adding pollinators to their front gardens. It’s a corner is used my many pedestrians, as well as being close to two elementary schools, a rehabilitation centre, and a long-term care facility. |
| 2022 | 4 | High Park North | Not an NIA or EN | Annette Street Primary School & High Park Alternative School | Annette Street Public School and High Park Alternative School (ASPS & HPAS) Garden Stewards are excited to refresh three garden spaces. The Peace Garden will be getting raised beds filled with pollinator plants, pathways, and an education board. Students will learn and share the value of pollinators and native plants with the community through post on the education board, signage and plantings in the garden. |
| 2021 | 1 | Mount Olive-Silverstone-Jamestown | NIA | St. Angela Catholic School | A pollinator garden will be created at St. Angela Catholic School with the help of students, teachers, and local residents to educate the community about pollinators’ role in biodiversity and environmental sustainability. |
| 2022 | 4 | Roncesvalles | Not an NIA or EN | Parkdale Junior and Senior Public School Garden Committee | Parkdale Junior and Senior Public School will establish the Indigenous Medicine and Pollinator Garden. This garden will support learning in Indigenous knowledge, pollination, habitats, plant health, and food. It will also beautify the community, creating an inviting space for neighbours and Parkdale families. |
| 2022 | 4 | Junction Area | Not an NIA or EN | The Junction Business Improvement Area (BIA) | The Junction BIA will create a pollinator pathway along Dundas Street West. The project aims to return biodiversity to The Junction by providing butterflies and bees with additional food sources and mark The Junction as the most pollinator-friendly neighbourhood in Toronto. |
| 2022 | 4 | High Park North | Not an NIA or EN | West Bend Green Community | West Bend Green Community’s Butterfly Way is located on the west side of Indian Road just north of Keele Subway Station. This project will plant 250 native plants to attract pollinators and encourage others to follow suit. This project is part of a series of boulevard gardens lining High Park to the rail corridor gardens on the east side of Dundas Street West from Glenlake Avenue to Humberside Avenue. The butterfly pathway thus created will facilitate further pathways for butterflies along the rail corridors in the west end of Toronto. |
| 2023 | 4 | High Park-Swansea | Not an NIA or EN | Friends of Morningside High Park | Friends of Morningside High Park Church will rejuvenate gardens bordering their church. This space will become a pollinator garden that will better serve the environment, benefit the adjacent community vegetable garden, and will educate and engage the public about the symbiotic relationship between plants, bees, insects, and other wildlife and the food that we eat. |
| 2023 | 4 | High Park-Swansea | Not an NIA or EN | Howard School Community | Howard Jr Public School will revitalize an existing garden in their yard. Their garden will include painted signs made by students, plant labels, and other student artwork that will engage and educate visitors. One of the primary goals is for the garden to enable education opportunities for students and the broader school community through hands-on workshops. |
| 2023 | 4 | Runnymede-Bloor West Village | Not an NIA or EN | Runny(bee)de CI Garden Group | Runny(bee)de CI Garden Group will engage the students at Runnymede Collegiate Institute and their sister school, Mountview Public School. By providing a hands-on opportunity to learn about the significance of pollinators in an educational setting, they hope to simultaneously impart valuable lessons on local ecology, Indigenous history and stewardship, and give students with the confidence to explore other avenues of climate action. |
| 2023 | 4 | South Parkdale | NIA | South Parkdale Community Pollinator Gardeners | The South Parkdale Community Pollinator Gardeners will create a pollination corridor with seven pollinator gardens on boulevards and lawns along three residential streets in South Parkdale, including a fully accessible garden. They aim to support pollinators while deepening people’s appreciation for nature and community gardening. |
| 2023 | 4 | Lambton Baby Point | Not an NIA or EN | Warren Park JPS Parents and Teachers | Warren Park Junior Public School’s priority in building a pollinator garden is to provide students with valuable educational experiences and enriched learning environments. This project will create a sustainable pollinator garden with native plant species that benefits local wildlife and provides opportunities for curriculum linked educational programming for all grades. Students will be engaged in nurturing the garden plants from seed, so they feel close involvement and investment in creating the garden.v |
| 2021 | 5 | Rockcliffe-Smythe | NIA | Lambton Park Community School | The Lambton Park Community School will implement a pollinator habitat creation project using native plants that educates and engages the community. The project will serve as a school teaching garden and learning ground for environmental literacy and pollinator stewardship. |
| 2021 | 5 | Stonegate-Queensway | Not an NIA or EN | St. Louis Catholic School | St. Louis Catholic School plans to transform their existing community-facing green space into the St. Louis Pollinator Garden with the help of students, staff and community volunteers. In addition, they will plant larval host plants at the base of trees in the main schoolyard, which will add more plants amidst the concrete, assist with water retention for trees and create more habitat for pollinator friends. |
| 2022 | 5 | Rockcliffe-Smythe | NIA | Friends of Henrietta Park | Friends of Henrietta Park will establish the Henrietta Park Pollinator Garden, a small and tranquil pocket of green space in the west-end of the city. The garden will provide an educational opportunity by creating a space for participants, both adults and children, to learn and share their skills and knowledge, as well as cultural opportunities, by providing a space to share knowledge between people of different ages and backgrounds. |
| 2022 | 5 | Rockcliffe-Smythe | NIA | Friends of Smythe Park | Friends of Smythe Park is pleased to be adding a rain garden and pollinator garden as part of their Healthy Park Healthy People project. The rain garden will help absorb overland flooding from streets that has been contaminating the ponds, resulting in a negative effect on both the flora and fauna. The pollinator garden is strategically placed where very few insects have been seen. |
| 2022 | 5 | Mount Dennis | NIA | Portage Trail Community School Garden Project | The Portage Trail Garden project will create a pollinator garden in front of the Portage Trail Community School. With assistance from the Portage Parent Council, the goal is to promote a space for children to learn about plants in a playful environment. |
| 2023 | 5 | Black Creek | NIA | EcoClub and Autism Intensive Support Program | The EcoClub and Autism Intensive Support Program will create a pollinator garden in front of Brookview Middle School. Students and community members will have opportunities through hands-on learning experiences to observe and learn about the pollinator garden and pollinators’ importance to food security. The garden will foster inclusive relationships within the school community and provide opportunities for students to work collaboratively. |
| 2020 | 6 | Clanton Park | Not an NIA or EN | The Toronto Heschel School | Project Nectar will be an educational pollinator garden at the Toronto Heschel School. The goal is to give students, teachers, and community members an opportunity to learn about the role pollinators play in supporting local and global ecosystems and contribute to Toronto’s ongoing effort to expand pollinator habitats. As a Jewish school, it is incumbent to care for the Earth as part of the concept of ‘Tikkun Olam’ or repairing the world. |
| 2023 | 6 | Clanton Park | Not an NIA or EN | Faywood ABC School Eco-Club | The Faywood ABC School Eco-Club will create a native plant garden to encourage and promote creating pollinator pathways in the Wilson Heights and Clanton Park neighbourhoods. The pollinator garden will be an educational, hands-on garden that the school community will incorporate with connections to Indigenous land-based teachings and the school’s arts-based curriculum. |
| 2023 | 6 | Bathurst Manor | Not an NIA or EN | William Lyon Mackenzie C.I. Gardening Club | The William Lyon Mackenzie Gardening Club will expand pre-existing pollinator gardens at their school to encourage the growth of pollinator-friendly habitats that will benefit not only their school but the surrounding community as well. The gardens will demonstrate student’s ability to implement environmental change in their communities, and further involve their school in environmental action. |
