Mel Michael at Blackheath Vegie Patch with kale from a local’s garden.
Story and photos by Hamish Dunlop
Mel Michael is the newish owner of the Blackheath Vegie Patch. We talk about making lemonade from local lemons, a philosophy of abundance, and how businesses can help make communities more resilient.
Key Points:
The Blackheath Vegie Patch recently changed ownership and direction.
New owner, Mel Michael, is passionate about food and takes a community-minded approach.
To reduce food miles, support local food security and provide the freshest food possible she sells produce grown by locals and farmers as well as food sourced from Flemington Market.
In just a few months Mel Michael has transformed the local Vegie Patch into a community-engaged enterprise that honours the produce, the producers, and the power of connected community. “We’re not individuals on islands,” she tells me as we sit out the back on milk crates. “I just want people to be more in touch with their food, that’s my driving force.”
As well as a full array of fruit and vegetables, Mel sells seedlings. She also donates seedlings to the community gardens in Blackheath and Blackheath Public School on a fortnightly basis. This stems from her philosophy of abundance. “Someone said to me, ‘If people buy seedlings and you give these plants to the community gardens, you’ll get less sales. My response is, that’s not what’ll happen. What will happen is that we’ll be a healthier community and more people will eat good food.”
Seedlings and herbs outside the store
Affiliate Growers Program
The Affiliate Growers Program Mel runs speaks volumes about how she sees herself and the role of the store in the community. Community members can bring in produce and exchange it for store credit. “All people need is a few square metres of garden and they can register with us,” she says. “I don’t mind if it’s six bunches of basil a year, or five kilos of tomatoes. Affiliate growers also get discounts on seedlings.”
Mel says the program has social and economic benefits. “I hear a lot of older people say they used to have food gardens, but they don’t now because it’s too much. When the gardening stops though, so do the other benefits of having fresh food to hand, moving about, being outside and getting your hands in the dirt.”
The other day, one of the resident growers came into the Vegie Patch with a few bunches of kale. Kale was in short supply, so it helped the store out and supported local cafes in the process. The man who grew the kale decided to use his credit to get Black Cockatoo Bakery sourdough. Mel grins, “He’s made it his mission to get free bread for a year from his little garden plot.”
Lemons grown locally
Lemonade from lemons
She tells me about a local man who came in and mentioned he had a lot of lemons that were going to end up rotting on the ground. Mel bought 47kg in total. “They weren’t perfect lemons, but they were local. I put a sign up saying, ‘Steven’s local lemons’ and they flew off the shelves while the glamour lemons from the market didn’t move.”
“He was really chuffed to see people buying his lemons,” Mel says. “We had number of conversations too, which was great. When you live alone for example, that kind of contact is precious. I’ve been on the hard end of isolation and at those times, you just want someone to talk to you. Blackheath is amazing like that. If you watch the street, there are always people about. People that you can strike up a conversation with.”
Locally grown food security
One of the interesting things about locally supplied fruit and vegetables is that it makes communities more food resilient. Weather events in different parts of the country and other factors can affect supply. When Steven came in with his lemons, the price at Flemington Market was $180 per box. His supply meant that Mel was able to keep the cost of lemons at a reasonable price for another five or six weeks. “It’s a benefit to the community,” Mel says.
Having just started the business, much of the produce Mel sells comes from Flemington Market. However, her aim here as with everything, is to buy locally and buy ethically. She’s talking with Lot 101 in the Megalong and is interested in any other local growers. She’s also keen to make ethical choices when it comes to purchasing. “I’ve found a farmer who is going to grow all my potatoes,” she says. “My commitment to him is that I will buy all his potatoes at a good price. I won’t chop and change, or not commit to how much I will purchase.”
All service, no waste
Nothing is wasted in store. If the community gardens need cardboard to suppress weeds, then that’s available. Food that is no longer shop-ready but perfectly edible, goes to a cook who makes soups for Blackheath Area Neighbourhood Centre. People collect older produce for their chickens and what’s left is composted. Blackheath Community Farm is one of the benefactors of compostable material.
Cooking bananas on sale outside the shop
Mel sells stir-fry and soup packs and bananas labelled for cooking. She’s created a juice bar so excess berries and other fruit can be frozen and used when needed. She tells her staff that the store can be a place to engage with the community. “If someone’s got lemon grass in their basket and potatoes and onion, I might ask if they’re making a curry of some kind,” Mel says. “Even if they’re not, we’ve exchanged some words and interest. It’s fleeting, but it’s connection.”
Mel thinks this is what real service looks like. “If I notice an older person pausing in front of the pumpkins, maybe their arthritis is stopping them making the purchase. I have one lady who comes in and we cut half a pumpkin into five pieces. She gets me to leave the skin on because she bakes it in the oven. You can’t get anything cut or peeled at Woolworths, but we can do that.”
Heirloom tomatoes at the Vegie Patch
A gardener’s life
Following the birth of her now ten-year-old daughter, Mel suffered serious postnatal depression. One of the ways she dealt with it was maintaining 12 garden beds at home. She tells me that before buying the Vegie Patch, she wrote court and sentencing reports for judges. She says this bureaucratic work didn’t feed her soul. “It wasn’t fulfilling,” she says. “Some days I go home and I’ve peeled potatoes for someone or cut up a pumpkin. What I do now makes me feel better than I ever have before.”
