Resources
There are many great books, websites, and workshops available about home gardening, organic principles, nutrition, composting, and much more. We have compiled a list of some of these as a starting point for anyone interested in learning about these topics.
Contents
1. Books and magazines
2. Websites
3. Workshops and personal assistance
4. Materials
1. Books and magazines
Sustainable Living Centre Library
The Sustainable Living Centre has a library of books and DVDs and holds regular workshops. Visit the centre to browse through the library or search our on-line library database. Some of the great books available to borrow include:
Sharing Community Harvest: A Citizens’ Guide to Community Supported Agriculture.
By Elizabeth Henderson, Robyn Van En.
The New Organic Grower.
By Elliot Coleman.
The Rodale Book of Composting: Easy Methods for Every Gardener.
Edited by Deborah Martin and Grace Gershuny
Community Gardens Library
Contact the Community Gardens Facilitator at the Sustainable Living Centre, New Lynn to borrow the following excellent books:
Community Gardening.
By Ellen Kirby and Elizabeth Peters.
Summary: A closer look at gardening programs across North America. Hands-on tips, case studies, program models, and true stories of how community gardens are bringing neighbours together and supplying healthy food.
Companion Planting in New Zealand.
Text by Brenda Little and Illustrations by Ken Gilroy.
Summary: An alphabetical exploration of plants and pests that explains how to outwit garden enemies naturally. This summary of good and bad garden companions is a useful reference tool for gardeners planting beds or containers of vegetables and herbs.
Cultivating Community: Principles and Practices for Community Gardening As a Community Building Tool.
By Karen Payne and Deborah Fryman.
Summary: This paper explores some of the basic principles and values that underlie successful community empowerment programs, and illustrates how these principles have been applied to community gardens across the USA.
Design your own Orchard: Bringing Permaculture Design to the Ground in Aotearoa.
By Kay Baxter.
Summary: An extensive guide to growing fruit trees in New Zealand based on permaculture principles. Information includes zone design, shelter, choosing specific varieties and meeting their needs and a planting and pruning guide.
Feed Me Right: Nutritional Know-How and Body Science (book and teachers resource).
By Dee Pigneguy.
Summary: A great book for children, families, or classrooms to discover the world of the human body and the importance of feeding our bodies right. This book would help connect a positive link between growing our own food and nurturing our bodies.
Gracious Gardens in Small Spaces.
By Bee Baldwin.
Summary: A do-it-yourself guide outlining how gardeners can make the most of limited growing space.
Gardenering for Planet Earth
By Dee Pigneguy.
Summary: Dee is an organic gardening educator on the North Shore. She has worked with many schools helping them prepare and use gardens. Gardening for Planet Earth is a very practical book designed for kids which makes it very easy for adults to understand and use.
Koanga Garden Guide: A Complete Guide to Gardening Organically and Sustainably.
By Kay Baxter.
Summary: Kay Baxter is a famous New Zealand organic gardener and founder of Koanga Institute. Her book gives a month by month account of appropriate garden activities. She also talks about crop rotation, building hotbeds, pests and diseases, seed saving, growing grains, poultry, orchards, growing flowers, and other gardening tips for home gardeners.
New Zealand Gardener Magazine
Summary: This magazine has been published continuously since 1944. Like any good magazine it covers a range of topics each month and seems to cater to all types of gardeners.
Outdoor Classrooms: A Handbook for School Gardens.
By Carolyn Nuttall and Janet Millington.
Summary: Carolyn Nuttall is a teacher in Australia who had the dream of starting a garden with her students. The book is full of lesson plans and activities for children in a garden.
Organic Gardening in New Zealand.
By Richard Llewellyn Hudson.
Summary: Information and advice on plant nutrition, mulching, compost making, natural fertilizers, natural pest and disease control, storing your harvest and saving seed.
Organic NZ Magazine.
Published by Soil and Health Association.
Summary: Organic NZ is written and published in NZ for Kiwi gardeners, farmers, permaculturists, and folks interested in sustainable living. It is full of stories, resources, case studies, and course information and consumer options throughout New Zealand.
Save your own seeds.
By Kay Baxter.
Summary: Comprehensive guide to seed saving in New Zealand based on Kay Baxter's 25 years of experience in New Zealand conditions and situations. Describes seed families and includes a month by month guide to seed saving.
The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods.
By Michael Murray.
Summary: The most comprehensive, user friendly, A to Z guide available on the nutiritional benefits and medicinal properties of food. Also includes specific food prescriptions for more than 70 common ailments. From the best selling authors of The Encyclopedia of natural medicine.
