Heaven and earth meet as nun wins national gardening title

RISING BEFORE dawn to tend a communal garden has earned an Auckland nun the title of New Zealand Gardener of the Year.

Sister Rosemary Revell regularly swaps her habit for a sunhat and pink windbreaker as she gets her hands dirty in a 1200 square metre vegetable garden at the mission’s Papatuanuku ki Taurangi ( Earth Promise), an Auckland garden that supports up to 24 families.

Sister Rosemary has spent three days a week helping build up the garden and teaching others to do the same.

‘‘It’s a wee bit like Jamie Oliver, how he taught two women how to cook and then they went out to teach two others.

‘‘It’s helping people sufficient.’’

to

be

self-

Young mothers from disadvantaged backgrounds who attend the mercy mission’s Te Waipuna Puawai community education facility learn to grow their own vegetables.

Leafy greens, potatoes, radishes as well as plums, apples and guavas from the orchard are delivered to families in need.

‘‘Vege prices are always going up. How do people on a limited budget survive?’’

The garden has also provided part- time employment for three men with disabilities, who work under the gentle guidance of Sister Rosemary.

One lost his arm in a traffic accident, another has a debilitating muscular illness and the third suffers panic attacks which prevent him working full-time.

‘‘They’ve developed

so

much,’’

It’s a wee bit like Jamie Oliver . . .

Sister Rosemary says with pride.

They have proved invaluable after she underwent two hip operations, from which she is still recovering.

Sister Rosemary wakes at 5.15am to meditate before 7am Mass. By 8.30am she’s feeding chooks, composting, weeding and helping teach in the garden.

As if that wasn’t enough, she has her own flower ‘‘cottage garden’’ to tend to in the evenings.

‘‘My favourite is hot composting. I gather leaves, tree prunings and weeds and alternate between the brown and green stuff. ‘‘One of the boys is from Karaka so he brings in cow manure for the task. And I only use organic sprays.’’

Her love of gardening stems from days spent outside digging with the family from age 4, and her work earned her the 2012 title by a landslide public vote in the NZ Gardener competition.

She didn’t even know she had been nominated by her volunteers.

‘‘I sat down with a thump. It was a big, big, big surprise.’’

The prize, of $3000 in Mitre 10 vouchers and a year’s worth of Kiwicare Garden products, will go straight into Earth Promise, she said.

Only the luxury trip for two to the Ellerslie International Flower Show 2013 in Christchurch is being kept for herself and a friend.