By Tyler Wright
The Cockatoo-based Hills Community Gardens has begun 2023 with a successful ‘dig in’ day, completing work on a five-bin compost bay.
Around 10 participants got involved in weeding and mulching at Alma Treloar Reserve on Sunday 15 January, weeding and mulching public and private plots.
Brodie Hearnden, Hills Community Gardens committee secretary, said the committee host skills sharing workshops each year.
“People come to the garden and they learn from us, and then what then happens is we’re putting out a call for anybody who has something… a skill that they would like to share to do with gardening or growing things or harvesting or producing to then put on an event at our garden,” Brodie said.
“We have an upcoming workshop in March, which is how to grow mushrooms… this one will be $23 so that you have to pay for a kit so you learn how to grow mushrooms, and then you can go home and take the kit home and do it yourself.”
The Hills Community Gardens are also home to the Hills Herbal Collective which runs a medicinal garden bed.
“They run regular workshops and events, and their next one is in Autumn; they’re going to be doing a medicinal workshop,” Brodie said.
Brodie said there are a decent amount of people wanting to partake in events including workshops at the community gardens, who then also stay to work on the gardens’ upkeep themselves.
“It’s a really important skill to have and it’s cost effective, given everything that’s going on at the moment,” Brodie said.
Perennials are also grown in the gardens; an easy way to learn how to garden without worrying about seeds only lasting one season, she said.
“We grow some really interesting things like red amaranth, we grow rutabagas, different kinds of beetroots. At the upcoming season we’ll probably be doing a whole lot of garlic.
“We have a bed of cape gooseberries, we have artichokes and asparagus beds.”
In June 2022, Hills Community Gardens received its first orchard with funds from a beautification grant, which has become home to ten fruiting trees.
“In the next couple of years hopefully we’ll have some fruiting fruits coming about. There’s lots of things going on down there,” Brodie said.
To get involved in Hills Community Gardens’ events and working bees, contact hillscommunitygardenscockatoo@gmail.com or visit their Facebook page Hills Community Gardens.
The Hills Community Gardens is also home to a native sensory garden.
Dig-ins are held on the first and third Sunday of every month.
