Inspiring Wellingtonians to grow more food through a demonstration garden, workshops and coordination

Inspiring Wellingtonians To Grow More Food Through A Demonstration Garden, Workshops And Coordination

Project 2019-07-27 19:30:38 +1200

Help us fill Wellington’s empty spaces, balconies and back gardens with colourful, fresh vegetables, herbs and other edible plants!  We’re Growspace Wellington - a grass-roots enterprise with a love of nature, our beautiful city, and connecting diverse people.

We're driven by an important problem

Few of us these days understand where food comes from and how to grow it. And at a global level, our food systems are falling short of sustaining our health, our communities, or our planet.  Growing food locally is something worth doing to help address this, not only healthy for you, but also climate friendly.

“Increasingly people want to live in a city where they can access and be involved in affordable, locally sourced, healthy food and have better connection to their food sources. “ Wellington City Council

Let's find the joy in growing food!

We’ve talked with all sorts of people in Wellington, and heard about the difficulties of growing food - like our challenging weather, lack of know how, not having enough time or a suitable space to grow.  Sound familiar? Well, we can help!

We’re confident that with the right advice and careful design of gardening spaces you can have the success and joy of growing food. 

A food garden in the city

 We are creating a demonstration food garden at Sustainability Trust in Wellington city and plan to have this open in spring.  The garden will demonstrate what sort of edibles can be grown in Wellington as well as the way that local materials – like plants, soil, living compost, and the wood used for the garden bed - come together sustainably.

We will run workshops with site-specific gardening advice addressing issues like planting for the weather, gardens for small spaces, plants that take less time to tend and all sorts of important ways you can grow successfully in Wellington. 

We will also work to coordinate and help grow the local food movement in Wellington working with Sustainability Trust, Kaicycle, Hopper Home and Houghton Bay Farms to name a few. 

We’re keen to work with a wide range of people such as home and community growers, students, and businesses; if you think this could be you, please get in touch! 

We need your support!

Your pledges will fund the development of our food garden at Sustainability Trust.  We’ve made a start and your contributions will help us complete the building plus install and maintain the garden. The money raised will also help run workshops designed to meet Wellingtonian's needs.

There is a motivated group of community housing gardeners we’ve started working with and funds will also help us support them with advice and delivery of materials to their site (check out our rewards for more on that). 

We’re excited by the vibrant, emerging local food scene in Wellington.  We’ll also be putting our time (and part of our coming website) to help connect this up further.   

Please pledge, we’ve got great rewards, or reach out to us with your skills.  We’re working with inspiring local partners and welcome more collaborators.

 Thank you so much for your support.

Meet the GrowSpace Wellington team

Josie Sligo-Green, gardener and designer

Josie has been fascinated by nature as long as she can remember...this might have something to do with her mother going into labour with her in their home vege patch! Josie has an education in Landscape Architecture, Design and Permaculture and most importantly, 8 years of experience working as a professional gardener and designer in Wellington’s diverse ecosystem. She wants to share what she’s learned with you and continue to learn from you too.                     

Caroline Taylor, connector and community builder

Caroline loves food and connecting with people in Wellington’s local food movement. She’s passionate about all things sustainable and is inspired by imagining food growing everywhere in our beautiful city. Caroline has co-founded a small local community orchard, been a local coordinator with 350 Aotearoa and a volunteer with Kaibosh food rescue. She works as a facilitator for Reframe Aotearoa on the Wellington Conversations.

Katherine Silvester, researcher and organiser

Katherine is especially interested in the many health giving reasons for growing food, eating well, and spending time in a garden. Always curious, she can often be found in her garden, trying to grow something new or figuring out how to stop the rhubarb flying away in Wellington’s south coast weather.  Katherine has a background in nutrition science and research and works as a principal adviser in strategy and policy roles in government.  

Grateful thanks to Nadine, Tim and Nadine Photographers for the photography.

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