Contributed by Laura Kosciecha and Brooke Oxley.

Once upon a time in Burnaby, there was a community garden called Goodlad. It was a cozy space in the backyard of a friendly home with 12 garden plots, a greenhouse, compost piles, hazelnut trees, grapevines and picnic tables. As it was one of the original Can You Dig It gardens, the dream for Goodlad was to be a place where neighbours could gather and relationships could form around the lovely gardens and the food they produced. Simply, it had the potential to become a wonderful place of abundance. But after years of effort to engage neighbours and gardeners, something was still missing. Perhaps Goodlad just needed the right fertilizer to help it blossom?

Thanks to a suggestion from Burnaby Food First, a community residency group called Edmonds People in Community (EPIC) was found and seemed to be just the thing Goodlad needed! Not to mention, Goodlad was just the thing EPIC needed as they had a garden sub-committee with nowhere to garden! They were eager and ready to get going with a garden and Goodlad was the perfect place to begin.

On July 29th, the wonderful EPIC group invited all of the gardeners out for a Happy Hour meet and greet, and this was when the magic began to happen. The yard was warm, welcoming and buzzing with excitement as gardeners, and wiener dogs all gathered together for a backyard picnic. The dream for Goodlad had finally become a reality!

EPIC has adopted Goodlad Garden and wasted no time getting to work. The garden has begun a transformation with many plans in the works to continue creating a community space. There is no doubt that the EPIC gardeners and Goodlad will continue to grow together happily ever after.

In recent news, the Goodlad Garden invites anyone and everyone to their next event, “In the House Festival”.  Join Building Caring Communities, Burnaby Association for Community Inclusion (BACI), Can You Dig It, neighbours and friends to enjoy some amazing interactive musical talents, gain a little garden knowledge and have an afternoon of fun at the garden! All events are free and wheelchair accessible.  Details are below.

Dates and Locations:  Sunday, September 28th – Goodlad Gardens (7912 Goodlad St. (back yard), Burnaby, BC) and Sunday, October 5th – Still Creek Gardens (2702 Norland Ave. at Douglas Rd, Burnaby, BC)
Time: 1-4 pm

For more information, please visit their Facebook page.