Chosen from over 100 submissions across Australia, the Merri Corner Community Garden project aims to bring locals together by encouraging residents to grow their own produce and form relationships with other keen gardeners throughout the community. The community garden is also set to attract local wildlife to the area with a great selection of native flora set to be planted for birds to feed from and use as shelter.
The inspiration for the garden was drawn from the need to provide local residents an open space to grow their own flowers and fresh produce, especially for those neighbouring the vacant garden plot in East Brunswick, Moreland, where locals predominantly only have balconies or small courtyards.
This long awaited community garden has gone through nearly three years of planning and negotiating with the Moreland Council to be granted the vacant allotment. After gaining invaluable support from councillors and the wider community for the garden project, the Merri Corner Community Garden is set to be the first community driven garden in the Moreland area. The local council even plans to use this garden as a template for future community garden
initiatives.
The grant worth $2,500 comprises of green materials and gardening tools from FISKARS which will get their project off to a great start and ensure the garden is kept in tip top condition for years to come.
Group organiser Eleisha Mullane is ecstatic with being awarded a gardening grant to help kick start their initiative. “From letterboxing to fundraising we’ve done it all to get this garden up and running. Now that we’ve been awarded this Project Orange Thumb grant from FISKARS, we can finally begin planting.”
“The tools will be a great addition to assist our gardeners, most of whom live in apartment blocks so there’s not many shovels and rakes between us. The other support from the local community and council will go a long way to getting us started with plants and other much needed equipment. This grant is the icing on the cake!” she said.
The Project Orange Thumb initiative is committed to encouraging community involvement and creativity in the garden. Since its launch, the project has awarded more than 100 community groups with over $300,000 (AUD) worth of tools and materials to help turn their garden plans into a reality, from horticultural education and sustainable agriculture to neighbourhood beautification.
Nic Naes, Marketing Manager at FISKARS, was impressed with the quality of this year’s
submissions. “It’s really encouraging to see so many outstanding applications for this year’s Project Orange Thumb. With over 100 applications, it was hard to choose just four winners across Australia as the creativity, enthusiasm and sustainable thinking shown from entrants was overwhelming.”
“The Merri Corner Community Garden application really impressed us with their determination, motivation and their idea of incorporating gardening with positive community relations, that is set to benefit locals for many years to come,” Nic said.
Supporting the local community is at the heart of FISKARS and it is hoped that Project Orange Thumb will continue to inspire and encourage green thumbs for years to come.
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