Online Fundraising Platform for Community Gardens
- Raise money without the hassle: set up a garden fundraiser in minutes and share a single link with members and the whole neighborhood.
- Collect from everyone in one place: donations, plot rentals, workshop fees, and supply funds live under one page.
- Get paid securely: bank-level security and PCI compliance protect every transaction.
- Skip the cash and checks: no more collecting plot fees by hand or tracking donations on paper.
Why Community Gardens Choose Cheddar Up
vs Traditional Payment Methods
vs Generic Payment Platforms
Made for Community Garden Fundraising
Frictionless Payments
No apps. No accounts. Families can pay in seconds from any device.
Automatic Tracking
See every payment and response in real time. Export data anytime. No spreadsheets required.
Payments + Forms
Gather payments and information in the same place, from t-shirt sizes to waivers and registrations.
One-Stop Solution
Manage events, spirit wear sales, fundraisers, and registrations all in one easy-to-use platform.
How it works
Step 1
Create Your Garden Fundraiser
Build a collection page and customize it with your garden name, photos, and fundraising goal. Add plot rentals, tool and seed donations, or workshop tickets.
Step 2
Share Your Link
Send your custom link by email, neighborhood newsletter, or social media, and post it on community boards. Neighbors can give and reserve plots in seconds.
Step 3
Track and Get Paid
Watch plot fees and donations arrive on a live dashboard, then transfer funds to your garden's bank account for free. Automated receipts keep records clean for every member.
Complete Fundraising Solutions for Every Community Garden Need
Donations
Donating on Cheddar Up is simple with no awkward tipping at checkout.
Volunteer Sign Ups
Wow your community with elegant, ad-free sign ups.
Dues and Fees
Collect one-time fees or recurring dues from your community.
Group Gifts
Group collections for a teacher, coach or coworker with zero lifting.
Registrations and Waivers
Move camps online with payments, forms, and waivers in one spot.
Peer-to-Peer Fundraisers
Give participants their own pages to share your cause and rally donations.
Group Website
Highlight your organization’s mission, team members, sponsors and more.
What Community Garden Leaders Say About Cheddar Up
“Super easy to use for our PTO. User-friendly and more affordable than the clunkier software we used last year. Very happy that our team can work together to build a site that works great for our school needs.”
– Eva D., PTO President
“Easy to implement and use, and the reporting is exactly what I need. Also, I’ve reached out twice to Cheddar Up support with questions, and they’ve responded promptly and thoughtfully both times.”
– Heidi H., PTA Vice President
“I love how user-friendly it is! It’s easy to use on your phone, so our parents are able to fill forms out and make payments super easy from wherever they are!”
– Kaitlin S., PTO Member
Frequently Asked Questions About Community Garden Fundraising
How does online payment collection benefit education organizations?
Online platforms dramatically reduce volunteer workload by automating tracking and eliminating cash handling. They also increase participation by offering parents a convenient, mobile-friendly way to pay, leading to higher fundraising totals and more timely fee collections.
Is Cheddar Up secure for school payment collection?
Absolutely. Cheddar Up is secure and PCI compliant. In addition, Cheddar Up never sees or stores any financial-related information. Information is sent directly and securely to our payment partner, Stripe, which processes billions of dollars annually, using Transport Layer Security (TLS).
What types of payments can education organizations collect?
Organizations can collect for virtually any need, including fundraisers, event tickets, spirit wear sales, field trip fees, club dues, PTA memberships, and teacher gifts. Our platform is flexible enough to handle simple payments or complex collections with multiple items and forms.
How does Cheddar Up compare to other payment platforms for schools?
Unlike generic platforms, Cheddar Up is built specifically for the needs of school communities. We offer education-specific templates, robust tracking, and features for volunteer coordination that other platforms lack, all without a complex setup.
Can we integrate Cheddar Up with our school management system?
While direct API integrations are not included in our standard plans, Cheddar Up’s reporting tools make it simple to export your data. You can quickly download transaction and payer details in CSV or Excel format for easy import into most school management or accounting systems. For even more connectivity, the Team Plan includes Zapier integration, allowing you to automate workflows and connect with hundreds of other apps.
What support is available for education organizations?
We offer dedicated support from a team of experts, many of whom have experience as PTA leaders and school volunteers themselves. Support is available via live chat and email, and we provide a rich library of video tutorials, best-practice guides, and live demos to help you succeed.
What is the best online fundraising platform for community gardens?
Cheddar Up is built specifically for group and community fundraising. Unlike personal payment apps, it combines donations, plot rentals, workshop fees, and supply funds in one organized page, with automatic tracking and no app required for supporters, making it an ideal online fundraising platform for community gardens.
How much does it cost to fundraise online with Cheddar Up?
Creating a garden page is free. Cheddar Up charges a small transaction fee per payment, and you can choose to pass that fee along to supporters so the platform is effectively free for your garden. Standard transfers to your bank account are free.
Can we collect plot fees and donations on the same page?
Yes. You can combine donations, plot rentals, workshop fees, and supply funds on a single garden page, each with its own custom form fields.
Can members and volunteers run their own individual fundraisers?
Yes. With peer-to-peer fundraising, each supporter gets a personal share page that rolls up to your garden total, complete with leaderboards and real-time progress tracking.
Can we set a fundraising goal and show progress?
Yes. You can display a live goal thermometer so gardeners and neighbors can see how close your garden is to its target.
Can we collect liability waivers and volunteer sign-ups too?
Yes. Add custom questions and file uploads to collect waivers, volunteer availability, plot preferences, and more right alongside payment.
Ready to start?
Kick the tires
Create a free account and build a collection to see how easy it is to collect money.
Watch a demo
Join us for one of our live demos and learn from our product experts in real time.
