Brand Tas

The local Neighbourhood House helped Peter Richards through some tough times. On the other side of it, he wanted to help others.

He wondered how best to do it, and followed his passion. Peter had owned a gardening business. He knew how to grow fruit and vegetables, and understood how well it made him feel. So he established the Pioneer Road Community Garden in Ravenswood, Launceston.

“In the beginning, people were sceptical,” says Peter. “They said it wouldn’t work, that people would vandalise it.”

This only spurred Peter on, and with a dedicated team of volunteers, and many hours of hard work, they established the garden in 2014.

It was just becoming a success, a magnet for the community, when a herd of escaped cows trampled and destroyed it. Again they rallied and brought the garden back to life.

“And here we are nearly five years later – the garden is thriving and the community are very accepting and grateful to have such an asset and also very protective of it.”

This is where people can plant and pick fresh fruit and vegetables, where they can meet and talk and get their hands dirty together, where they contribute meaningfully through volunteering, and where they can learn about creating their own gardens at home.

“Due to the Pioneer Community Garden’s success, other private backyard gardens have since been established and we’re about to get another community garden up and running at the Ravenswood Men’s and Community Shed.”