| 2020 | 7 | York University Heights | NIA | St. Wilfrid Catholic School ECO Rangers | St. Wilfrid Catholic School students, staff, and community members will work together to create a pollinator teaching garden to educate other on issues that are related to saving our Earth. The ECO Rangers School Grounds Greening Project gardens will enhance student learning by providing a natural, pleasing, relaxing setting, and sparking discussions about the new additional plants and animals that they attract. |
| 2021 | 7 | Pelmo Park-Humberlea | Not an NIA or EN | St. Basil-the-Great College Pollinators | The St. Basil-the-Great College (SBC) Pollinator Garden project aims to foster students’ development into responsible citizens and lifelong learners who actively sustain the well-being of our environment. The pollinator garden will be located at the front of SBC school and will be visible for all to enjoy. |
| 2022 | 7 | Glenfield-Jane Heights | NIA | St. Francis De Sales | The goal of the Learning Garden project is to beautify St. Francis De Sales school while providing natural areas to support the environment. Students will have the opportunity to participate in all aspects of the maintenance of the pollinator habitat. |
| 2023 | 7 | Humber Summit | NIA | Labour Education Centre | The Labour Education Centre will create a pollinator garden to compliment their existing medicine wheel garden and provide opportunities for students to learn how they can contribute to environmental wellness. Students will design, create and learn about the garden, which will become part of the curriculum during the 7 to 12 weeks students are involved in the pre-apprenticeship program at the centre. |
| 2023 | 7 | Pelmo Park-Humberlea | Not an NIA or EN | St. Basil-the-Great College School | St. Basil-the-Great College School’s Nature Club will lead the design, planting and upkeep of a pollinator garden on the school grounds. The entire school community will also have opportunities to be involved with planting and maintaining the garden while incorporating the garden in the delivery of curriculum and a variety of lesson plans from science to art. |
| 2020 | 8 | Briar Hill-Belgravia | Not an NIA or EN | Hopewell Community Garden | The Hopewell Community Garden group will create a community pollinator garden in an underused area in Walter Saunders Memorial Park. The garden expands the capacity of Hopewell Community Garden, allowing for increased participation and alternative horticultural learning opportunities for participants. |
| 2021 | 8 | Yonge-Eglinton | Not an NIA or EN | Toronto Green Community | Since 1997, Eglinton Park Community Garden has been a haven of edibles and native plants. Closure due to nearby construction has left the garden in need of some restoration. This project will allow the Toronto Green Community to engage volunteers who are excited to cultivate native plants, and a wild meadow of pollinator plants. Signage and plant ID tags will raise awareness of the role of pollinators and native species in our ecosystem. |
| 2022 | 8 | Yorkdale-Glen Park | EN | San Lorenzo Latin American Community Centre | San Lorenzo Latin American Community Centre will create three pollinator gardens through their El Jardin San Lorenzo project. Community members, including immigrant and refugee families from Latin America, will learn the importance of pollinators and native plants and their impact to our local environment. This project will incorporate traditional and lived experiences from Latin American countries to help raise awareness on the necessity to protect, restore and create new natural habitats for life diversity in our neighborhoods. |
| 2020 | 9 | Corso Italia-Davenport | Not an NIA or EN | Appleton Ave. Community Organization | The Appleton Ave. Community Organization will create a pollinator corridor consisting of 15 pollinator patches along Appleton Avenue. The project will result in a complex urban ecosystem and engage the community through planting days, speakers, children’s activities, and a community potluck. |
| 2020 | 9 | Junction-Wallace Emerson | Not an NIA or EN | George Chuvalo Community Center & Christie Ossington Neighbourhood Center | The George Chuvalo Community Center’s pollinator gardens will be one of the first community projects for this new community centre. The goal is to establish sustainability as one of the community’s priorities through the collaborative experience of growing a pollinator garden. The key elements of the project will be a garden design inspired by the rainbow flag, and educational workshops on pollinators, seed saving and seed starting. |
| 2020 | 9 | Little Portugal | Not an NIA or EN | Naadmaagit Ki (NKG) “Helpers of the Earth” | St. Anne’s Church invited Naadmaagit Ki (NKG) “Helpers of the Earth” to care for the land adjacent to the church in 2013. With the help of committed volunteers, the space will be transformed into a shared community pollinator garden project called Aamoog, Memengwaag miinwaa Nenookaasiwag (Bees, Butterflies & Hummingbirds). They will offer culturally-rooted, Indigenous educational opportunities for the community. |
| 2021 | 9 | Little Portugal | Not an NIA or EN | Shirley Street Junior Public School Gardeners | Shirley Street Junior Public School Gardeners plans include adding an abundance of native plants and shrubs to the garden to attract many different pollinators, providing learning opportunities and a place of serenity and joy for students and the wider community of Shirley Street Junior Public School. |
| 2022 | 9 | Junction-Wallace Emerson | Not an NIA or EN | Carlton Park Pollinators | The Carleton Park Pollinators will create a demonstrative garden, which will beautify the park and educate residents about the benefit and beauty of native plants. The gardens will attract pollinators, increase the biodiversity of the neighbourhood, and help establish a pollinator corridor with nearby Symington Avenue Playground community garden and the greenspaces along the West Toronto Railpath. |
| 2022 | 9 | Palmerston-Little Italy | Not an NIA or EN | Dewson Street Junior Public School | Dewson Street Junior Public School will transform under-used space into healthy, thriving pollinator gardens. These new native ecosystems hold natural value, create beauty and provide a space for important ecosystem education. The Dewson Pollinator Gardens will be an educational gathering space for 450+ students, their families and the surrounding school community. |
| 2023 | 9 | Dufferin Grove | Not an NIA or EN | Dufferin Grove Park Garden Co-operative | The Dufferin Grove Park Garden Co-operative will expand pollinator habitat by creating a pollinator patch in Dufferin Grove Park. The co-operative will also engage community members through educational workshops, plant sharing and planting sessions to help residents learn about native plants, experience the benefits native plants provide, and to expand pollinator habitat and connectivity throughout the neighbourhood. |
| 2023 | 9 | Corso Italia-Davenport | Not an NIA or EN | Nairn Pollinators | The Nairn Pollinators group will plant and maintain a pollinator garden at Nairn Park to provide habitat for bees, butterflies and other pollinators and to serve as a resource for local families and to learn about the crucial role that pollinators and native plants play in the maintenance of biodiversity. The pollinator garden at Nairn Park will provide a tangible example to community members of how beneficial and beautiful pollinator gardens and native plants can be. |
| 2023 | 9 | Little Portugal | Not an NIA or EN | The Theatre Centre | The Theatre Centre will expand and enhance the gardens surrounding their venue on the West Queen West strip, bringing awareness to the importance of pollinator stewardship to the local community and visitors. Their pollinator project will create gardening and community engagement opportunities for neighbours who have limited access to outdoor space. Educational programming will also be developed to create accessible content across several outlets. |
| 2020 | 10 | St Lawrence-East Bayfront-The Islands | Not an NIA or EN | Sunshine Centre for Seniors | The Sunshine Pollinator Gardens: Seniors and Youth Bee-utify Our Community project will create three pollinator gardens at the Sunshine Centres for Seniors Parsonage building on Ward’s Island, providing opportunities for all who visit to learn about the importance of pollinators. The community will also be significantly involved in planting and maintaining the gardens. |
| 2021 | 10 | Kensington-Chinatown | Not an NIA or EN | OCAD University | OCAD University’s Friendship Community Garden strives to increase habitat for pollinator species, support universal design and accessibility, and bridge staff, students and faculty in a living project that expands natural spaces for learning, well-being, and a sense of belonging. It’s an opportunity to increase awareness of the artist/designer role to protect ecological systems and integrate biodiversity into daily urban life and build connections between people and land. |
