The Mooroolbark Community Garden committee and volunteers have been left devastated after more than 100 plants, trees and seedlings were removed or destroyed.
A volunteer arrived at the garden at around 8.30am on Monday 6 October, to find someone trying to haul a bale of sugar cane mulch into their car.
Telling them to stop and leave the bale, the person fled in their car. Upon inspecting the garden beds and polytunnel, however, the devastation was far worse.
Community Garden president Tracey Langridge said they estimate that 150 plants, trees and seedlings were pulled from garden beds, pots and tubes and shoved into empty soil bags in an attempt to steal them.
“Approximately 150 plants were ripped out. So there were flowers, there were vegies, there were trees, fruit trees. It looked like a disaster zone,” she said.
“And it wasn’t a natural disaster; this was a human disaster.”
Having had “minor issues in the past” with five fruit trees being stolen late last year, Ms Langridge said “it leaves a nasty taste in the mouth” knowing that people feel the need to destroy and vandalise the garden.
“There have been so many people who invested in us, who care about what we’re trying to offer to the community, and so this really destroys our trust and makes us feel like, what part of our community could possibly do this?
“It’s a double-edged sword. We’re angry, we’re frustrated, we’re totally disgusted with what they did, but on the other side, when we put something up on social media, we got hundreds of people going, ‘oh my god, did they do this?’ and ‘I go down to the garden all the time. It’s such a wonderful place to be,’ and ‘it’s relaxing and it’s enjoyable, and it’s great to see how much work the volunteers are putting in’.
“There’s not a single person here who volunteers that does it for themselves. We’re doing it for the community.”
It was those volunteers who didn’t waste any time on Monday to try to replant what could be saved.
Luckily, several plants and trees could be replanted, but many were too far gone or damaged to be revived and were composted.
“We wanted to make sure that they were looked after. So everybody just opened up the bags that they’d shoved them in, and they started to pull them out and go, ‘OK, this one’s still got roots on it. We could probably plant this back in. We’ll need to put some Seasol. Quick, get some potting mix’,” Ms Langridge said.
“Treat the babies with some love, so they can end up back in the beds and hopefully be OK. But they haven’t suddenly sprung back. They’re suffering from what’s happened to them.”
For the plants that were composted, Ms Langridge said they “will have value for the garden in the future”, helping replenish the soil.
But the sense of outrage, disappointment and disgust doesn’t come from the potential cost of these plants being destroyed, Ms Langridge said it was the disrespect of the garden.
Ms Langridge hopes that this was a one-time occurrence, but that it may also give the community impetus to keep an eye on things.
The Community Garden has become a cornerstone for Mooroolbark, providing education for kindergarten and primary school children, and for people to enjoy a calming space.
“We’re here giving back to the community, showing them how they can grow their vegies, showing them how they can do it at home, as well as coming down and connecting with other people,” Ms Langridge said.
“This environment is conducive to making people feel comfortable and bringing them together.”
