Community Gardening

A community garden is a single piece of land gardened by a group of people. The garden may consist of individual plots (sometimes called allotments) and/or areas that are gardened communally.

Many WIC members are interested in participating in community gardens, or at least finding out more. Such gardens provide an opportunity to share gardening knowledge and work in a sociable environment. It often leads to sharing seeds, produce and recipes - made all the more exciting when so many different ethnicities with our traditional plants and cuisines are working together!

We are most likely to maintain involvement in a community garden if it is close to where we live. There are a number of community gardens with membership open to the general public already in existence in Hamilton and many would welcome more members. There are also a number of groups considering starting community gardens in the area.

So that you can find out about the gardens already running that you may want to join and also to learn from their experiences, we are organising a Waikato Community Garden Network Meeting on the afternoon of Thursday 22 September in Frankton, Hamilton. More details will follow - watch this discussion page...

Some of the groups that joined WIC have their own land, and we are working one by one to help them develop their gardens. The first is in Tokoroa.

Most WIC members live in the Nawton area of Hamilton, where there is no existing community garden. The Salvation Army in nearby Grandview (where some of our Grow Your Own Vegetables From Seed workshops were held) was thinking about starting a community garden when we approached them about their land: we are now looking to work together on a joint community garden project - watch this space!

Photo: Katherine Hay of the Waikato Environment Centre talking about community gardens at our first WIC meeting. (Jovi, HMS)

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Clare Jackson on May 10, 2012 at 10:02pm

comfrey liquid manure at Grandview Community Garden

In March the gardeners found large clumps of comfrey when clearing the ground to make gardens. The leaves have been used to make a liquid manure, which is now ready to be watered onto the gardens, giving the leafy vegetables a boost.

Permalink Reply by Clare Jackson on May 10, 2012 at 10:04pm

Permalink Reply by Clare Jackson on May 14, 2012 at 1:39pm

public meeting on the Food Bill in Hamilton

Many of us are wondering if the Food Bill will impact on the way we operate as community groups running events that sell food, or as community gardens that sell excess produce or preserves to raise funds, etc. There is a public meeting on the Food Bill in Hamilton on Wednesday May 16th at 7pm at the Trade Union Centre, 34 Harwood St, Hamilton. Steffan Browning MP is the guest speaker at the meeting. For more information contact angela.mcleod@parliament.govt.nz

Permalink Reply by Clare Jackson on May 16, 2012 at 3:40pm

Grandview Community Garden

Grow your own garlic –preparing the ground

When: Thursday May 17th from 10am to 11am

What. We will show you how to prepare the ground for planting garlic. There is plenty of space for new members to join and start a garden.

Where: Look for the WIC sign opposite 183 Grandview Rd and walk through the gate.

Clare and Tim WIC Community Garden Mentors ph 021 0387623 021 2243109

Permalink Reply by Clare Jackson on May 20, 2012 at 8:17pm

The pak choi we sowed at Grandview Community Garden on may the third is up

Permalink Reply by Clare Jackson on May 21, 2012 at 3:07pm

Spinach seedlings are up at Grandview Community Garden. The soil in the garden is still warm for late May, due to the north facing slope we are on.

Permalink Reply by WIC Garden Project on May 23, 2012 at 1:14pm

New garden in planning

WIC has helped a group of Tongan families called Fakatau Ki Monu find some land that they can garden together. Planning is underway for them to garden at the Te Ara Hou site (where they are pictured).

Thanks goes to Anna Cox of Te Ara Hou for responding to our request for land and working with the village to get permission.

The group is looking forward to starting digging and trying some winter crops.

Permalink Reply by Clare Jackson on May 24, 2012 at 2:57pm

Peas are thriving at Grandview Community Garden

The peas which were sown at the Community Garden on Neighbours Day, March 24th, have set pods which are now filling up with juicy green peas. Peas are a good winter crop beacuse they tolerate cold weather, and enrich the soil with their nitrogen fixing roots.

Permalink Reply by Clare Jackson on May 25, 2012 at 10:44am

Members of the Hamilton Men's Community Shed joined the community gardeners and guests at Grandview Community Garden for a cup of tea and garden tour. Our new garden shed was built by the Community Shed members at the Waikato Show in April, to raise funds for the Lions Cancer Lodge.

Permalink Reply by WIC Garden Project on May 29, 2012 at 6:08pm

WIC Advisory Group visits Grandview Community Garden

The WIC Advisory Group had its monthly meeting at Grandview Community Garden last week - a chance to see the awesome progress being made.

Here Tim (WIC Community Garden Mentor) explains how to make comfrey liquid fertiliser to Papa (Pacific Island representative) and Teresa (Aere Ki Mua Project Manager).

Comfrey grows wild on the site. It is an excellent source of potassium - a mineral that helps plants to set fruit.

Permalink Reply by Clare Jackson on May 31, 2012 at 1:16pm

Winter is a great time to start a new garden. Grandview Community Gardens's newest members dug, weeded and raked this plot ready for their winter greens and spring veges.