Roxy Lane Community Garden

Louise Kaestner
Jan 28, 2025
3 min read

Updated: Jan 31, 2025

Source: Screenshot (2025)

Response from Roxy Lane Community Garden

On the 27th of January, 2025, I received a response from the Roxy Lane Community Garden in the City of Bayswater.

What inspired you?

Roxy Lane Community Garden is all about the community! People in Maylands are incredibly community minded and having a space where people can work together to create a beautiful green space has been amazing.

How long have you been running?

We started in 2017 – so 2025 will be our eighth year!

What was your original source of funding?

Roxy Lane Community Garden is a sub-group of LACE Inc, a larger community organisation. They helped source the original funding, as well as reaching out to the City of Bayswater to arrange their help.

How much was it?

I’m not sure! Because we’ve been running for nearly eight years now, a lot of the people who helped originally set up the garden have moved out of the area or don’t have a lot of time right now. However, we’re lucky to have a great crew of really enthusiastic members and volunteers right now!

What are your ongoing costs?

Past set up, community garden costs are pretty minimal! We spend money on things like seeds, mulch, fertilisers, and upkeeping the garden’s chickens, as well as insurance.

How do you fund the garden now?

Roxy Lane runs mostly on membership fees ($20 per year for a membership), as well as the occasional donation and sponsorship from local businesses or politicians. We also run regular plant sales and workshops, which help bring in community members and also generates income for the garden.

Any grants you recommend?

The WA State Government has a specific Community Garden grant program, for projects up to $10,000! It’s a great one if your organisation has a big project they wouldn’t otherwise be able to fundraise for.

What are your two best crops?

Mulberries and grapes! We’re lucky enough to have a huge mature mulberry tree that fruits prolifically every year, and a number of mature grape vines that grow along our fencing and inside the garden.

What are your two worst crops?

It depends on the weather! A lot of our “softer” crops like lettuce and herbs don’t fare so well in the summer, and sometimes our members will accidentally pull out a plant that they think is a weed. All part of the fun!

Do you use fertiliser or worms?

Yes to both! We have three lovely chickens that provide us with manure, which we use on our fruit trees, and which we supplement with natural fertilisers like Seasol (which comes from seaweed!). We’ve had worms in the past and are just getting our worm farms set up again.

Do you use any indigenous crops?

We’ve previously had a bush tucker “zone” in the garden and have moved more towards using native edible plants. Soon, we’ll be planting warrigal greens, which are kind of like spinach and make a great ground cover.

What is one tip or trick you’ve used that has impacted your success in a positive way?

When you think you’ve said thank you enough, say it again! Our community garden is run by members and volunteers who give up their time so we can all collectively benefit – so saying thank you and showing how much we appreciate them is really important.

What is one mistake in the garden you wished you’d never made?

Running the garden has been a learning journey! It’s important to remember that the garden is a collective effort, but it’s unlikely that any one member will be around for the entire life of the garden. We’ve been learning about how important it is to write down and record institutional knowledge, so if someone moves out of the area or doesn’t have as much time for the garden any more, we can keep the things that they helped with going.

Synthesis from Roxy Lane Community Garden

This garden is different as it does not use council funding to remain running. Something I've noticed with a few gardens is that they use warrigal as a leafy green Indigenous plant.

roxygardenmaylands@gmail.com