| 2021 | 10 | Kensington-Chinatown | Not an NIA or EN | Scadding Court Community Centre & Friends of Alexandra Park | Alexandra Park Pollinator Power is a partnership between community gardeners from the Alexandra Park Diversity Garden, urban agriculture program staff and volunteers from Scadding Court Community Centre, and volunteers with the Friends of Alexandra Park neighbourhood group. AP Pollinator Power will work collaboratively to develop a pollinator habitat and a site for community building, education and recreation. |
| 2022 | 10 | Trinity-Bellwoods | Not an NIA or EN | SKETCH Working Arts | SKETCH Working Arts will create Weave and Mend Gardens alongside SKETCH Studios at Artscape Youngplace on Shaw Street. The pollinator bed, titled The Mother’s Bed, will be designed by artist Harley McDowell to honour the impact mothers have on our lives. The group believes that like mothers, pollinators play a significant role in our eco-systems and without this vital relationship we would be lost. |
| 2023 | 10 | Trinity-Bellwoods | Not an NIA or EN | Ossington Old Orchard Parent Council | Ossington Old Orchard Parent Council will replace their original pollinator garden plot that was removed for renovations at Ossington Old Orchard Public School (OOOPS). The new pollinator garden will allow OOOPS to continue their practice of incorporating gardening into the school curriculum. The garden will be enjoyed by students, staff, families, and the surrounding community who benefit from the greenspace on weekends. |
| 2020 | 11 | Leaside-Bennington | Not an NIA or EN | Evergreen | Evergreen Brick Works is located in the Don Valley ravine system and is a vital access point to nature for Torontonians. The Pollinator Revitalization Project will promote and preserve native species and will transform the Tiffany Commons space into pollinator gardens. Evergreen welcomes nearly half a million visitors a year and with their contact through these gardens, visitors will be able to learn more about pollinator habitats. |
| 2020 | 11 | Palmerston-Little Italy | Not an NIA or EN | Harbord Collegiate PARA Pollinator Gardens | This project is a school-community collaboration between the Harbord Collegiate Eco team and the Palmerston Area Residents Association Green Committee. The goal is the creation of two pollinator gardens within the south-facing front yard of Harbord Collegiate and along Harbord Street. As part of meeting this goal, the garden will educate and engage students, staff, and community on the importance of pollinators, native plants, and biodiversity. |
| 2022 | 11 | University | Not an NIA or EN | Bloor Annex BIA | Bloor Annex BIA will “Pollinate the Annex” on Bloor Street between Spadina Avenue and Bathurst Street, creating pollinator gardens in four public parklets. Using interactive plant markers and a local plant map, we intend to build relationships with our community through education and engagement. |
| 2022 | 11 | University | Not an NIA or EN | Huron-Sussex Community Garden | The Huron-Sussex Community Garden (HSCG) was founded in April 2016 in a busy neighbourhood in the heart of University of Toronto. The pollinator garden is a welcome addition to the existing community garden and will educate the gardeners and others about pollinator stewardship. |
| 2022 | 11 | Trinity-Bellwoods | Not an NIA or EN | Pierre Elliott Trudeau Elementary School Community | Pierre Elliott Trudeau Elementary School will raise awareness and educate their multi-lingual community about the role of pollinators and native species in our ecosystem through their project, Jardin de Pollen. The students will learn about pollinators and the role they play in the school’s existing vegetable garden. Located along a well-walked downtown street, the three pollinator beds will not only provide enjoyment, but will also provide an opportunity to educate students and the broader community through informative signs in multiple languages. |
| 2023 | 11 | Leaside-Bennington | Not an NIA or EN | Evergreen | The Bird, Bee and Butterfly Garden at Evergreen Brick Works will be an innovative space that sustains a diverse group of pollinators. The presence of pollinators at Evergreen Brick Works has already had a positive influence on the diversity in the Don Valley Ravine corridor, and this new project will extend this work. It will also serve as an educational space used for children’s programming and visitor engagement. |
| 2023 | 11 | Wychwood | Not an NIA or EN | Local Enhancement and Appreciation of Forests (LEAF) | LEAF will enhance their existing Urban Forest Demonstration Gardens, located in five Toronto neighbourhoods. Designed as welcoming spaces accessible to the public, the gardens allow people to experience and learn about native plant species that provide habitat for wildlife such as birds, butterflies, and other pollinators. LEAF will engage with the community further by creating new educational signage and plant labels, increasing volunteer training and education, and providing tours and workshops. |
| 2023 | 11 | Palmerston-Little Italy | Not an NIA or EN | Rewilders | Rewilders aims to connect a 1 km pollinator pathway through the neighbourhood of Palmerston-Little Italy. Rewilders will use the gardens as an opportunity for outreach through signage, community partnerships, an informational table at the local farmer’s market, planting events, and garden tours. Rewilders will additionally establish a kids stewarding club (the WeeWilders) to provide education and support to young gardening enthusiasts. |
| 2023 | 11 | University | Not an NIA or EN | Trinity Food Systems Lab (TFS Lab) | The TFS Lab will establish a pollinator garden near existing campus food gardens at Trinity College at the University of Toronto to engage the campus and broader community in supporting pollinators. Their planting plan includes diverse plants to support pollinators throughout the year in all life cycle stages. Through informational sessions and events, TFS Lab will create an intergenerational dialogue that will facilitate research, knowledge sharing and learning opportunities. |
| 2020 | 12 | Wychwood | Not an NIA or EN | Garrison Creek Park Community Garden (GCPCG) | The Garrison Creek Park Community Garden group will construct pollinator gardens in Garrison Creek Park. The garden will engage over 50 families in the area already involved in urban gardening, serving as an educational tool for the public with signage, plant labels and tours. This pollinator garden will complement the existing pollinator murals located in the area as well as the Green Line project connecting green spaces in Toronto. |
| 2021 | 12 | Wychwood | Not an NIA or EN | Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Group (IPSG) | Indigenous Peoples Solidarity Group will create Noojimo’iwewin Gitigaan—Healing Garden at St. Matthew’s United Church, which is part of the National Healing Forests Initiative. This group will be building a rain garden and pollinator pathway, labelling the 125+ plants, and—with the guidance of Elder-in-Residence Peduhbun Migizi Kwe–offering opportunities to learn about Indigenous and settler peoples, and as human beings living within the natural world. |
| 2021 | 12 | Wychwood | Not an NIA or EN | Taddlewood Heritage Association | Taddlewood Heritage Association will transform bare ground to become the Butterfly Entrance to Wychwood Barns Park. The site will be full of life and colour thanks to native plant species, bees, butterflies and other pollinators. |
| 2022 | 12 | Wychwood | Not an NIA or EN | Community History Project | The Community History Project maintains a small museum, The Tollkeeper’s Cottage at the corner of Bathurst and Davenport. This colourful project will become a gateway to the forest escarpment that will become part of the National Healing Forest. |
| 2022 | 12 | South Eglinton-Davisville | Not an NIA or EN | The AppleTree Group | The Apple Tree Group’s Outdoor Community Classroom Project will create a pollinator garden in June Rowlands Park. The goal is to transform the existing educational garden into a fully functional outdoor learning space for school and community groups to gather and learn about the importance of pollinator gardens and their positive effect on the environment and the world at large. |
| 2023 | 12 | Wychwood | Not an NIA or EN | The Stop Community Food Centre | The Stop Community Food Centre will plant a pollinator garden at their Green Barns site to help enhance the existing garden and increase educational opportunities for the community. The Stop’s aim is to enhance the biodiversity and population of pollinators in their community by planting a diversity of native pollinator plant species. In addition to workshops, The Stop will integrate learnings and activities around pollinators into their broader garden programming throughout the growing season. |