The New Zealand Gardening Calendar – a month-by-month guide.
By Michael Crookes.
Summary: This book starts with an Introduction to the New Zealand climate and then provides details for a year round month by month picture of when to do what in the home garden. The book finishes with spray charts, fertilizer mixtures, and monthly planting chart templates.
Waitakere City Libraries
Visit your local Waitakere Library or search their online database. They have many useful books including:
Creative Sustainable Gardening in New Zealand: For the Twenty-first Century.
By Diana Anthony.
Urban Eden: Grow delicious fruit, vegetables, and herbs in a really small space.
By Adam and James Caplin.
2. Websites
Auckland networking and information
Auckland Botanic Gardens
Summary: On their website you can find out more about the history, vision for the Gardens and the important conservation and research work they do.Their edible garden is located just beyond the Visitors Centre, visitors can view seasonal crops suitable for home gardens and composting displays. Entry to the gardens is free of charge.
Auckland Seed Savers
Community garden websites
Summary: Community gardeners often have a great knowledge of gardening and what it means to do this as a community. They are a great source of advice and support.
Create Your Own Eden
Summary: Information about home composting, worm farming and Bokashi. At the bottom of each page you can download a step by step guide on home composting which will provide you with all the information needed to produce your own fresh nutritious compost.
Diabetes Project Trust – Gardens4Health
Summary: The aim of this programme is to make growing your own fruit and veg the normal thing to do. We are starting with community gardens in places like Marae, schools, churches, and public open spaces in Auckland.
Feed Me Right
Summary: Dee Pigneguy is an award winning Auckland gardener and author of the 2007 book Feed Me Right. She has extensive experience working with others to develop vibrant productive gardens. You can share in Dee's passion for organic gardening, cooking and nutrition on this website.
Kaipatiki Project
Summary: The Kaipatiki project is a community based organisation that provides environmental education and nature restoration services. The Kapatiki Environment Centre is located on the North Shore.
Ooooby
Summary: A social networking sight for gardeners. It works like Facebook. Become a member, join some local groups and tap into the wealth of knowledge, skills, and produce sharing happening all over Auckland.
Soil temperature in Grey Lynn
Summary: This website has daily information on the max and min temperature of the soil at a depth of 10cm in Grey Lynn. This is a good reference point for Auckland gardeners.
Transition Towns
Summary: Transition towns are usually made up of motivated people. Many T.T have already started community gardens.
New Zealand examples and information
Canterbury commercial organics group
Summary: The Canterbury Commercial Organics Group (CCOG) is a non-profit group run by people active in the organic industry in Canterbury. Our vision is to expand the organic industry in the Canterbury region by providing information, networking, encouragement and mutual support for people interested in organics. The website includes reports and workshop summaries on organic farming and gardening topics from mechanical weed management to animal health.
Discover garden insects
Summary: A descriptive exploration of Nine common garden insects and their life cycles. Very good photos for to help gardeners identify insects, but no information about how to control the negative species.
Food Forests – Geoff Lawson. (Geoff comes to NZ regularly)
Summary: Food forests are one permaculture way of working with nature to create abundant and sustainable food in an intensive and complimentary way. Massey High School has a small food forest on site.
Good Magazine
Summary: Map and links to community gardens across New Zealand. Good magazine is for forward-thinking New Zealanders who want to live more sustainable lives with less impact on the environment. Packed with inspirational people, world-changing ideas and practical, down-to-earth advice, Good will arm you with all the information you need to make wise choices for yourself, your family and our planet.
Horticulture New Zealand
Summary: Printable resources about all types of fruit and vegetable, recipes, nutrition information and newsletters full of interesting articles.
Kliptank water tanks
Summary: The Kliptank is a unique kiwi designed and manufactured klip-together multi-storage tank. They can build a tank to your requirements.
Organic Pathways
Summary: Articles and information on organic gardening, community issues/interests, business and household organic information and organic publications. The website also hosts a directory to help you find organic products and services, businesses and organisations quickly and easily.
The Biodynamic farming and gardening association in New Zealand
Summary: Information about biodynamic gardening and farming including workshop opportunities.
Touchwood Books: The Grower’s Bookshop.
Summary: Touchwood Books is a mail order business specialising in books about gardening and farming, in fact anything that grows including; horticulture, viticulture, trees and much more. They have a large range of new and second hand titles in stock and can source an even larger range of titles from their many New Zealand and overseas suppliers. Other book topics include organics, permaculture, lifestyle, self-sufficiency and machinery associated with all these aspects of growing.
