The Lembongan Compost and Community Garden is thriving!
April 19, 2022 by NOW Jakarta
The Bali Children’s Foundation run by Margaret Barry continues to be an inspiration to us all and their latest venture to help the people of Nusa Lembongan is no exception. Here is their story, told in her words, but if you have time click on the video links to get an even better idea of what is being done.
This garden and compost centre is run under the Lembongan Recycle Centre led by Pak Putu and was started when Lembongan’s economy was devastated during Covid, and we established the Lembongan Community Garden in November 2021 to provide a sustainable food solution for the islanders.
With the challenges of limestone rock, limited rainfall and very little agricultural experience in the community, our first step was to improve the soil quality. We set up an exciting composting initiative where the community could bring their food waste, and we could create quality compost for the garden.
Four months on, the compost centre has proved a huge success. The land is now rich in nutrients and a wonderful Community Garden is thriving. Since January, the garden has been producing abundant harvests of cucumbers, shallots, long beans, groundnuts, chilies, and various leafy vegetables. The project is proving to be an effective step in providing sustainable food for the unemployed.
We’ve had crucial scientific support from the urban biologist Pak Buya from Bali Urban Compost and invaluable assistance from Pak Priyatna from Siki Permakultur. Dave Clarkson of Projects for Hope has also been involved in the garden project. With Dave’s support and dedication, we’ve installed two 5,000 L water tanks and irrigation pipes across the garden and a CCTV camera to provide a live view of the garden activity.
Click here to see the garden https://www.balichildrenfoundation.org/lembongan-community-garden-cam1
We aim to inspire as many businesses and households as possible on the island to participate in food waste collection for the compost program. One of our BCF Lembongan teachers, Viano, is assisting with marketing the program to the community, creating and maintaining a customer database and bookkeeping.
The long-term plan is to create a learning area for children and families where they can explore how permaculture can benefit this exceptionally dry island. As travel resumes, I hope to see visitors back on the island very soon. If you can’t visit in person, please consider supporting our Community Garden with a donation and click here https://fundraise.balichildrenfoundation.org/event/food-and-literacy-relief-for-lembongan/recycling-centre
Watch our Lembongan Community Garden video here.
