Tools for Planning and Funding a Growing Dome Project
Eight free templates and worksheets adapted from grant application work we've done with schools and nonprofits who are adding greenhouse gardening to their goals since 2013.
What's Inside
Each template is a starting point. The tools are organized to support project planning first, then grant application work. Use the ones that fit your situation; you don't need to complete every template. Growing Domes are our running example throughout, but the planning approach carries over to most capital projects.
1. Grant Kit Overview
A short guide to what the kit contains and how specific pieces may be helpful. Also introduces some of the terms funders use, and how to pick the documents that fit your project or the grant you are applying to.
2. Growing Dome Award Applicant Helper
If you want to apply for our Growing Dome Award, this is the best place to start. This helper points to the parts of the kit that we specifically would like back as part of our application. Send to [email protected] when complete.
3. Logic Model
A one-page map of how project inputs convert into measurable outcomes. Required by some federal funders and large foundations; useful for internal planning even when not required.
4. Site & Compliance Sheet
Worksheets for footprint, foundation options, utilities, permitting, and access. Surfaces site issues before they affect your budget or timeline.
5. Project Timeline
A phased schedule from procurement through first growing cycle, with realistic lead-time bands by phase and milestones aligned to typical funder reporting cycles.
6. Budget Narrative
Adaptable language for explaining your budget to funders, organized by cost category (kit, freight, installation, foundation, utilities, programming, maintenance).
7. Letters Pack
Templates for partner letters of support, single-source justification, and donor acknowledgments. Use the structures, customize the content.
8. In-Kind Letter (sample)
A sample of the customized letter we issue through the In-Kind Letter Program for funders that accept vendor discounts as in-kind match.
9. Budget & TCO Worksheet
A working spreadsheet for capital costs, operating costs, and 1-year and 5-year total cost of ownership (TCO). Includes an example 22-foot school budget and a 6% nonprofit discount line that's editable.
10. Outcomes Menu & Metrics
A pick-list of metrics organized by category (education, food access, therapeutic use, community engagement) with measurement methods and Year 1 targets you can adapt.
How garden grants work
Most nonprofits and schools applying for greenhouse funding are doing this work alongside everything else they're responsible for. The cards below cover what we've learned working with applicants on Growing Dome projects since 2013, organized to be useful whether you're applying to one funder or several.
Where funding comes from
Funding for greenhouse and garden projects usually comes from a mix of federal cost-share programs, state pass-through grants, private foundations, corporate community programs, and local fundraising. Each runs on its own logic and timeline, and most projects combine two or three sources rather than rely on a single grant.
What funders typically ask for
Most applications include some combination of a project narrative, a budget, a timeline, expected outcomes, and letters of support. Larger funders often add a logic model and a sustainability plan. The kit has a template for each of these, though not every funder asks for everything — use what your funder requires.
How match and in-kind work
Some grants require the applicant to contribute part of the project cost, in cash or as a documented in-kind contribution. Our standing 6% Community Cultivator nonprofit discount can often be documented as a third-party in-kind contribution, for funders that accept that structure. Verify what counts as match with the program rules.
What is a realistic timeline
From the start of a funding search to an award announcement, most timelines run several months at minimum, and award to installation runs several months more depending on site prep, manufacturing, and season. The Project Timeline template lays out realistic lead-time bands you can adapt to your own situation.
What makes an application work
The strongest applications are specific. They name the community served, explain why the project matters to them, identify who will run the program after installation, and show a budget that covers what a product quote does not — site prep, foundation, utilities, operations. Reviewers fund projects, not equipment.
When the In-Kind Letter helps
If you are applying to a federal or foundation program that requires matching contributions, our In-Kind Letter Program documents the 6% nonprofit discount as a third-party in-kind contribution toward your match. We have seen this work with USDA, NRCS, and various state and foundation programs, though each funder sets its own rules.
Get the Grant Kit
We'll show direct download links on the next page and send the kit to your email as a backup. The questions below help us learn about the organizations working on similar problems, and route the few follow-up emails to the ones most relevant to you. We hope the kit is useful whether or not you decide a Growing Dome is what you want. But they are pretty awesome structures. If this is the first time you’ve found us, have a look around:
More from Growing Spaces
Whether you're applying for our Growing Dome Award, pursuing external funding, or just exploring whether a Growing Dome makes sense for your project, we're available to help.
Growing Spaces credentials funders look for