International information
American Community Gardening Association
Summary: This Association is used by many community gardeners across America. They provide many resources and advice. Their Growing Communities Curriculum is available at EcoMatters, just ask Brooke Walker.
Australian City Farms and community garden network.
Summary: Articles and blogs on a variety of topics including about Australian community gardens, getting community gardens started, ideas and innovations, planting and publications.
Ceres Community Environment Park.
Summary: Ceres Community Environment Park is located in East Brunswick, Australia. They are a mosaic of community groups and gardens so popular and successful that they have developed into a park which is open to the public. The community gardens within the Ceres were one of the founding aspects of the community park and a true example of how a community garden can bring a community together and inspire community development.
Todays Dietition
Summary: This website has various articles around healthy foods and diets. The article linked to here is titled “Eating for a rainbow of benefits” and addresses how the colour of our food indicates what kind of nutrients it is providing us and the importance of ensuring our diet includes a range of different coloured fruit and vegetables.
Veggie Village: Community Gardens Inc.
Summary: Veggie Village is a Community Garden at Di Hirst Oval, Peregian Beach. The Village uses permaculture techniques to teach people how to grow their own fruit & vegetables in individual and communal veggie patches. The website includes information about the gardens, interesting bits of information and contact details.
3. Workshops and Personal Assistance
Workshops in Auckland
Workshops are a great way to gain hands on experience and knowledge from experts. There are many different opportunities in Auckland to learn about different aspects of gardening –a few are listed below.
Sustainable Living Centre courses – New Lynn
Auckland Permaculture workshops – Mount Albert
CCS Disability Centre Organic community garden – Royal Oak
Summary: Offer a 10 week Master gardener course. An accessible organic garden space in central Auckland where people from diverse backgrounds can come together to share in the growing of plants and produce.
Contact: Scott Thiemann on 09 625 9811 or scott.thiemann@ccsdisabilityaction.org.nz
Community Education courses
Summary: Often courses are held at local schools as community adult education courses. Ask your local community centre or school for courses that may be held in your area.
Feed me right organic gardening courses with Dee Pigneguy – Glenfield
Summary: practical organic gardening courses taught in Dee’s garden, she also provides at home support and consults for home garden development.
Giverney Gardens – Waiheke Island
Summary: Sustainable Living courses and organic produce.
Contact: info@giverny.co.nz
Kaipatiki Restoration Project – Birkdale
Summary: Occasionally run gardening courses – are currently developing onsite edible gardens.
Contact: admin@kaipatiki.org.nz
Workshops near Auckland
Kaiwaka Organics – Kaipara District
Summary: Kaiwaka Organics is New Zealand's only Organic Garden Centre, formally known as Koanga Gardens. They are situated 4km North of the township of Kaiwaka,in the Kaipara District, on State Highway One. The shop is open 7 days from 9am - 5pm including all public holidays except Christmas Day,Good Friday and Anzac Day. Kaiwaka Gardens specialises in supplying heirloom vegetable, flower and herb seeds & seedlings, and heritage fruit and nut trees and plants. Check out their website for information on workshops offered throughout the year.
Rainbow valley farms – Matakana
Summary: Rainbow Valley Farm was established in 1988 by Joe Polaischer and Trish Allen. The 21 ha. organic farm was designed on permaculture principles and ethics. They run a permaculture course and also have the occasional farm tour.
Northtec - Orewa/Whangaparoa
Permaculture and Organic Gardening courses with Betsy Kettle, phone: 0800 808 856.
4. Materials
Below is a list of places that often have useful materials available for free or cheaply. For more information please contact the Community Gardening Facilitator.
Construction sites
Construction sites have a lot of useful materials they are dumping. If you are using treated wood for garden beds, please line them with plastic. You can also find large sheets of plastic at construction sites. Please talk to the site manager before you take materials. Explain what you are doing and ask if you can rummage through discard piles.
Waste and Transfer
Get to know your Waste and Transfer Station. A lot of useful materials flow through there.
Demolition Yards
Demolition yards are a great resource. Please support these businesses as they are doing a great job at salvaging useful materials. Talk with the owner about your project. Who knows, he/ she may give you a great deal.
Rock Dust
Powerful mineralized fertilizer. Agrissentials: 122 Lockhead Rd, RD6, Tauranga, 07 552 4343 or 0800 843 539.
Sawmills
There are a number of sawmills in Auckland that can be a source for untreated sawdust and wood shavings. Check your local directory for contact details.
Manure
Check local equestrian centres, stables, and farms for manure. You do not want manure from animals recieving antibiotics or animals that have just been wormed.