The New Garden Society
@tngs.bsky.social
The New Garden Society is a non-profit organization that provides therapeutic and vocational horticulture training. In all its endeavors, TNGS partners with host agencies to design and implement programming that supports participants’ wellbeing.
Hope takes root in the prison garden. We believe everyone deserves access to the garden, fresh produce, time outdoors. Students who take part in our programming feel confidence, peace, gain skills. They reflect on memories of gardening, and they share their newfound knowledge with their families.
December 10, 2025 at 11:01 PM
Hope takes root in the prison garden. We believe everyone deserves access to the garden, fresh produce, time outdoors. Students who take part in our programming feel confidence, peace, gain skills. They reflect on memories of gardening, and they share their newfound knowledge with their families.
Check out this essay written by one of our board members! Martha highlights first hand accounts of time in our prison gardens, as well as the impact and efficacy of programming like ours.
medium.com/@martha.mers...
medium.com/@martha.mers...
Of Crime and Community Safety: Funding The New Garden Society
When I imagine garden projects like moving peonies, I picture my shovel hitting rocks and cement. I give up before I even start…
medium.com
December 5, 2025 at 9:59 PM
Check out this essay written by one of our board members! Martha highlights first hand accounts of time in our prison gardens, as well as the impact and efficacy of programming like ours.
medium.com/@martha.mers...
medium.com/@martha.mers...
PS: Already dreaming of next summer’s DAHLIAS?
From now until December 10th, we’re raffling off organically grown DAHLIA tubers. Every person who makes a donation by 12/10 12PM EST will be entered to win! You can also join the raffle by expanding The New Garden Society’s circle on Instagram.
From now until December 10th, we’re raffling off organically grown DAHLIA tubers. Every person who makes a donation by 12/10 12PM EST will be entered to win! You can also join the raffle by expanding The New Garden Society’s circle on Instagram.
December 2, 2025 at 10:31 PM
PS: Already dreaming of next summer’s DAHLIAS?
From now until December 10th, we’re raffling off organically grown DAHLIA tubers. Every person who makes a donation by 12/10 12PM EST will be entered to win! You can also join the raffle by expanding The New Garden Society’s circle on Instagram.
From now until December 10th, we’re raffling off organically grown DAHLIA tubers. Every person who makes a donation by 12/10 12PM EST will be entered to win! You can also join the raffle by expanding The New Garden Society’s circle on Instagram.
As the 2025 season draws to a close, we are reflecting on the deep impact our gardens have on incarcerated students across Boston. Time and again, our students share how these green spaces connect them to the earth and their communities, essential ingredients for true growth and change.
Give — The New Garden Society
www.thenewgardensociety.org
December 2, 2025 at 4:07 PM
As the 2025 season draws to a close, we are reflecting on the deep impact our gardens have on incarcerated students across Boston. Time and again, our students share how these green spaces connect them to the earth and their communities, essential ingredients for true growth and change.
Interested in a first hand account of what it’s like joining our programming for the first time? Read our latest blog post, where our new Operations & Development Manager recounts her experience joining us this fall!
November 9, 2025 at 11:10 PM
Interested in a first hand account of what it’s like joining our programming for the first time? Read our latest blog post, where our new Operations & Development Manager recounts her experience joining us this fall!
This week, as many put their gardens to bed, our growing season has also come to an end. This was our final week of classes, which is always bittersweet. We are glad to celebrate the accomplishments of our students, but it is difficult to go leave as we head into the darkest months of the year.
November 5, 2025 at 10:19 PM
This week, as many put their gardens to bed, our growing season has also come to an end. This was our final week of classes, which is always bittersweet. We are glad to celebrate the accomplishments of our students, but it is difficult to go leave as we head into the darkest months of the year.
You may remember last year we won the Cummings Foundation grant, which supports our desire to to reach more incarcerated students.
In the past ten years, we have introduced almost 200 green industry professionals to incarcerated horticulture students– as teachers, mentors, and potential employers.
In the past ten years, we have introduced almost 200 green industry professionals to incarcerated horticulture students– as teachers, mentors, and potential employers.
October 16, 2025 at 9:40 PM
You may remember last year we won the Cummings Foundation grant, which supports our desire to to reach more incarcerated students.
