Kelmarna Community Farm is proud to announce the release of Growing Together, a vibrant and deeply personal account of our first 40 years as Auckland’s pioneering urban organic farm. Co-authored by Jo-Anne Hazel and Adrian Roche, this book traces Kelmarna’s journey from a visionary exporiment in 1981 to a thriving hub of sustainable food production, education and therapeutic connection.
Founded by Paul Lagerstedt with his bold vision for urban agriculture, Kelmarna has always been more than a garden – it’s been a place to restore community, nurture wellbeing and model a better food system. Growing Together captures the spirit of this mission through stories of composting workshops, flower markets, runaway cows and the many hands that have shaped the soil and soul of the farm.
From early experiments with the French Intensive method to the creation of a food forest and inclusive employment programmes, the book honours the people, plants and animals that have made Kelmarna a beloved sanctuary in the heart of the city.
“There are a few good reasons we wanted to write this book,” says co-author Kelmarna site manager Adrian Roche. “We wanted to acknowledge the work of so many people, paid and unpaid, who have contributed to Kelmarna. We also wanted to record the past knowing how quickly things are forgotten, and we wanted to record how this project has survived when so many have not.”
We’re also excited to share that Kelmarna Community Farm has been named a finalist in the 2025 Sustainable Business Awards.
This recognition is a huge honour and a testament to the mahi of our team, volunteers and supporters who help us grow not just food but connection, wellbeing and resilience in the heart of the city.
Kelmarna produce will be featured at the Awards Dinner on 20 November at MOTAT’s Aviation Hall, where the winners will be announced.
If you are keen to learn more about Kelmarna's vision and mission, our Annual Report and Strategic Plan are now live on the website. They offer a closer look at what we've accomplished over the past year and where we’re headed next.
Highlights from the Annual Report include the impacts our projects had over the year in numbers: 9365 garden volunteer hours, 29 farmhand programme graduates, over 10,200 eggs laid and sold to the community, 40,160 litres of food scraps collected and turned into compost and 2585 hours of therapeutic gardening support provided, and more.
Our Strategic Plan looks to the year ahead outlining our goals and strategies to achieve them and drills down to specific activities, outcomes and the longe- term benefits we hope to see.
It’s an interesting read.
Join us in celebrating the launch of Growing Together on Friday, 21 November. We’ll be sharing more details soon – stay tuned on our socials. Copies will be available for purchase, with all proceeds supporting Kelmarna’s ongoing work in sustainable urban farming and community wellbeing.
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