Meanwhile Gardens

All four of our Meanwhile Gardens – Connswater, Shankill, Glenbryn and Hydebank are heading towards becoming established and welcoming growing spaces for the whole community.

As winter descended, our Meanwhile Gardens have been anything but quiet. The GWNI Team have transformed these spaces through community engagement and dedicated renovation, turning each garden into a hub for learning and connection.

At Shankill, we have completed major renovations, moving the garden entrance from a busy roadside to a safer side entrance — a change especially welcomed by young school volunteers eager to return to growing. In October and November, we hosted pumpkin carving workshops here, celebrating the growing season and thanking children’s groups who had earlier sown seeds.

We have been particularly active at Hydebank, where we have harvested early winter crops of brassicas and leafy greens, welcomed Eritrean Asylum Seekers and local women’s groups, and even hosted a festive Santa event that brought together family, friends, and potential new volunteers.

This winter has seen some extreme weather events such as Storm Darragh. However, the clean-up challenge left by Storm Darragh created an opportunity when a volunteer learned to use a cordless drill to repair polytunnel doors, demonstrating our commitment to skill-sharing and empowerment.

At the Connswater garden, we are introducing innovative sustainability techniques like Hugelkultur gardening, which uses organic matter to improve soil fertility. We have collaborated with local businesses such as Moffet Tree Surgeons to source tree trunks to create stumperies that attract wildlife and are also using them to offer an alternative to traditional garden landscaping at Glenbryn.

Through our network of Meanwhile Gardens we have expanded our community partnerships. We have facilitated workshops with Belfast Met’s Enterprise Group, supporting adults with learning disabilities, and connected with the Belfast Trust’s Community Inclusion Officer to explore opportunities for newcomer communities to get involved.

Looking ahead, we are developing workshops on composting, biodiversity, and responsible plant feeding. Seed and plant swapping events are planned, continuing our mission of knowledge exchange and community building.

Each Meanwhile Garden now represents more than a growing space—it’s a hub for connection, a place for learning, and shared growth.