In the past ten years, we have introduced almost 200 green industry professionals to incarcerated horticulture students– as teachers, mentors, and potential employers.
In the past ten years, we have introduced almost 200 green industry professionals to incarcerated horticulture students– as teachers, mentors, and potential employers.
This week we’d like to thank a longtime supporter of ours. The Gardiner Howland Shaw Foundations' sustaining support for The New Garden Society has been absolutely essential to us, allowing us to extend garden access to over 1000 of our incarcerated neighbors in Greater Boston over the past decade.
October 8, 2025 at 9:53 PM
This week we’d like to thank a longtime supporter of ours. The Gardiner Howland Shaw Foundations' sustaining support for The New Garden Society has been absolutely essential to us, allowing us to extend garden access to over 1000 of our incarcerated neighbors in Greater Boston over the past decade.
Last year, we lost much of our harvest to rabbits This year, our vegetable gardens are having a massively productive year, this being just a fraction of what was harvested this week. This splendor is due in large part to a Capacity Building Grant awarded to us by Grow Boston.
September 19, 2025 at 7:59 PM
Last year, we lost much of our harvest to rabbits This year, our vegetable gardens are having a massively productive year, this being just a fraction of what was harvested this week. This splendor is due in large part to a Capacity Building Grant awarded to us by Grow Boston.
We are excited to introduce the newest member of The New Garden Society team! Emma Sage is our new Operations&Development Manager, and we are so excited to have her join us! Her career reflects a wide range of garden, laboratory, and research experience in plant physiology, ecology, and more…
September 14, 2025 at 7:23 PM
We are excited to introduce the newest member of The New Garden Society team! Emma Sage is our new Operations&Development Manager, and we are so excited to have her join us! Her career reflects a wide range of garden, laboratory, and research experience in plant physiology, ecology, and more…
Reposted by The New Garden Society
Thousands of people detained by ICE are actually held in local, publicly operated jails
These facilities–run by elected sheriffs–are making money off of the incarceration of people who are mostly accused of no more serious offense than crossing the border without permission
These facilities–run by elected sheriffs–are making money off of the incarceration of people who are mostly accused of no more serious offense than crossing the border without permission
September 14, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Thousands of people detained by ICE are actually held in local, publicly operated jails
These facilities–run by elected sheriffs–are making money off of the incarceration of people who are mostly accused of no more serious offense than crossing the border without permission
These facilities–run by elected sheriffs–are making money off of the incarceration of people who are mostly accused of no more serious offense than crossing the border without permission
Our students today got to eat the rainbow! This beautiful spread of strawberries, cantaloupe, and salads came directly from the gardens at Suffolk County House of Corrections, and were all grown by our students at this facility.
September 8, 2025 at 8:13 PM
Our students today got to eat the rainbow! This beautiful spread of strawberries, cantaloupe, and salads came directly from the gardens at Suffolk County House of Corrections, and were all grown by our students at this facility.
We are so grateful to our friends from CommonWealth Holistic Herbalism for joining us this past week and teaching our students about the healing and nutritional qualities of herbs, and of how food and medicine grow all around us!
August 21, 2025 at 9:24 PM
We are so grateful to our friends from CommonWealth Holistic Herbalism for joining us this past week and teaching our students about the healing and nutritional qualities of herbs, and of how food and medicine grow all around us!
We are so grateful to not one but two organizations this week! Thank you to Boston Power Corps for hosting us this week for our summer board meeting - and, thank you to NECAT (New England Culinary Arts Training) for providing the members of our board with a delicious dinner!
August 12, 2025 at 11:03 PM
We are so grateful to not one but two organizations this week! Thank you to Boston Power Corps for hosting us this week for our summer board meeting - and, thank you to NECAT (New England Culinary Arts Training) for providing the members of our board with a delicious dinner!
When asked to describe our vegetable garden, one student responded “ plentiful.” With the growing season well underway, classes recently have ended with beautiful & bountiful harvests. This week was our largest tomato harvest yet, with many of them making it into a shared salad at the end of class.
