Garden Brings Community Together

Murrumburrah-Harden Rotary President Rita O’Connor is thrilled with how the community garden project has been received.

“It’s amazing,” Ms O’Connor said.

“It’s got a will of its own now. It’s becoming a genuine community garden.”

In fact, Ms O’Connor said that rather than waiting for her to organise what they were going to do each week, community members are using their own initiative to visit the garden and do some of the work between times.

“We have great solid workers who turn up as often as they can,” she said.

“Each week more and more volunteers are turning up with seedlings, egg cartons, bulbs, etc, so it’s so busy just taking delivery of them.”

“More and more young people are turning up, some to play on the equipment, others to help.”

The centrepiece of the garden is the pergola and garden beds have been ordered to surround the structure.

This amazing community project also includes a sensory garden, complete with a path and a two-sided sensory wall, which will be of benefit to people living with dementia and young children with sensory needs.

Ms O’Connor applied to the Rotary Foundation for the initial funding to kickstart the project and was awarded $4,300.

She also applied for a State government grant of $13,400 which will be put toward the Beehive - a structure with information about native bees.

The garden will eventually have a greenhouse and an Indigenous garden complete with Indigenous plants.

Ms O’Connor said that her challenge had been knowing where to source materials.

“The community has been absolutely amazing,” she said.

“It’s really taking on a life of its own.”

A core of seven or eight Rotarians helps out with the community garden each week.

• Topics:

• Gardening