| 2020 | 13 | North St. James Town | Not an NIA or EN | Green Thumbs Growing Kids | Green Thumbs Growing Kids is a community group that has been growing plants with children, youth and families for 20 years. They are partnered with four schools in the Toronto District School Board to create and maintain the Flower Power pollinator gardens, used for experiential learning connected to curriculum objectives in the school year. |
| 2021 | 13 | Moss Park | Not an NIA or EN | Friends of Allan Gardens | The Friends of Allan Gardens is a volunteer-based organization that is working to imagine and lead the revitalization of Allan Gardens park and conservatory. The Pollinator Playground project will create a demonstration garden within the children’s playground at Allan Gardens. This new garden will connect with existing pollinator gardens in the park to create a pollinator pathway. |
| 2021 | 13 | Downtown Yonge East | Not an NIA or EN | Garden Club of Toronto | The Garden Club of Toronto has partnered with Metropolitan United Church to create two native plant-only pollinator gardens that flank the main entrance. Their plans include 41 varieties of native plants, shrubs, trees and a vine that will provide rich displays from March to October and food and shelter for a variety of wildlife throughout the year. To recognize MUC’s inclusive nature, one section has been designed as a “Pride” garden and will bloom with the rainbow colors of the Pride Flag during the month of June. |
| 2021 | 13 | Regent Park | NIA | Toronto Birth Centre | The Toronto Birth Centre will create a welcoming habitat for pollinators such birds, bees, and butterflies to share the space and educate about their importance to the Regent Park community. Through the T’Karanto Ondaadizi-Gamig Mushkiki Gitigaan – Toronto Birth Centre Medicine Garden, Elders and Indigenous teachers will share plant knowledge and teachings about growing, harvesting and storage of plant medicines. Education sessions will highlight Indigenous medicines and decolonization, and food justice. |
| 2022 | 13 | Moss Park | Not an NIA or EN | All Saints Pollinators | The All Saints Pollinators will create three pollinators gardens within the Dundas Street and Sherbourne Street neighbourhood. The pollinator gardens will aim to increase the vibrancy and resiliency of the community through this beautification process and bring new life to public spaces to facilitate social exchange. |
| 2022 | 13 | North St. James Town | Not an NIA or EN | Art City in St. James Town | Art City will transform a small underused and poorly maintained green area into a live/learn space. The project will create a new pollinator habitat in the dense tower community of St. James Town and will serve as a space for youth to engage with hands-on environmental education through on-going stewardship of the garden. Environmental Education workshops in the garden will be complemented with youth-led art projects that give voice to local environmental issues. |
| 2022 | 13 | Moss Park | Not an NIA or EN | Corktown Residents and Business Association | The Corktown Residents and Business Association will create a pollinator garden in Sackville Playground that will educate people and children in the community about the importance of pollinator protection as well as the elements that make a healthy ecosystem. This new garden will serve to start the process of creating and connecting more pollinator habitats within the neighbourhood. |
| 2022 | 13 | Regent Park | NIA | Dixon Hall | The Dixon Hall Peace Garden is a place-making project that will give Regent Park youth an opportunity to animate the garden beds of the Bill Graham Youth Centre. The youth will learn about the importance of building pollinator habitats, gain gardening skills, and create something they can proudly display to their community. The goals are to establish a collaborative garden space that increases biodiversity, honours Regent Park’s urban agriculture tradition, and celebrates Regent Park youth. |
| 2023 | 13 | St Lawrence-East Bayfront-The Islands | Not an NIA or EN | Canary Park Gardening Volunteers | The Canary Park Gardening Volunteers, in partnership with the Friends of Corktown Common, will transform a lawn area at the corner of Bayview Avenue and Harris Square into a pollinator garden. Their goal is to nurture a sense of community as they educate and engage their neighbours on the vital importance of cultivating native species to create habitat for pollinstors and other wildlife. |
| 2023 | 13 | Cabbagetown-South St. James Town | Not an NIA or EN | Children’s Environmental Education Committee | The Children’s Environmental Education and Diversity committee at Sprucecourt Co-op will spearhead a community-led project to create new pollinator gardens areas in their community gardens. Co-op members will engage in hands-on learning about the importance of habitat for pollinators and other wildlife, including specific programming for children that they can share with Co-op members and the surrounding community. |
| 2023 | 13 | St Lawrence-East Bayfront-The Islands | Not an NIA or EN | RC3 Garden Group | The Garden Group at River City 3 condominium has united to enhance four existing gardens with pollinator-friendly plants and create three new gardens by converting existing lawn areas. The RC3 Garden group plans to grow their movement by educating other residents about the vital importance of pollinators and native plants in the fight against climate change. |
| 2020 | 14 | North Riverdale | Not an NIA or EN | The Bain Co-op Pollinator Working Group | The Bain Butterfly Way will create five pollinator gardens at the Bain Co-operative. The goals are to map and create a pollinator pathway that connects native plant species throughout the Bain, while also building a sense of stewardship for the land and an appreciation for native plant species. Community engagement includes a community planting day, guided plant tours, and a partnership with a local school. |
| 2020 | 14 | Broadview North | Not an NIA or EN | Chester School Pollinator Garden Team | The Chester School Pollinator Garden Team will create a Pollinator Learning Garden at Chester Elementary School. The school will create and maintain a year-round pollinator garden and promote the awareness and education of the role of pollinators and native species in our ecosystem and provide enjoyment for students and the wider community. |
| 2020 | 14 | Blake-Jones | Not an NIA or EN | Wandering Spirit School Parent Council | Kapapamahchakwew Parent Council, (Wandering Spirit School Parent Council) is a group of dedicated volunteers and staff who have strong ties to the Indigenous community in Toronto. The project will create a garden that will provide opportunities for the school community to share cultural knowledge about pollinators and Indigenous plants with the surrounding community. The goal is to inspire others to plant native plants, create their own pollinator garden, and share information. |
| 2020 | 14 | South Riverdale | Not an NIA or EN | Rain Gardens United (RGU) | The first phase of the Greenwood Pollinator Rain Gardens includes three rain gardens on Alton Avenue and Sawden Avenue near Greenwood Park. The three rain gardens will capture and infiltrate at least 90% of annual rainfall from the roof downspouts. This will benefit local pollinators and the overall stormwater system in the neighbourhood. |
| 2021 | 14 | North Riverdale | Not an NIA or EN | CALC Secondary School | City Adult Learning Centre (CALC) is excited about the CALC Secondary Pollinator Garden, which will cover several areas and thus be part of more than one outdoor teaching space. The pollinators will benefit the food crops, be aesthetically pleasing, and promote learning about all aspects of botany, environmental stewardship and agriculture. |
| 2021 | 14 | Greenwood-Coxwell | Not an NIA or EN | Monarch Park Pollinator Partners (MPPP) | Monarch Park Pollinator Partners (MPPP) will revitalize an existing student-planted pollinator garden and create a new pollinator garden at Monarch Park Collegiate Institute. Local residents and students will collaborate to maintain the gardens and educate the community about pollinators and pollinator habitat. |
| 2022 | 14 | South Riverdale | Not an NIA or EN | Bruce Green Committee (BGC) | The Bruce Public School Green Committee will create The Valerie Mah Pollination Station as a commemorative garden dedicated to Valerie Mah, the first female Asian Vice-Principal in the Toronto District School Board. Through the process of creating, maintaining and enjoying the garden, the project’s goals include sparking student, educator and community member interest in the phenomenon of pollination and local horticulture. The project team will also invite the surrounding community to explore the garden and participate in its caretaking. |
