NSA Community Garden Visit at Lalor Neighbourhood House
NSA community members Aiden, Marcus, Anthony, Kun Yu and Henry, along with support workers Mandeep and Raed, student teacher Alina, lead teacher Pong, Community Services students Emily and Ruth, and LNH members Damian and Leila, enjoyed a sunny Monday morning caring for the garden at Lalor Neighbourhood House.
The morning began with watering the garden beds before Alina demonstrated how to plant and care for rocket seedlings. Marcus quickly picked up the process and soon began showing others how to plant as well. We look forward to checking on the seedlings next week to see if they have sprouted, which usually takes around six days.
As Alina has now completed her placement, we will all miss her and wish her every success in her future endeavors. To recognise her contribution, our rocket patch has been named ‘Alina Rocket’ in her honour.
The group was also curious about the Feijoa tree growing at Lalor NH. Alina kindly brought along some Feijoas for everyone to taste a tangy green fruit currently in season. Aiden described the inside as tasting like mashed banana, while others thought it reminded them of kiwi fruit.
After collecting litter around the garden, the group moved to the sunflower bed to harvest a sunflower. Damian showed Marcus and Aiden the impressive size of the roots beneath the plant, and Aiden shared that sunflowers always turn towards the sun. Everyone enjoyed discussing the different uses for sunflower seeds.
As the session came to a close, community member Halime stopped by and shared some knowledge about broad bean plants, explaining that the leaves can also be eaten in salads. Everyone sampled a leaf and agreed they really did taste like beans. Several community members passing by joined the conversation and even took home some leafy vegetables, including Malabar spinach.
Testimonial from NSA Lead Teacher, Pong
“It was our class’s second visit for 2026 to LNH, and our students had the best start to the week. They really enjoyed working in the garden, learning about new plants and how to care for them. Some students were so engaged in gardening that they even forgot to have their morning tea break. We’re looking forward to more sessions at LNH!”