About + Apply

Lawns to Legumes is a planting for pollinators grant program that Blue Thumb facilitates with the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources. Any Minnesotan can apply to receive reimbursement for native planting projects and support at-risk pollinators like the monarch butterfly and rusty patched bumble bee. Each spring and fall, a new cohort of participants gets selected to take part in the program. View a print-ready program overview here.

Minnesota residents are eligible to apply for Lawns to Legumes cost-share funding of up to $400 to create pollinator habitat in their yards. The application deadline for the Spring 2025 Lawns to Legumes Individual Support program is November 30, 2024. Grant recipients will be notified in mid-January 2025. Fill out the form below to apply!

Lawns to Legumes is no longer rolling over applications from previous funding rounds. If you previously applied for the program and were not awarded a grant, you will need to reapply to be considered for Spring 2025 funding. (Award notifications for Fall 2024 Lawns to Legumes grants were emailed by the MN Board of Water and Soil Resources on June 4.)

Please note that applying for Lawns to Legumes cost-share funding does not guarantee you will receive funding. If your application is awarded funding, it will be in the form of reimbursement. We are able to award a very limited number of vouchers to grant participants unable to afford the upfront cost of a project.

Why plant for pollinators?

Minnesota is home to more than 450 native bee species. Pollinators also include butterflies, moths, beetles and native flies. All play a key role in pollinating many food crops and native plants, but populations have significantly declined worldwide in recent years. Population decline can be attributed to habitat loss and lack of related nutrition for pollinators, as well as pesticide use and pathogens. Lawns to Legumes seeks to combat population decline by creating new pollinator habitat and habitat corridors that provide food sources and nesting space for pollinators.

Who is eligible to apply?

Any Minnesotan individual who is an owner or renter of a residential property with outdoor space for planting is eligible to apply for a Lawns to Legumes grant. (If you only have a deck or patio, you can do a container planting!) Groups and organizations are not eligible for the Lawns to Legumes grant. Your local watershed district or soil and water conservation district may have other funding opportunities available to your group. You can also learn about the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources’ Pollinator Pathways grant for organizations.

How are Lawns to Legumes grants awarded?

Lawns to Legumes uses a lottery system to select grant recipients. This system gives additional weight to applicants who live in priority habitat areas for the rusty-patched bumblebee and other at risk pollinators, and factors in geographic distribution to ensure all regions of the state are represented. Environmental justice and equity factors are also included in the ranking system to ensure that low income, minority and tribal communities are represented and prioritized among awarded recipients.

I have applied in previous years but have never received a grant. Do I need to reapply?

Lawns to Legumes is no longer rolling over applications from previous funding rounds. If you previously applied for the program and were not awarded a grant, you will need to reapply to be considered for Spring 2025 funding.

Can I apply again if I have previously received an award?

To give as many people as possible the opportunity to start a project, Lawns to Legumes can only award one grant per individual. However, your city or local soil and water conservation district or watershed district may have similar native planting grant opportunities! Our Partner Grants page lists some of those opportunities.

What can I do if I don't get an award?

Lawns to Legumes is currently operating on a spring (January-July) and fall (June-November) funding round each year. If you don’t receive an award, you can reapply when applications open for the next funding round.

For free resources, you can check Blue Thumb’s Plan a Project page and the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources website for information on native plantings for pollinators, how to design your project, and more.

How is the Lawns to Legumes program funded?

Lawns to Legumes comes through the Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources and is funded by the Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR), as well as the Minnesota General Fund. The US Fish and Wildlife Service also supports Lawns to Legumes. Blue Thumb manages the individual support part of the program.