Two young mums can now get on with creating paradise, thanks to a recent boost which will see them direct their energy into a community garden they’ve called Eden.

Hayley Vink and friend Vickie Beeby are delighted with the donations that have come their way courtesy of hardware chain Bunnings after applying for a community grant late last year.

A wheelbarrow, garden spade and fork, hose with fittings, bags of compost and a “whole bunch of seeds” mean the garden they got going in October behind Raglan Union Church hall will continue to flourish — with help from volunteers and enthusiasts.

A blog page has attracted a few helpers, they say, and already they’ve had enough produce to be able to supply the local community house and the foodbank.
It’s a way of using a spare patch of land to advantage, says Hayley, who also organised four successful community sewing sessions in the church hall before Christmas.

She wants to make good use of the facilities, Hayley told the Chronicle.” It’s nice to see it being used for more things.”
Her mother-in-law Jeanette Vink is pastor of the church on the corner of Stewart Street and Wainui Road.

Keen or wannabe gardeners can meet there on Fridays, 9-11am, and the first Sunday of every month, 3-5pm.

Edith Symes