Our Story
We’re working together for a vibrant, sustainable network of community gardening locations in Merri-bek.
Our 100% volunteer-based non-profit community group currently manages community gardens; the West Brunswick Community Garden and its food forest.
We’re a group of local people interested in gardening and our community. Some of us have our own gardens, others are not so lucky but we share the belief that community gardening can provide a terrific focal point for people, something that will draw people out and get them involved.
What does sustainable community gardening mean to us?
For us, sustainable community gardening aims to:
- Support people in our neighbourhoods to grow their own food
- Protect and improve the land and the soil in ways that sustain ecological integrity and encourage greater biodiversity
- Enhance local communities by creating socially equitable gardens which provide beauty and enjoyment and act as network hubs and learning spaces
- Manage people, materials and money to ensure ongoing maintenance, minimal waste, and future growth.
- Promote living in harmony with nature, being aware of sustainable choices, caring for place, people and planet
- Provide for the future success and continued existence of the organisation, by building individual gardens and greater organisational capacity so that we can manage the ongoing work of the venture.
Why do we believe this is important and worth doing?
Here are 5 reasons we think it’s worth getting more community gardening happening:
1. To make it easy for people to get hold of healthy, locally grown food
Growing food locally reduces the resources required to get it to your plate and means it is fresher when you eat it. Community gardens provide a place to grow food if you don’t have space at home and a place where you can learn how from others in the community who know.
2. Gardening can help bring the Merri-bek community together
Communities care for, support and help each other.
Gardening can bring people in the community together in the same way as sport, shopping, education and music do.
Community gardens are meeting places and act as a focus for community activities and can provide an opportunity for people to interact.
3. To retain and enhance Merri-bek’s character and horticultural knowledge
Merri-bek has proud, long, rich urban gardening heritage with many people building productive gardens up from nothing over many years.
Community gardens provide opportunities for preserving and sharing knowledge, skills and plants and to help each other learn.
4. To enhance physical and mental health and well-being Alongside cycling and walking, gardening is one of the few activities that provides sustained, non-seasonal, low intensity exercise which is important for our physical health.
Gardening is also acknowledged as being therapeutic and beneficial to mental well-being.
Gardening is a great way for people to establish contact with others and to feel part of a group.
A community garden can provide people with no garden of their own an affordable way to grow healthy, safe food.
5. To encourage people to work towards a sustainable future
Local food production reduces or eliminates the greenhouse gas emissions generated when transporting food from where it is produced to its consumers (“food miles”).
By growing their own food, people can also save money on grocery bills.
A community garden can provide members of the community with access to information and opportunities to learn about sustainable approaches to managing water, recycling waste and growing food.or us, sustainable community gardening aims to:
- manage the ongoing work of the venture.
How and What are we trying to achieve?
We reckon it’s important that we’re all pointing in the same direction and working towards the same goal so we’ve articulated our vision, objectives and how we hope to go about delivering them below.
We hope this answers any questions you might have about what we’re doing and how.
If you’re interested in who we are and why we’re doing this, go here.
You can keep up with our progress via email updates (fill in the form at the bottom of the home page) or you can join us, we can use all the help we can get!
Contact us and we’ll let you know how you can get involved.
Our Vision
A Merri-bek where everyone can grow food, garden and build connected communities.
Our purpose
To encourage development of a community that is active in growing healthy food in the urban environment, developing a network of vibrant and sustainable community gardens and supporting edible gardening throughout the community.
Objective
To see a range of locations in Merri-bek where residents can:
grow healthy, safe organic food,
share companionship, skills and knowledge,
participate in and feel a part of their community,
enhance their mental and physical well-being,
learn to lead a more sustainable life.
How do gardens contribute to the community?
A culture of contributing to and engaging with the local community is fostered within the garden group.
Success depends on community contribution and participation in the establishment, use, development, management and maintenance of the garden.
Gardens bring together people from diverse backgrounds in one place to share experiences and knowledge.
As a hub for social events and an education programme (composting, pruning, rotation, propagation, seed saving).
Sharing plants and produce with the community to encourage more local residential food production.
What principles will these gardens emphasise and support?
Food security: helping people to regularly access nutritious, healthy, affordable and safe food,
Organic gardening: The garden will promote organic horticulture/agriculture principles for managing soil, pests etc.
Water conservation: Water will be collected and stored on site, mulching will be required.
Reduce, reuse, recycle: On-site composting (and possibly work farms) will supply nutrient enrichment for allotments and reduce waste leaving site. Recycled materials will be used wherever possible (pots, building materials etc.),
Biodiversity: members will be encouraged to grow heritage, non-hybrid varieties to preserve biodiversity,
Self-sufficiency: members will be encouraged to save seed and to propagate plants for replanting and to give away or swap,
Energy efficiency,
The Long View: decisions will wherever possible consider long term goals and consequences.
