Editor’s Note: For background on the excellent work going on at the Mullumbimby Community Gardens, an update for which is found below, see here, here and here.
Mullumbimby’s community garden is blossoming into a hive of activity with people from all walks of life building, creating and gardening together. Our communal gardens and new allotments are now brimming with organic fruit, vegetables, herbs and flowers while 18 "Pods" (special interest groups) develop programs and projects that are launching MCG into a sustainable living education centre.
Celebrating the first year on site with a VIP breakfast for 60 neighbours, sponsors and supporters, MCG co-ordinator, Jeannette Martin led the group on a tour of the five acre site to experience the site plan in the early stages of action. The Children’s garden, nursery and chook palace have been pegged out, hybrid adobe raised garden beds are under construction around the new rotunda, compost heaps were brewing and the biochar kiln was ready for its first firing.
The onset of cooler Autumn weather, the development of the allotments and a team-building series of workshops has seen numbers of people participating in activities increase dramatically and with visitors and volunteers dropping in every day, the energy at the garden is vibrant and joyful.
The challenges of dealing with some "strong" personalities with adamant ideas of how things "should" be done is giving everyone involved the opportunity to grow and experience what true "respect for diversity" really means and it’s working. Policies and procedures are evolving, friendships are developing and skills and knowledge are being shared.
Patience and perservence are definitely two qualities that have been imperative to the development of the Mullumbimby Community Garden. It was a long three year process to secure a lease of the site and funding is an ongoing challenge. There are definite challenges in developing a community garden with a "bottom up/grass roots" approach but the benefits are now coming to fruition in a big way with a shared vision that is manifesting on a daily basis. Aerial photos of the garden are almost outdated before the end of the week but the group-developed site plan is generally guiding the process.
The Mullumbimby Community Garden is open 7 days a week during daylight hours with our organised activity days being Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday between 9 & 3. You can find MCG situated just 500m from the Mullumbimby CBD at the southern end of Stuart Street, past the museum/market site, across Salt Water Creek and adjacent to the tennis courts.
All are welcome to drop in, offer a helping hand or just to wander around and feel the enthusiasm that is burgeoning behind every sunflower, lettuce leaf and budding eggplant in the gardens.
Jeannette Martin
Co-ordinator
Mullumbimby Community Garden inc.
PO Box 149
Mullumbimby 2482
Phone: 02 6684 4876
0412 322 255
Email: mullumcommunitygarden (at) gmail.com
Web: https://mullumcommunitygarden.wordpress.com
So awesome to see that from above after watching the design being conceived from scratch. Suppose thats one of the pleasures of permaculture….seeing the physical manifestations of imagination :)
What a great example of permaculture design in action. I am sharing it with my PDC class in Canada this evening. They are working on their design projects right now.