Grow With Us
Organic gardening education from seed to harvest. Learn how to grow, eat, and preserve food from your own backyard!
Our Programs
Since 2012, Build It Up has offered gardening education and installed over 100 new gardens in East TN. We offer support to backyard gardeners, market gardeners, and school and community gardens. Learn more about what we do by clicking below!
Backyard Gardeners Program
We take 30-40 families through a year of organic gardening education and support. Families recieve plants, seeds, tools, fertilizer and more to help grow healthy, fresh food right in their own backyards!
Market Gardeners Program
We encourage entreprenuership through agriculture and support market gardeners up to a half acre in size. We have a growers coop that sells to restaurants and a multi-farm CSA.
Consulting
Our gardening experts would love to help you design a backyard, community or school garden! We also do food forests, perennial fruit & nut trees, and native edible plants.
Over 150 Families Served
Wish your kids knew where their food comes from? Gardening provides so many opportunities for kids (and adults!) to learn about food, nature, and the joys of dirt under your fingernails! Learn more about our Backyard Gardens Program:
Grow Organic
We teach how to grow organically and in harmony with our ecosystem. Our workshops focus on gardening in ways that prevent pest and disease issues naturally without relying on chemical fertilizers and sprays.
Pounds of Food Grown
%
Organic
Families
Our Partners
Appalachian RC&D
BIU is a fiscally sponsored project of Appalachian RC&D. Learn more about their other great programs in the region!
Grow Appalachia
We are one of 21 Grow Appalachia partner sites. Click to learn more about GA and our sister programs.
Latest from the Blog
We try to feature blogs from each of our families 2-3 times a month. Read all about their gardening adventures this season:
Gardener Story: Liz Smith
Gardener Story: Liz Smith We are excited about the garden this year! In the garden, we have garlic that was planted last fall and spinach that made it through winter in the hoops. We have started cabbage, kale, sugar snaps, and beets. Also, we have volunteer lettuce...
What to Know About Fertilizer
What to Know About FertilizerApril is the time for planting! You will be planting most of your first succession veggies around this time. And with that comes fertilizer. Fertilizer is a key component to a successful garden and for crop health. What we’ll cover: How...
Creative Ways to Trellis
Creative Ways to Trellis! Today we’re going to learn about ways in which to make your trellises more fun. Learn about squash tunnels, bean teepees and more! There are a plethora of materials you can use and a bunch of ways to make a simple trellis multi-useful as well...