Just like an Italian piazza, this community garden has grown a community

Thirty years ago, Mario Minuzzo looked at an overgrown patch of land behind his suburban Adelaide home and saw something special."In amongst all of that was vermin and snakes," Mr Minuzzo said."The critical thing that started me was when a red-bellied black snake ended up in our house amongst the children on Christmas morning."Mr Minuzzo sought and was given permission to mow and maintain the land on Aqueduct Reserve at Highbury.Mario Minuzzo says the community garden is a place for people to connect and share stories. (ABC News: Lincoln Rothall)Growing interest from neighbours led to the establishment of the community garden in 1996.Today, the 88-year-old is celebrating the legacy of the Pioneer Court Community Garden — a place where generations have grown together."I recall standing on the mound thirty years ago and thinking this would make a great community garden," Mr Minuzzo said."My heritage is Italian and in Italy, local people often meet in the piazza."They gather, walk, share stories, and connect, so my original vision for the garden was to create a sense of community and place — just like a piazza."The Pioneer Court Community Garden has bloomed from a hectare-large plot in Highbury into multiple patches growing food for the local area. (ABC News: Lincoln Rothall)The community garden is home to more than 40 plots, 75 members and almost 400 fruit and nut trees and vines — from pomegranates and bananas, to grapes and macadamias.It is on just under one hectare of land leased from the Department for Environment and Water and is one of the larger community gardens scattered across the state.The garden's 'secret power'Mr Minuzzo wanted the garden to be somewhere people could meet, share stories and connect."Australia in my view is one of the best multicultural examples in the world," he said.Their membership spans generations, cultures and gardening experience, with long-term members sharing their knowledge with people just starting out.Marina Birch says their members are from all ages and backgrounds. (ABC News: Lincoln Rothall)Chairperson Marina Birch, who took over the reins from Mr Minuzzo in 2022, said she was proud of the garden."The secret power of our garden is actually the retired community," she said."They keep it going and without them we wouldn't be anywhere."But we do have a mix of families with young children, people not quite yet at retirement and a good variety of people from different countries as well."Laura Fleming says the members have put a lot of effort into the garden. (ABC News: Lincoln Rothall)Laura Fleming is the garden's youngest member."It has been so nice to meet local residents and learn from them and grow things I've never grown before," she said."It's clearly a huge legacy for Mario and all the people that have been involved."It's not been without a lot of hard work and I'm really grateful that they've put this effort in."A helping handThe garden's impact also extended beyond its boundaries.Members grow produce specifically for charity and donate surplus fruit and vegetables to Pathway Community Centre, which partners with OzHarvest to help feed families in need.The garden members has also been recognised for its contribution to the community, including winning the 2022 City of Tea Tree Gully Australia Day Award for Outstanding Community Group of the Year.There are already plans for the next chapter, including a proposed native nursery to help restore areas affected by the giant pine scale infestation.