| 2022 | 14 | Greenwood-Coxwell | Not an NIA or EN | Roden School Council | As part of honouring and remembering the Indigenous survivors of Canada’s Residential schools, Roden School Council is planting a Kindie Heart Garden with students. The garden will be a permanent living memory of the generations of Indigenous peoples that have come before that students contribute to and care for year to year. By pairing the Heart Garden with native plants, we honour the land and provide much-needed habitat for native pollinators during all stages of their development. |
| 2022 | 14 | North Riverdale | Not an NIA or EN | Withrow Junior Public School | The Withrow Parent Outdoor Education Committee will create multiple gardens at Withrow School to increase awareness of native pollinators’ environmental, ecological and social benefits. This project will extend the pollinator pathway already started by The Bain Co-op. Withrow students will learn about the Indigenous worldview through the lens of caring for the plants and land they grow on. |
| 2023 | 14 | Old East York | Not an NIA or EN | East York Children’s Community Garden | The East York Children’s Community Garden will create a pollinator garden and habitat on an unused patch of land at Pape and Torrens that will increase plant and pollinator biodiversity in the community. This natural, low-maintenance, pesticide-free garden will also beautify the neighbourhood and increase community awareness about the importance of pollinators. |
| 2023 | 14 | North Riverdale | Not an NIA or EN | Frankland Community School | This project will take place at Frankland Community School, where a community centre, daycares, and summer camps are all also housed. This project includes gardens that are accessible to both the school community and the public. |
| 2023 | 14 | South Riverdale | Not an NIA or EN | Nimahkikiike (We Make Medicine) | The Nimahkikiike (We make medicine) group will create a pollinator corridor on the front yard of Queen Alexandra M.S. The QA Mashkiki Gitigan (QA Medicine Garden) will be supported by Indigenous staff, students (Indigenous Language program), the broader student body, and community members. An important aspect of their project is engaging Indigenous community members and parents, where they will work with Elders in planting practices focused on pollinators and traditionally significant native plants as an act of healing, decolonization, reconciliation and reclamation. |
| 2023 | 14 | Old East York | Not an NIA or EN | William Burgess Public School | William Burgess Public School’s pollinator garden will be central to where students, children in daycare, and community members spend time. The garden will be a key tool in the school’s educational strategy, with each student involved and hands-on in its construction and maintenance, while learning about nature, food security, climate change, and the role we each play in protecting the environment. |
| 2021 | 15 | Thorncliffe Park | NIA | The Neighbourhood Organization (TNO) | The Neighbourhood Organization (TNO) will create a pollinator garden as part of Leaside Park Community Garden. This project will not only create habitat for the pollinators to thrive but also create a beautiful, colourful space in the neighborhood that will help raise awareness, educate the community, especially the younger generation through workshops and training. |
| 2021 | 15 | Thorncliffe Park | NIA | Thorncliffe Park Women’s Committee | Thorncliffe Park Women’s Committee will introduce an intergenerational project that will enable and empower families of Thorncliffe Park neighbourhood to learn environmental sustainability, conservation, and other earth-friendly practices in a fun, creative and accessible way. |
| 2022 | 15 | Mount Pleasant East | Not an NIA or EN | Manor Road United Church | Manor Road United Church will be planting a drought resistant native garden that encourages pollination by bees and butterflies and provides a habitat for birds, insects and wildlife. The native garden will be an opportunity to teach the community about native plants and the importance of pollinator gardens, with signs that identify the different types of plants and shrubs. |
| 2022 | 15 | Thorncliffe Park | NIA | Thorncliffe Park Urban Farmers (TPUF) | Thorncliffe Park Urban Farmers (TPUF) will transform lawn areas to vibrant habitats for pollinators. The project will provide youth and adult volunteers with space, resources and training to create garden spaces and promote community engagement. This project will serve as an example for other property managers to transform their lawns to pollinator habitats and nurture interest in urban horticulture to support the physical and mental well-being of area residents who may not have an opportunity to create their own garden spaces. |
| 2022 | 15 | Banbury-Don Mills | Not an NIA or EN | Toronto Botanical Garden | The Toronto Botanical Garden will redesign and replant an existing perennial border with at least 75% native plants for pollinators. This project will create an engaging and educational pollinator garden for the estimated 250,000 visitors that visit Toronto Botanical Garden each year. |
| 2020 | 16 | Banbury-Don Mills | Not an NIA or EN | Greenland Pollinator Garden | Greenland Public School has a long tradition of creating creative learning spaces, beautifying school grounds and educating children and the community of the importance of eco initiatives. The pollinator garden will be used as a teaching tool, Monarch waystation and tour site for the larger community. |
| 2021 | 16 | Parkwoods-O’Connor Hills | Not an NIA or EN | Flemingdon Park Ministry | Flemingdon Park Ministry will increase the biodiversity of their farm supporting pollinators and wildlife through the Common Table Pollinator Garden and Labyrinth. With signage, workshops, and a prayer labyrinth, this garden will also provide a space for education and reflection for the community. |
| 2021 | 16 | Flemingdon Park | NIA | FoodShare Toronto | FoodShare Toronto’s Flemo Farm is a community-developed and community-owned ½ acre urban farm located in Flemingdon Park. The Flemo Farm Pollinator Corridor Project will create a pollinator area in the farm perimeter and plant over 1,220 perennial native flowers to create and support the habitat for bees, butterflies, beetles and other pollinators in the park. The pollinator garden will sustain the growing food production at Flemo Farm. |
| 2022 | 16 | Victoria Village | NIA | Jardin Des Marveilles | Ecole Jeanne – La Joie group will create five pollinator habitats at Jeanne-Lajoie Elementary School through their project Jardin des Merveilles. The gardens will feature native plants and shrubs and serve as an education space for students. |
| 2022 | 16 | Victoria Village | NIA | Jonesville Allotments Pollinator Group | The Jonesville Allotments Pollinator group will establish a vibrant pollinator garden within the busy gardens located in the Victoria Park and Eglinton Ave neighbourhood. The garden will both beautify the space and importantly, equip visitors with a new-found awareness of how this pollinator habitat directly impacts the success of urban vegetable growing. |
| 2023 | 17 | Hillcrest Village | Not an NIA or EN | École Élémentaire Paul-Demers | École Élémentaire Paul-Demers will engage students and staff in the creation and upkeep of their pollinator garden, which will be host to a variety of native plants and insect hotels. As an EcoSchool, this group’s goal is to create a garden that helps pollinators flourish and provides ongoing learning opportunities for students, staff and the surrounding community. |
| 2021 | 18 | Willowdale West | Not an NIA or EN | St. Cyril Parent Council | St. Cyril’s Parent Council will be enhancing the school yard by creating a home and a safe space for insects. This project will teach, not only students but also the larger community, about the benefits of planting native species, how to care and maintain such a garden. The goal of this project is to create new dialogue about the insects and what it takes to help protect them. The team will be using native plants as well as perennials and creating a “drinking station” for insects. |
| 2023 | 18 | Newtonbrook East | Not an NIA or EN | St. John’s Gardening Group | St. John’s Gardening Group will transform the unused back field of St. John’s Church into a pollinator garden with the aim of preserving the land as a place for workshop-based education, respite, community gathering and, of course, for pollinators. In addition to creating pollinator habitat, the Gardening Group will facilitate educational events for their community to learn about pollinators, climate change and other environmental issues. |
| 2020 | 19 | Danforth East York | Not an NIA or EN | Resurrection Garden | The Church of the Resurrection will fill seven beds with native plants and shrubs to create habitat for bees, butterflies, and birds for the Resurrection Garden. The garden spaces will contain signage to educate the community about the need to support these beneficial creatures. |