August 5, 2025 at 9:22 PM
When asked to describe our vegetable garden, one student responded “ plentiful.” With the growing season well underway, classes recently have ended with beautiful & bountiful harvests. This week was our largest tomato harvest yet, with many of them making it into a shared salad at the end of class.
Despite the brutal heat, class today was fun and upbeat! Freshly cleaned garden beds got a fresh layer of hay. We are so grateful to Green City Growers for donating these bales! They were put to good use, and will help keep our beds clean and hydrated as me move into the heat of August.
July 28, 2025 at 9:22 PM
Despite the brutal heat, class today was fun and upbeat! Freshly cleaned garden beds got a fresh layer of hay. We are so grateful to Green City Growers for donating these bales! They were put to good use, and will help keep our beds clean and hydrated as me move into the heat of August.
A few months ago, we shared that this season we started work at a new site, creating a brand new garden where there wasn’t one. Now, in the middle of the season, this garden has taken off! We are so proud of the hardwork and commitment of our students that have allowed these new gardens to thrive!
July 14, 2025 at 5:10 PM
A few months ago, we shared that this season we started work at a new site, creating a brand new garden where there wasn’t one. Now, in the middle of the season, this garden has taken off! We are so proud of the hardwork and commitment of our students that have allowed these new gardens to thrive!
Many of our students join our garden program hoping for better access to fresh produce, and we aim to deliver! Taking a moment at the end of class to enjoy a shared meal is something our students and staff look forward to every week.
July 7, 2025 at 9:16 PM
Many of our students join our garden program hoping for better access to fresh produce, and we aim to deliver! Taking a moment at the end of class to enjoy a shared meal is something our students and staff look forward to every week.
We are always so grateful for community support! This month, we recieved a grant from the Garden Club of the Back Bay! Every time a group (or individual!) donates to us, they speak up for their incarcerated neighbors, and they are saying they believe everyone should have access to green spaces.
June 30, 2025 at 9:00 PM
We are always so grateful for community support! This month, we recieved a grant from the Garden Club of the Back Bay! Every time a group (or individual!) donates to us, they speak up for their incarcerated neighbors, and they are saying they believe everyone should have access to green spaces.
We are hiring! The New Garden Society’s part-time Operations and Development Manager plays a critical role in keeping TNGS organized and on track to fulfill our mission.
June 24, 2025 at 9:28 PM
We are hiring! The New Garden Society’s part-time Operations and Development Manager plays a critical role in keeping TNGS organized and on track to fulfill our mission.
The summer solstice is around the corner, so we’re dreaming about melons… so, this week, we brought in some beautiful donated cantaloupe and watermelon seedlings! We have just begun enjoying fresh salads in class, so now our students are all the more excited for some variety in our shared meals!
June 17, 2025 at 11:11 PM
The summer solstice is around the corner, so we’re dreaming about melons… so, this week, we brought in some beautiful donated cantaloupe and watermelon seedlings! We have just begun enjoying fresh salads in class, so now our students are all the more excited for some variety in our shared meals!
We are so grateful to all our friends at Holly Hill Farm for this large plant donation! This car was stuffed with flats of beautiful seedlings that all landed last week in prison gardens across Boston. The generosity of this community to our incarcerated neighbors is a bright spot in our week!
June 13, 2025 at 9:18 PM
We are so grateful to all our friends at Holly Hill Farm for this large plant donation! This car was stuffed with flats of beautiful seedlings that all landed last week in prison gardens across Boston. The generosity of this community to our incarcerated neighbors is a bright spot in our week!
Every week, we are entering prison yards with a variety of tools and materials, from the new and exciting, to the more mundane…
June 9, 2025 at 8:53 PM
Every week, we are entering prison yards with a variety of tools and materials, from the new and exciting, to the more mundane…
One of our garden sites got to have a fun new crop addition! Our volunteer Huey is seen here holding some beautiful sweet potato slips, which were brought into a Boston prison, where our students got to learn about this interesting crop and how to plant and propagate it.
June 4, 2025 at 9:42 PM
One of our garden sites got to have a fun new crop addition! Our volunteer Huey is seen here holding some beautiful sweet potato slips, which were brought into a Boston prison, where our students got to learn about this interesting crop and how to plant and propagate it.