The Green Heart Of Somerset West
In the heart of our village, lies a special space where the simple act of growing vegetables builds community, brings dignity and revitalises urban space.
Located at 41 New Street, Somerset West Village Garden is a community project that grows and provides vegetables for the homeless and unemployed.
But it has become so much more… it is now the green heart of Somerset West.
How the garden started
The Somerset West Village Garden was established in 2015 by a small group of passionate local gardeners who were inspired to make a difference in the lives of the unemployed and homeless individuals they encountered daily.
Initially, the idea was simply to create a community vegetable garden that would provide fresh food to those in need, but it quickly grew into a multifaceted project with the restoration of dignity through employment, ablutions and nutrition at its core.
From derelict park to urban oasis
The founding group identified Barlow Park, a derelict and underutilised plot of land as the ideal space to lay out the garden and set to work attaining the necessary permissions.
After the City of Cape Town signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the Somerset West Village Garden for the use of the land and water for five years, the project was launched in earnest with the fencing off of the area and installation of a flushing portaloo and shower with the help of the Department of Agriculture.
Despite an extraordinary set of challenges over the past nine years, including the worst drought the area has experienced in more than a century, the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing funding trials, the garden has become a thriving urban oasis.
In pursuit of grand goals
At its heart, the Somerset West Village Garden is a restoration project with four main goals:
Revitalising urban space
Restoring dignity to the homeless
Reinvigorating health in the community at large
Promoting sustainable development
“These are huge goals and grand ambitions that seem to contrast the small scale of our beautiful garden,” says the Somerset West Village Garden website.
“But, as gardeners, we are continually shown that the most prolific growth may start with the tiniest, unassuming seed – a seed sown in hope, and patiently tended to produce something of a miracle; to produce fruit that itself incubates enormous future growth.”
Transformation in action
So, how does this special green space go about attaining these goals and making a difference?
Restoring dignity to the homeless
Apart from alleviating hunger by supplying workday meals and produce for the local feeding scheme, the garden also assists homeless people from Thomas House of Hope in gaining an accredited set of skills in organic vegetable gardening, which can help them find jobs in the urban food production, farming and gardening sectors.
There are also job opportunities at the garden itself, for which workers are rewarded with tokens that allow access to accommodation, showers and administrative assistance at Thomas House of Hope.
Revitalising urban space
As mentioned earlier, the Somerset West Village Garden is the result of a massive communal effort to transform a derelict park into a thriving urban green space. It has also become an important meeting place for the Somerset West community at large by fostering relationships among individuals, garden communities and NPOs.
Reinvigorating health in the community
The garden makes quality organic vegetables accessible to residents at affordable prices on their harvest days every Tuesday as well as by supplying produce to the Thomas House of Hope feeding scheme.
Promoting sustainable development
By encouraging the homeless to get involved with projects, the garden along with Thomas House of Hope has been instrumental in nurturing a culture of offering those in need a “hand up” rather than a “handout”.
A sanctuary for urban fauna
An exciting byproduct of reinvigorating this urban space by establishing an organic vegetable garden has been the return of local fauna, including chameleons and a variety of beautiful bird species like sunbirds, sparrows, wagtails, prinias and spotted thick-knees.
How to get involved
With community being the driving force behind the project, the Somerset West Village Garden welcomes those who are interested in getting involved with open arms. Here are a few ways you can contribute:
Harvest Day
Supplement your weekly grocery shop with organic vegetables from the garden on Harvest Day every Tuesday from 9am to 11am.
Volunteer
Besides helping restore dignity for the homeless, volunteering at the garden is also a great way to make new friends and gain practical skills and knowledge. You can sign up here.
Compost
Hate throwing food scraps away, but don’t have the space/time/energy to compost? The Somerset West Village Garden will gladly take them over from you! Here’s how.
Donate
You can support the garden by making a financial contribution.
Find out more about the Somerset West Village Garden by visiting their website.