| 2020 | 19 | Woodbine-Lumsden | Not an NIA or EN | Neighbours4Nectar | Six households at the intersection of Westlake and Westbrook Avenues will form Neighbours4Nectar, planting pollinator gardens in front yards to create a pollinator pathway and engaging residents in learning why pollinators are important. Open planting days, garden tours and pollinator-themed kids’ activities will involve a wide range of neighbours in the project. |
| 2020 | 19 | Danforth East York | Not an NIA or EN | Toronto Chinese Mennonite Church Community Garden | This project proposes the creation of a pollinator garden at the Toronto Chinese Mennonite Church at Woodbine and Danforth. Many residents engage with the space including three congregations within the church (English, Mandarin, Cantonese), “Kei Lok Yuen” senior’s group, children’s Sunday school, and daycare. This pollinator garden will beautify the site, engage the various groups using the site, and raise community awareness about the needs of pollinators. |
| 2021 | 19 | O’Connor-Parkview | Not an NIA or EN | Harmony Community Food Centre | The Harmony Pollinator Garden will be an extension and expansion to South Riverdale Community Health Centre’s Harmony Community Food Centre and Senior’s Active Living Centre programs. The garden will create a pollinator corridor with neighbouring George Webster Elementary School garden. The primary goal of the project is to introduce new habitat and food source for pollinators with native perennial plants. It will provide a beautiful space to connect and grow with our diverse community and participants. |
| 2023 | 19 | Thistletown-Beaumond Heights | NIA | 188th Toronto Girl Guide Unit | The 188th Toronto Girl Guide Unit is teaming up with members of The Beaches Presbyterian Church Council to turn an unused section of the church property into a pollinator garden. The Girl Guides will manage the project, learn about garden start-up and care. They will also deliver presentations on pollinator stewardship to inspire other Girl Guide groups to start their own pollinator gardens. |
| 2023 | 19 | Danforth | Not an NIA or EN | Garden @ Kimbourne Community Permaculture Project | Garden@Kimbourne is a community-led permaculture project that aims to grow food and community in East Toronto. Their pollinator gardens will be located at Kimbourne Park United Church. These pollinator habitats will provide education about forest ecosystems and pollinator stewardship. The project will directly involve the community in garden development, maintenance and provide ongoing experiential learning opportunities. |
| 2023 | 19 | East End-Danforth | Not an NIA or EN | Newmarket Ave Pollinator Pathway | The Newmarket Ave Pollinator Pathway aims to create sustainable habitat for pollinators in East York. This pollinator pathway will span 8 household front yard gardens, many which will be converted from lawn spaces. The project will incorporate community engagement events including a community planting day and educational workshop with a local expert on creating habitat connectivity. |
| 2023 | 19 | East End-Danforth | Not an NIA or EN | Norway Junior Public School | Norway Junior School is situated within a small but diverse community of staff, students and families who all believe in the importance of connecting to nature and protecting animal, insect, and plant species within the city landscape. They will build several pollinator gardens and students will be involved in designing, planting, and caring for the garden. In the spring, the science curriculum will have lessons focused on plant life for students to get inspired and involved in the garden. |
| 2023 | 19 | Taylor-Massey | NIA | Secord Garden Committee | The Secord Garden Committee at Secord Elementary aims to make the school a pollinator pathway, ensuring pollinators are able to connect to nearby habitats like Taylor Creek Park. Students will be involved in all aspects of planning and building this highly visible pollinator garden, in hopes to increase wider community involvement in pollinator gardens, and providing educational opportunities for all. |
| 2023 | 19 | Old East York | Not an NIA or EN | The 266th Toronto Guides | The 266th Toronto Guides will create pollinator gardens on Coxwell Avenue that will serve as a place for youth to take part in plant and insect identification, seed saving, art projects, citizen science observations, and more. The group will engage several local groups including Indigenous knowledge keepers to recognize historic Indigenous connections and practices on the land as they restore it as pollinator habitat by planting native species. |
| 2020 | 20 | Clairlea-Birchmount | Not an NIA or EN | Danforth Gardens Neighbourhood Association | Danforth Gardens Neighbourhood Association is creating a pollinator corridor that will include pollinator gardens at Danforth Gardens Public School and transform several residential properties from lawns to pollinator habitat. The project will engage the community through garden tours and native plant sales to inspire others to transform their green spaces. |
| 2020 | 20 | Birchcliffe-Cliffside | Not an NIA or EN | Scarborough Arts | Scarborough Arts’ Pollinator Art Planting and Botanical Illustration Program project will engage participants in arts and environmental education activities centred on pollinator-friendly plants, with the ultimate goal of planting a collaborative community pollinator garden at the Scarborough Arts’ home office. |
| 2020 | 20 | Birchcliffe-Cliffside | Not an NIA or EN | Scarborough Bluffs Community Association | The Scarborough Bluffs Community Association is proposing the Bluffs Pollinator Garden community pollinator garden in Sandown Park. The goal is to encourage children to visit the park with their families and learn about pollinators. The final result can be used as an educational tool for future school projects on pollinators, native plants and environmental issues. |
| 2021 | 20 | Oakridge | NIA | 757 Gardening Committee | The Gardening Committee at 757 Victoria Park Condo will convert a large empty rockery area into the Bee Kind Pollinator Rockery Garden. This area is clearly visible to residents and neighbours. Their hope is for this project to bring together members of the community to help plant and beautify the neighbourhood. |
| 2021 | 20 | Cliffcrest | Not an NIA or EN | John A Leslie Parent Council | The Bee-utiful Garden Expansion Project at John A Leslie Public School will expand the existing pollinator garden, as well as create new beds in the adjacent field to participate in a greater community initiative, the Cliffcrest Butterfly Way. The expansion project will beautify school grounds and provide stewardship teaching to students and the greater community on the importance of supporting native pollinators and increasing local biodiversity. |
| 2022 | 20 | Clairlea-Birchmount | Not an NIA or EN | Feed Scarborough | Feed Scarborough will introduce the Scarborough Junction Pollinator Garden as an expansion of its Scarborough Junction Community Farm. The green space will provide families and neighbours a place to come and connect with the Land, their shared culture and each other, while promoting plant biodiversity, food security, and importance of growing native plants and pollinators. |
| 2022 | 20 | Clairlea-Birchmount | Not an NIA or EN | Pollinator Pedestrian Access Path – Pilkington to Santa Monica | The Pollinator Pedestrian Access Path will create six pollinator gardens through their Pilkington to Santa Monica project, including five in front residential yards and one on a public corridor that joins two neighbourhoods in Scarborough. These spaces will be planted with species that support pollinators such as native shrubs, thickets, and flowers. The garden will also offer natural seating and play space such as boulders and tree stumps. |
| 2022 | 20 | Scarborough Village | NIA | St. Boniface Elementary School | St. Boniface Elementary School will create their pollinator garden in front of the school, which will be seen and experienced by all and will inspire and educate staff, students, families and community members. The garden will be a teaching tool for students and classes where all can learn the importance of pollinators and their need in the environment. The hope is that the lesson goes beyond school and that students and staff become advocates for pollinators. |
| 2022 | 20 | Clairlea-Birchmount | Not an NIA or EN | The St. Clair Diggers | The St. Clair Diggers project will consist of seven garden beds located at St. Clair Avenue East and Maybourne Avenue. This project aims to greatly increase the number of native plants on the property to attract and support a significant number of pollinators, beautify the neighbourhood, and share learnings with our community. The group will work with Grade 3 classes in local schools, teaching them about pollinators and assisting them with planting in our garden. |
