Community Gardens
Paul Reynolds Centre Community Garden pilot project
Interested in Community Gardens
Community Garden Workshop
Community gardens are neighbourhood food assets that help build local and sustainable food systems by improving peoples’ access to healthy foods. Healthy food systems support healthy communities by helping ensure that nutritious, accessible, and affordable food is available to individuals and families in their neighbourhood or community.
Benefits of participating in a community garden include:
- building wellness for individuals, families, and communities
- providing opportunities to eat more vegetables and fruits
- be physically active
- support mental wellbeing
- build social connections in the community
- intergenerational and cultural transfer of skills and knowledge
- build inspiration for other community development initiatives
Paul Reynolds Centre Community Garden pilot project
In Spring 2018, Healthy City St. John’s in partnership with the Local Immigration Partnership received funding from the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Department of Children, Seniors and Social Development to pilot a community garden project at the Paul Reynolds Community Centre. During the summer of 2019, the community garden expanded to included fruit trees and nine additional beds including two wheelchair accessible beds. This allowed more residents to participate and grow their own food. Gardening space is also being planned for the Kilbride, Shea Heights, Southlands and Kenmount Terrace Community Centres.
Community gardens are important places for residents to make social connections. They create spaces for people of different backgrounds to get to know each other. The community garden at Paul Reynolds creates space for newcomers to St. John’s and has accessible beds for residents with mobility restrictions. This inclusive space allows for community integration and feelings of community belonging. There is space for everyone from seniors and families to first time residents of St. John’s.
This initiative is part of the City of St. John’s Healthy City Strategy and contributes to the existing network of community gardens across St. John's. It also gives us the opportunity to build new community garden partnerships with organizations operating community gardens, and offer training and education on community gardening for gardeners and volunteers.
To request a plot at the Paul Reynolds Community Garden review the Code of Conduct and complete the application here.
Interested in Community Gardens?
Visit Food First NL, if you would like to learn about other local community gardens in St. John’s and check out their Best Practice Community Garden Toolkit to learn more about starting your own community garden.
If you or someone you know is interested in:
- Learning more about joining a community garden
- Finding a community garden in your neighbourhood
- Starting a community garden in your neighbourhood – be sure to check out our new “Growing Community Gardens in the City of St. John’s: A Guide for Community Gardens on City-Owned Land”
- Learning more information on the City of St. John’s Healthy City project
Please connect with us by emailing, healthycommunities@stjohns.ca or calling 576-8628
Through Healthy City St. John’s new partnerships with local organizations interested in community gardens, including Food First NL, Memorial University - Student Life, Association for New Canadians, Home Depot, and MUN Botanical Garden brought together more than 95 people interested in community gardening for a day of education and training on community gardens. For a snapshot of the day, watch the video below.