Tilak Chhetri and Rohit Khulal, new Market Garden Rangers with Parklands, have spent their first day on the job today.

Tilak and Rohit will work Wednesdays to Fridays on the development of the Gateway Island Community Market Garden, with the support of a partnership between the Bhutanese community in Albury, the Besen Family Foundation, Eworks and Parklands Albury-Wodonga.

The garden site comprises 1.5 ha on Gateway Island. Tilak and Rohit have been voluntarily laying the groundwork at the site to this point, with the project now ready to take more substantial steps.

The vision in the short term is of a community garden producing seasonal vegetables, starting with the traditional Australian and Asian vegetables such as tomatoes, curcubits, melons, squash, capsicum, chillis, herbs and greens. In the longer term perennial crops like asparagus along with bees and livestock such as goats will complement the system.

With a stand and tank already installed and all of the elements for a watering system expected to be in place next week, preparation of the ground and planting will commence in spring for a summer harvest.

The garden is open to all community members. Tilak and Rohit hope that it will become a hub for cultural exchange as Albury Wodonga locals come to work alongside the Bhutanese community who have worked so hard to see this vision grow.