Creating a green sanctuary in Redfern

Local volunteers dig deep for a new community garden at Redfern’s Reconciliation Park.

Locals come together

Reconciliation Park in Redfern is now home to the City of Sydney’s latest community garden. People of all ages have come together to create a green oasis next to a popular playground with plants, flowers and edible natives.
Getting started

Local resident Jos Knuts helped launch the new community garden group of volunteers. He’s working closely with the City’s community garden and volunteer coordinator Raewyn Broadfoot to start the garden planting.
A great way to learn

There are already 25 community garden group members. They’re hoping to attract more local gardening enthusiasts to their garden working bees.

“We all have a little bit of gardening knowledge. We learn as we go and draw on each other’s skills and expertise. It’s also a great way to learn to get on with your neighbours, work together as a community,” Jos says.
Kids dig in

With the rise of apartment living, more and more people are looking for opportunities to enjoy outdoor spaces. Children, parents and grandparents are coming together in parks and gardens across inner Sydney. Kids living near Reconciliation Park are digging in to help with planting.
We’re going green

The Reconciliation Park community garden group received a $10,000 matching grant from the City to launch the new project. We also donated an array of edible bush tucker plants for locals and visitors to enjoy.

“The great thing about this particular garden is that we’ll have a variety of vegetables and fruits that you might not find in the supermarket. We hope this might inspire people to look at new foods and different ways of cooking and being healthy,” Jos says.
Big hopes for little parks

It’s early days for the community garden at Reconciliation Park, but there are big hopes for this little park’s community project. Sisters Annika and Elin have loved the chance to join in and get their hands dirty.

There are 20 community gardens run by volunteers in our local area that are helping create and protect green habitats. If you’d like to join in, find out more about local community gardens with tips to get you started.