Tuesday, 1 April 2025

Aintree Community Garden

Luba GRIGOROVITCH (Kororoit) (13:03): It was with great excitement that I officially opened the Aintree Community Garden on Saturday 22 March. This project was made possible by a $75,000 grant from the Living Local Fund’s suburban grants, enabling We Love Aintree to bring this community garden to the heart of Woodlea. A huge thankyou to Jono from We Love Aintree for turning this vision into a reality. The occasion was celebrated in a unique way with a pumpkin vine ribbon-cutting, symbolising the growth and abundance that this garden will bring to our community.

This incredible space features 41 Foodcube wicking beds providing 47 square metres of growing space. Thanks to the 39 dedicated volunteers during maintenance Mondays, these beds are already filled with fresh produce. If you would like to get involved, gardening sessions and morning tea will happen every Monday between 10 am and 11 am. A special highlight of the day was the Ben’s Bees locally harvested honey that was available for sale. I proudly bought a jar, and I can attest that the honey is magnificent. The celebration was filled with nature workshops and a barbecue cooked by our amazing local Scouts group, along with a sushi sandwich stall, where kids learned to make healthy snacks. A particularly heartwarming moment was when young Esther, who had saved up her money for two years, showed me the apple tree that she had bought and proudly donated to the community garden. This is just the beginning. With a range of programs ahead, I am excited to join Jono and We Love Aintree as we continue growing the community together.