Gardening | Michelle Carnovale
TUCKED away in a corner of Ashwood College’s ground, a group of young men have been working hard to develop a community garden.

Through the National Green Jobs Corps (NGJC) initiative, the men work three days a week on the expansive Ashwood Permaculture Food Garden and one day at Glen Waverley’s Holmesglen TAFE, to complete Certificate II in land management and conservation.

The course – a Federal Government initiative– was offered to a group of unemployed young men, aged between 17 and 23, to provide them with work experience and training opportunities in conservation projects. Aspiring landscaper Tom Shortall said he had taken the job as an opportunity to ‘‘expand my knowledge of work’’. ‘‘Permaculture sounded like a good idea,’’ Mr Shortall said. The 20-year-old said he was offered one of eight positions in the course by Max Employment, the Victorian co-ordinator of NGJC, and began on the garden six weeks ago.

‘‘I want to get back into landscaping and this looks like a different way to go down that road – we’ve learnt a lot about different plants,’’ he said.

The garden was originally set up three years ago by co-ordinator Mariette Tuohey, who has a background in Permaculture, and supported by the Ashwood, Ashburton and Chadstone Neighbourhood Renewal project.