Browse Ambrook’s collection of funding programs by Kentucky Horticulture Council (KYHortCouncil)

Apply through the Kentucky Horticulture Council. See the program guidelines page for the current application form, requirements, and cycle dates.

Kentucky Horticulture Council — General

The Small Scale On-Farm Water Management Grant is a cost-share grant from the Kentucky Horticulture Council that helps Kentucky specialty-crop farms fund water-management best management practices (BMPs). Awards cover up to 50% of eligible project costs, to a maximum of **$10,000** per applicant. The program is funded through the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund/Board.



The Small Scale On-Farm Water Management Grant is a cost-share grant from the Kentucky Horticulture Council that helps Kentucky specialty-crop farms fund water-management best management practices (BMPs). Awards cover up to 50% of eligible project costs, to a maximum of $10,000 per applicant. The program is funded through the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund/Board.

- Kentucky farms producing specialty crops for commercial sale
- At least $25,000 in gross farm income or at least 20% of income derived from farming for each of the prior two years
- Must have an established water source and at least one approved water-quantity BMP
- Limited to one applicant per household per year

A payment that requires some percentage of matching contributions by the recipient.

Cost Share

Program guidelines — Small Scale On-Farm Water Management Grant

Irrigation

Water Quality

Waterway Protection

Wetland Conservation

Air Quality

Carbon Capture

Certification

High Tunnel

Landscape

Regenerative

Soil Health

Wildlife & Pollinator Habitat

Certified Organic

Certified Grassfed

Cover Crops

Reduced Tillage

Cost-share grant covering up to 50% of eligible project cost, capped at $10,000 per applicant (payment basis: cost-share %). Funds support water-management BMPs on qualifying Kentucky specialty-crop farms.

Submit a research proposal to the Kentucky Horticulture Council. The 2026-cycle proposal deadline was December 1, 2025; the program recurs annually.

The Kentucky Horticulture Council Research Grant Program funds applied horticulture research conducted at participating Kentucky institutions and universities to benefit Kentucky growers. Projects are reviewed and approved by a producer committee. The program operates under the Kentucky Horticulture Research Initiative (KHRI), established in 2017. For the 2026 cycle, only Tier 1 (one-year, $5,000) awards are offered; the two-year Tier 2 track resumes in the 2027-28 cycle.



Researchers at participating Kentucky institutions and universities. Proposed research must benefit Kentucky horticulture growers and is approved by a producer review committee.

A lump sum of money for a specific purpose that does not need to be paid back.

Grant

Trials

Tier 1: one-year award of $5,000 (offered for the 2026 cycle). Tier 2: two-year award, resuming with the 2027-28 cycle.

Complete the Application and return by email to: info@kyhortcouncil.org
or mail to:
Kentucky Horticulture Council 
PO Box 21736 
Lexington, KY 40522-1736

Cindy Finneseth

Any Kentucky producer completing a third party Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) audit in may participate in the KHC cost share program. Cost share will be 75% of the audit cost up to a maximum reimbursement set yearly. 



Applicant must be, or become, a member of Kentucky Proud through the Kentucky Department of Ag

- 2020 Application
- AMS Page on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP)
- Join Kentucky Proud

Marketing

Conservation

Research

Compliance

A straightforward audit reimbursement: KHC pays back most of what a third-party GAPs audit costs you, after the fact. Verbatim from KHC's cost-share page: "Cost share will be 75% of the audit cost up to a maximum reimbursement of $1,250." So the cap binds once your audit runs past roughly $1,667.

What an audit actually costs, per KHC: "Audit costs are primarily determined by complexity of the audit (number of crops or procedures being audited, for example). Over the last six years, the audit costs of farms we've worked with have ranged from $225 to $3,054."

To get reimbursed you must:
- "be, or become, a member of Kentucky Proud through the Kentucky Department of Agriculture"
- "complete the application and submit it to the Kentucky Horticulture Council before the deadline"
- "submit a copy or image of the paid third party GAPs audit receipt from an official certifying agency"

Eligibility is broad: "Any Kentucky produce grower completing a third party GAPs audit... may participate in the KHC Cost Share Program." Funds are limited and awarded from a finite pool — "Application pre-approval is strongly encouraged but not required," and "previous recipients may have lower priority than first-time applicants." There is no penalty for applying and then not completing the audit.

Caveat on currency: these figures are the 75% / $1,250 terms KHC published for its most recent documented cycle. Confirm the current year's cap with KHC before you book an audit.

List of Kentucky Horticulture Council (KYHortCouncil) Funding Opportunities