Privacy Policy

Effective Date: January 15, 2026
Last Updated: January 15, 2026

Look, We Get It—Nobody Loves Privacy Policies

But here’s the deal: we collect some information to make this site work better for you, and we’re going to be completely transparent about what we collect, why we collect it, and what we do with it.

We built City Cultivator because we care about helping people grow food in small spaces, not because we want to harvest your data and sell it to the highest bidder. This policy reflects that priority.

What Information We Collect

Information You Give Us Directly:

When you email us:

  • Your email address and name (if you provide it)
  • Whatever you write to us about your growing questions or problems
  • Photos you send of your setup or plants (if you share them)

When you comment on posts (coming soon):

  • Your name (or whatever name you choose to use)
  • Your email address (required, but never displayed publicly)
  • Your website URL (optional)
  • The content of your comment

When you subscribe to our newsletter:

  • Your email address
  • Your first name (optional)
  • Your location/growing zone (optional, but helps us send relevant tips)

When you submit a guest post:

  • Your contact information
  • Your bio and credentials
  • Content and photos you submit

Information We Collect Automatically:

Basic website analytics:

  • Pages you visit on our site
  • How long you spend on different pages
  • What device/browser you’re using
  • Your general location (city/state level, not your exact address)
  • How you found us (Google search, social media, direct link, etc.)

Cookies and similar tracking: We use cookies (small files stored on your device) to:

  • Remember your preferences if you’ve visited before
  • Track which articles are most popular
  • Understand how people navigate the site
  • Make sure the site functions properly

You can disable cookies in your browser settings, but some parts of the site might not work as smoothly.

How We Use Your Information

To actually help you with gardening:

  • Answer your specific questions via email
  • Provide personalized advice based on your growing conditions
  • Send you relevant tips and updates (if you subscribe)
  • Remember your preferences for future visits

To improve the site:

  • Figure out which articles are most helpful
  • Identify topics people are searching for
  • Fix broken links or technical issues
  • Optimize content based on what people actually read

To build community:

  • Feature reader success stories (with permission)
  • Share innovative techniques from community members
  • Connect growers in similar situations

To eventually keep the lights on:

  • Show relevant ads (when we implement advertising)
  • Track affiliate link clicks (when we add affiliate partnerships)
  • Understand which products our readers actually find helpful

What We DON’T Do With Your Information

We will never:

  • Sell your email address or personal information to third parties
  • Send you spam or irrelevant promotional emails
  • Share your private communications without explicit permission
  • Use your photos or success stories without asking first
  • Track you across other websites (beyond standard analytics)
  • Require unnecessary personal information

Third-Party Services We Use

Google Analytics: We use Google Analytics to understand how people use our site. Google collects data about your visit and uses cookies to do this. You can opt out using Google’s browser plugin if you want.

Email service: We’ll use an email service provider (likely Mailchimp or ConvertKit) to manage our subscriber list. They’ll have access to your email and any information you provide when subscribing. They’re required by their own policies to protect your data.

Hosting provider: Our website is hosted on servers managed by our hosting company. They have access to server logs but don’t use your data for their own purposes.

Future advertising partners: When we eventually add ads or affiliate links, those companies may use cookies to track ad performance. We’ll update this policy when that happens and give you clear options to opt out.

Your Rights (GDPR & CCPA Compliant)

Depending on where you live, you have specific rights:

Right to access: You can ask us what information we have about you. Email [email protected] with “DATA ACCESS REQUEST” in the subject.

Right to deletion: You can ask us to delete your information. We’ll do it within 30 days unless we’re legally required to keep it.

Right to correction: If we have wrong information about you, we’ll fix it.

Right to opt-out: You can unsubscribe from emails anytime (there’s an unsubscribe link in every email we send).

Right to data portability: You can request a copy of your data in a usable format.

Right to object: You can object to how we process your data for certain purposes.

To exercise any of these rights, email: [email protected] with your request. We’ll respond within 30 days.

How We Protect Your Information

Security measures we take:

  • SSL encryption for all data transmitted to/from our site
  • Secure hosting with regular security updates
  • Limited access to any personal data (only Maya and Jake)
  • Regular backups stored securely
  • Strong passwords and two-factor authentication on all accounts

Reality check: No online system is 100% secure. We do our best to protect your information, but we can’t guarantee absolute security. If there’s ever a data breach that affects you, we’ll notify you immediately.

Cookies & Tracking Technologies

What cookies we use:

Essential cookies (required for site to function):

  • Session management
  • Security features
  • Basic site functionality

Analytics cookies (help us improve):

  • Google Analytics tracking
  • Page view counters
  • Popular content tracking

Future advertising cookies (when we add monetization):

  • Ad performance tracking
  • Affiliate link attribution
  • User preference tracking for relevant ads

How to control cookies: You can disable cookies in your browser settings:

  • Chrome: Settings > Privacy and Security > Cookies
  • Firefox: Settings > Privacy & Security > Cookies
  • Safari: Preferences > Privacy > Cookies

Note: Disabling all cookies might break some site features.

Children’s Privacy

City Cultivator isn’t specifically designed for children under 13, but we know kids sometimes garden with their parents. We don’t knowingly collect information from children under 13 without parental consent.

If you’re a parent and believe your child has provided us with personal information, email [email protected] and we’ll delete it.

International Users

Our website is based in the United States, and our servers are located in the US. If you’re visiting from outside the US, your information will be transferred to and stored in the US.

The US may have different data protection laws than your country. By using our site, you consent to this transfer.

For EU visitors: We comply with GDPR requirements for data protection and privacy rights.

Changes to This Policy

We’ll update this privacy policy when:

  • We add new features or services
  • Laws change and require updates
  • We learn better ways to protect your privacy
  • We add advertising or affiliate partnerships

When we make changes, we’ll:

  • Update the “Last Updated” date at the top
  • Notify newsletter subscribers (once we have a newsletter)
  • Post a notice on the homepage for 30 days

Major changes will get explicit consent from users before implementation.

Contact Us About Privacy

For privacy-related questions or concerns:
Email: [email protected]
Subject line: “PRIVACY QUESTION”

For data requests (access, deletion, correction):
Email: [email protected]
Subject line: “DATA REQUEST”

Mailing address (for formal legal correspondence):
City Cultivator
1847 Maple Street, Unit 6B
Portland, OR 97214
United States

We’ll respond to all privacy inquiries within 30 days, usually much faster.

This policy was written in plain English because nobody should need a law degree to understand how their data is used.