| 2022 | 21 | Bendale-Glen Andrew | Not an NIA or EN | Green Industries Program at David and Mary Thomson Collegiate Institute | The Green Industries Program at David and Mary Thomson Collegiate Institute will create a pollinator garden featuring a variety of flowering plants to attract a wide variety of pollinators throughout the spring, summer and fall. The garden will increase pollinator populations, and also educate all who visit about the importance of native plants and pollinators. |
| 2020 | 22 | Agincourt South-Malvern West | Not an NIA or EN | Centre for Immigrant and Community Services (CICS) | Centre for Immigrant and Community Services would like to introduce the ENRICH Pollinator Garden to enhance their educational programming, helping newcomers develop a sense of inclusion and belonging in their new communities through caring for native plants and pollinators. |
| 2021 | 22 | L’Amoreaux West | EN | Agincourt Community Services Association (ACSA) | Agincourt Community Services Association (ACSA) will create a pollinator garden called the Chester Le Pollinator Pad, that will feature a wide variety of native pollinator plants. Through this project community residents will receive workshops and demonstrations that feature the importance of pollinators, the connection to climate change and food production, and will learn about the tools needed to do more pollinator work within the community. |
| 2022 | 22 | East L’Amoreaux | EN | St. Aidan Catholic Elementary School | Through the Stardust Pollinator project, St. Aidan Catholic School will create a pollinator friendly school through the construction of a pollinator walkway leading to the front entrance of the school. The project proposes the creation of two new pollinator gardens that will serve to educate students and the community about the importance of our pollinators. |
| 2023 | 22 | L’Amoreaux West | EN | Environmental Justice Committee | The Environmental Justice Committee at Beverly Glen Junior Public School will expand their outdoor classroom with the addition of a pollinator garden. The new pollinator garden will provide students opportunities to explore and learn about pollinators, a space for students to practice environmental stewardship, and will be a calming natural space for students and staff to enjoy. There are additional plans to link the pollinator garden to the Science and Social Studies curriculum. |
| 2023 | 22 | Steeles | EN | The Lewis Lions | The Lewis Lions at David Lewis Public School will combine a love of outdoor environmental education, creative classroom spaces that inspire learning, and an overall respect for native plants and the animals that pollinate them. They will connect with several community groups, offer walking tours, and install multi-lingual garden signage to extend the reach of student and community engagement. |
| 2021 | 24 | Guildwood | Not an NIA or EN | Friends of Guild Park / Guildwood Butterflyway Project | The Friends of Guild Park / Guildwood Butterflyway Project will help support the Carolinian Forest ecosystem found at this 88-acre site atop the Scarborough Bluffs. Guild Park is part of a well-established migratory route for butterflies and birds. Local volunteers will convert an underused area into the park’s first native pollinator garden. The project includes an outdoor education resource where residents and students from nearby schools can learn about pollinators, horticulture and our urban green space. |
| 2021 | 24 | Woburn North | NIA | Sustainability at Centennial | The Sustainability at Centennial College group will be creating a pollinator garden on the south half of Progress Campus. The Pollinators at Progress garden will feature over 130 native species of plants and shrubs with plant identification signage. The college community will be invited to engage in an on-site planting and webinar focused on the importance of native species pollinator gardens, increasing canopy cover and green spaces to mitigate the impacts of climate change in urban communities. |
| 2021 | 24 | Woburn North | NIA | Woburn JR. P. S. | Woburn Junior Public School will be creating a Pollinator Learning Garden. The school will build a pollinator garden on school grounds and Woburn Junior families from the Tuxedo Court buildings will help maintain it through the summer months. School staff and community members will promote the awareness of the role of pollinators and native species in our ecosystem, and provide education and enjoyment for students at the school and the wider community. |
| 2022 | 24 | Golfdale-Cedarbrae-Woburn | NIA | Cornell’s Butterfly Garden | Cornell Gardeners will create a butterfly garden in front of Cornell Junior Public school with easy accessibility to all. The garden will teach students and families about the benefits of pollinators on the ecosystem. Through this process, community organizations and people of all ages will be engaged in the creation and maintenance of the garden. |
| 2022 | 24 | West Hill | NIA | Eastview Gardeners | The Eastview Gardeners’ Bee-utify Eastview project will create a large and attractive pollinator garden at the front entrance of Eastview Public School. The goal is to create a place for students and community to come and observe the amazing pollinators and also have a comfortable place to relax and enjoy. By taking on this project, the teachers of the school will engage their students in fun and exciting learning opportunities and cultivate the environmental stewards of tomorrow. |
| 2023 | 24 | Guildwood | Not an NIA or EN | Guildwood Butterflyway Project | The Guildwood Butterflyway is a group of residents who will convert their boulevards from turf grass to pollinator gardens filled with native plants. Their vision is a community blooming with native pollinator plants that supports the birds, insects and wildlife in the Scarborough Bluffs area, an important pollinator migratory point in Toronto. |
| 2023 | 24 | West Hill | NIA | West Hill DD Program | The West Hill Developmental Disability (DD) Intensive Support Program pollinator garden project will build on and expand the work to create more accessible green spaces on the school grounds. This project will continue to engage the DD program students in learning about plants and soil, as well as life skills, math, literacy, communication, and responsibility. This project will help sustain these skills in students and promote community building amongst themselves and beyond. |
| 2020 | 25 | Highland Creek | Not an NIA or EN | Regenesis | The Regenesis group at the University of Toronto Scarborough Campus (UTSC) aims to create a pollinator-friendly campus. The Pollinate UTSC project proposes the creation of four new pollinator gardens and the enhancement of an existing butterfly garden. Through the process of creating the gardens, students and staff will engage in awareness building activities (e.g. planting session, seed saving session, seed and plant sharing). |
| 2020 | 25 | Morningside Heights | Not an NIA or EN | Rouge Valley Foundation | The Rouge Valley Foundation will be planting the Bombus Native Garden with native flower species specifically selected for the native bumble bees that are in dramatic decline. The garden is designed to flower throughout the spring, summer, and fall. Each area will also be paired with a series of bumble bee nesting boxes that will be installed within the garden plots and monitored throughout the year. |
| 2021 | 25 | Rouge | Not an NIA or EN | Malvern Family Resource Centre | Malvern Family Resource Centre is excited to create the Eco-Learning Pollinator Garden. Their design will include pollinator plants to enhance and beautify the garden. Signage, tours and eco-learning sessions will help community members understand the importance that pollinators have on our ecosystems, inspiring them to grow their own eco-gardens to make a difference in our environment. |
| 2022 | 25 | Morningside Heights | Not an NIA or EN | Hillside Outdoor Education School | Hillside Outdoor Education School will create the Pollinator’s Paradise garden. Students will be involved in all aspects of the creation and maintenance of the garden plot. The pollinator garden will be used as an engaging learning tool with a focus on raising awareness around the role of pollinators and native species within our ecosystem. The group hopes to continue building on this for years to come. |
| 2024 | 11 | University | Not an NIA or EN | Trinity-St. Paul’s United Church | Trinity-St. Paul’s United Church will connect new habitat with existing pollinator gardens in their neighbourhood, creating a continuous line of pollinator-friendly areas flowing up from Robert St, across Bloor and over to Major St. |
| 2024 | 5 | Pelmo Park-Humberlea | Not an NIA or EN | Weston Neighbourhood Gardeners | The Weston Neighbourhood gardeners are converting lawn in north-west corner of Pelmo Park into a thriving native plant pollinator garden. To engage their community, the Weston Neighbourhood gardeners will host events including planting and maintenance activities, plant giveaways and garden tours. |
PollinateTO grant applications are now closed for 2024.
Please note: Timelines are subject to change
Create your own group or join one that is already established in your community. Partner with others who can support your idea.
To be eligible, groups must include at least three Toronto residents residing in three separate households.
Decide on a name for your Group. Select a Group Lead to be the main contact.
Look for potential garden locations in your neighbourhood. Choose garden sites that are visible to the public, have access to water and are easy for your group to get to (walking distance is ideal). Your project may include multiple locations. Priority will be given to projects located in Toronto’s Neighbourhood Improvement Areas (NIAs).
Complete the Property Owner Support Letter template (Word doc) for each location.
If the garden location is on…
Decide on a name for your Project (this is different from your Group name).
Download the Application Questions Summary (please note, questions are subject to change). You can use this document to help plan, brainstorm and organize your project ideas and application submission.
Create a community engagement and education plan – think about the best ways to involve the community in your project.
Think about how your proposed garden(s) will be maintained in the long term and who will be responsible for the continued care of the garden(s). You can use the Garden Maintenance Plan template to help you plan.
Put together an estimated budget (max. $5,000). See the Eligible Costs section for guidance. You must use the Proposed Budget Summary template (Excel doc) provided.
You must apply using the online application form before the deadline.
The following documents are required to evaluate your proposal:
The following documents are optional. You can use them to help you plan your project:
Applications will be screened for eligibility by City of Toronto staff. Applications that are determined to be eligible will be further assessed by a Review Committee made up of representatives from various City of Toronto divisions. In the case of proposals for gardens on school grounds City staff will engage the School Board as part of the review process. Final recommendations for funding will be approved by the Executive Director, Environment & Climate, City of Toronto. Successful applicants will receive notice via email and details about next steps.
The Review Committee will make funding recommendations based on their assessment of the following elements of each application:
Successful applicants will attend an online information session to learn more about the next steps to start their projects. Successful applicants will also take part in the How to PollinateTO training program which provides the knowledge needed to create pollinator habitat in Toronto with a focus on the lifecycle needs of pollinators and native plants.
A funding agreement will be drafted and sent to successful applicants to be signed. Upon returning the signed agreement, the City signature will be added and the first installment of the funding award (approximately 90 percent) will be processed.
Funded groups will be required to sign the Declaration of Compliance of Anti-Harassment/Discrimination City Policy and will be asked to review the City of Toronto Guide to Political Activities for City Funded Groups and sign a corresponding document to acknowledge the policy.
The City of Toronto has engaged official trustee organizations for PollinateTO. These organizations will provide administrative oversight of the funding disbursement to successful PollinateTO grant recipients.
PollinateTO Trustee Organizations
All Toronto neighbourhoods are eligible. Priority will be given to projects located in Toronto’s Neighbourhood Improvement Areas (NIAs).
PollinateTO is open to all resident-led groups, registered charities and non-profit organizations. Resident-led groups must have at least three residents of Toronto (from separate households) as part of the group.
Examples of eligible projects include:
Examples of projects the City will not fund include:
PollinateTO supports projects that create pollinator habitat in all Toronto neighbourhoods. Priority will be given to gardens located in Toronto’s Neighbourhood Improvement Areas (NIAs).
Gardens can be on private and public land. Your project proposal can include multiple garden locations at one or more sites (i.e. different addresses). Your proposal can also have one or more garden locations at a single address (i.e. separate garden beds on different parts of the same property).
Each garden location must have access to a source of water.
Note: Property owner support is required for all proposed garden locations except for gardens proposed in City parks on the PollinateTO Pre-Approved City Parks List.
Examples of private property include residential, commercial, post-secondary institutions, faith and spiritual centres, non-profit organizations, etc.
This is most often the area between the road and the sidewalk.
Applications are welcome from all Toronto School Boards. PollinateTO has partnered with the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) and the Toronto Catholic District School Board (TCDSB) to establish the process described below.
Examples of public property include Toronto Public Libraries and City of Toronto Recreation Centres.
You can apply to further enhance a park in your community with a pollinator garden. Please follow the process as outlined below.
Please see our Native Flowers, Trees & Shrubs list to help you select plants for your garden.
Optional: You can use the Proposed Plant List template to help you organize your plant choices.
Mandatory for all approved PollinateTO gardens – you must “click before you dig”. This process will identify any underground infrastructure in the area you want to build your garden. Ontario One Call provides a locate request process that is free, reliable, timely and easy to use. You can make the request online. You can do this after your project has been approved.
Budgets cannot exceed $5,000. Funding can only be used for the direct delivery of the proposed project. Please refer to this list when both creating an application and spending your grant funding. If you are unsure if an expense is eligible, please contact the PollinateTO team at pollinateTO@toronto.ca.
Download this information here – 2024 Eligible & Ineligible Expense Guide.
| Type of Expense | Eligible Items |
|---|---|
| Planting Materials |
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| Tools & Equipment |
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| Garden Construction |
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| Education & Awareness Materials |
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| Events & Workshops |
|
| People & Labour |
|
| Expense | Ineligible Items |
|---|---|
| Planting Materials |
|
| Tools & Equipment |
|
| Garden Construction |
|
| Events & Workshops |
|
| People & Labour |
|
|
Personal Benefits
&
Organizational Operating Costs
|
|
| Other |
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Watch the PollinateTO Impact Report Information Session recording to learn more about grant reporting requirements.
Upon project completion, grant recipients must submit the following;
Your group should consider following the PollinateTO tips for creating a pollinator garden when designing pollinator habitat. Ideal pollinator habitat will include food sources, nesting and overwintering sites and larval host plants among other considerations.
Download this information here – PollinateTO_Best Practices for Pollinator Education
Educational messaging should align with the guiding principles and priorities of the City’s Pollinator Protection Strategy. The following are best practices for designing a pollinator educational initiative funded by PollinateTO.
How will your project educate and engage the community? Some ideas you might consider:
Visit the How to Help Wild Bees & Other Native Pollinators page for resources on starting and managing pollinator gardens, information on native plants and other ways you can help pollinators in Toronto.