Christmas cheer
I’d heard that Mel had helped out with Blackheath Area Neighbourhood Centre’s Christmas Day lunch, so I rang Jade at BANC to ask her about it. “What didn’t she do!” Jade exclaims. “She planned the menu, donated all the fruit and vegetables and other supplies. We went down to Penrith in her van to shop and collect catering equipment. One of her friends cooked in the days leading up to the event and was there on the day. Mel was too. She’s incredible. I’d agreed to organise it, but Mel made it happen.”
Volunteer chef Xavier and volunteers Max and Bridey making trifle at the Christmas Day lunch. (Photos supplied)
A way of living
When I first went to the Vegie Patch and sat with Mel out the back next to the cool room, I’d felt right at home. We laughed about the desiccated rogue turnip we’d both noticed as she was telling me how everything gets used one way or the other. I’d watched the way she interacted with her staff and the delivery man who came to drop off apple juice. She spoke to me in the same way: clearly, matter-of-factly, and from the heart.
“I do as much as I can,” Mel says, but she stresses that no one has to do everything. “We can all just do little things. At the end of our lives, I always say, especially to my staff, it doesn’t matter what you did in your life, it’s how you did it. Did you do it well? Did you care about what you did in that day? Change comes for us and the world when we put our best foot forward.”
Take Action:
Support Mel’s vision and the community by buying local.
Join the Affiliate Growers’ Program.
Grow your own fruit and vegetables for health and wellbeing.
This story has been produced as part of a Bioregional Collaboration for Planetary Health and is supported by the Disaster Risk Reduction Fund (DRRF). The DRRF is jointly funded by the Australian and New South Wales governments.
Join us at the Planetary Health Centre in Katoomba on the first Saturday of every month for Skill Share Saturdays!
Our July program includes: - What to grow in a Blue Mountains climate - Eating for Earth - Tai Chi and Qigong - Fashion upcycling and clothing reuse workshop - How to get involved with the Edible Garden Trail
You are also welcome to bring any surplus seeds or produce for our Crop Swap, or wind down in the Planetary Health Cafe (until 2pm).
If you have a skill that you want to share, or any questions or queries, please contact [email protected]
Visit the website to view the full program of events and register your place.
Join Andy Mann, a 23 year old Lawson local, for their Eating for Earth session 🌏
Eating for Earth is a judgement-free plant-based educational workshop that all types of eaters are encouraged to attend. There will be a presentation about the environmental impact of diets, a discussion section, and best of all, food! The food will be fully plant-based.
Andy wants to help inform our passionate community about how we can better reduce dietary environmental impact.
The session will run from 11AM - 12PM on Saturday 4th July.
Other sessions include: - What to grow in a Blue Mountains Climate - Fashion Upcycling - Tai Chi and Qigong - Bushcare on the Planetary Health site - How to get involved with the Edible Garden Trail
To register your place, visit our website: https://events.humanitix.com/skill-share-saturdays-at-the-planetary-health-centre...
We’re excited to announce the second Blue Mountains Food Security Fair, taking place in Katoomba in October 2026.
This annual event will bring together growers, thinkers, makers, and community members to explore one of the most important challenges of our time: how we grow, share, and sustain food in a changing world.
Across the weekend, we’ll be exploring themes including: - Healthy soil and regenerative systems - Food and human health - Plant-based food futures - Home and community food resilience - Water-sensitive and climate-adapted growing - Indigenous food knowledge and systems - School food systems - Australia’s food procurement - Global food security challenges Expect a dynamic program of inspiring speakers, practical workshops, and hands-on experiences designed to leave you informed, empowered, and connected.
Key information Date: Weekend of 10th October 2026 Location: Blue Mountains Planetary Health Centre, Katoomba, NSW We’ll be announcing speakers and program details soon.
We are also inviting expressions of interest from individuals and organisations who would like to contribute to the program, host workshops, run a stall or partner with us.
Do you struggle making the most of your veggie garden all year round?
Join Leni from @alchemyfarms_permaculture on Saturday 4th July for her Permaculture Workshop: Learn how to grow WITH the Upper Blue Mountains seasons, rather than battling against them.
During the two-hour session, you`ll cover crop selection for different seasons, what to grow from seeds vs seedlings, frost and wind protection, and nurturing your soil with a seasonal cycle.
Register for this and other sessions as part of our Skill Share Saturdays program via this link: https://events.humanitix.com/skill-share-saturdays-at-the-planetary-health-centre...
From Saturday 4 July, we are opening up the Planetary Health Centre for our monthly Skill Share Saturdays program: https://events.humanitix.com/skill-share-saturdays-at-the-planetary-health-centre
Throughout each day, you can expect to find a variety of sessions focused on restoring the health of the planet, in terms of the environment, community and economy.
Sessions at the first event include:
- What to grow in a Blue Mountains climate - Plant-based eating - Tai Chi and Qigong - Fashion Upcycling and clothing reuse workshop
You are also welcome to bring any surplus seeds or produce for our Crop Swap, or wind down in the Planetary Health Cafe (until 2pm).
Visit the website to view the full program of events and register your place: https://events.humanitix.com/skill-share-saturdays-at-the-planetary-health-centre
Registrations essential.
We are also inviting expressions of interest from individuals and organisations who would like to contribute to the program - please reach out to [email protected] if you are interested!...
🍃Volunteer weekly at the Planetary Health Centre 🍃
From next week, Tuesday 28th April, come and join Leni from @alchemyfarms_permaculture from 10am - 12pm, to help with the management of the Planetary Health veggie gardens, where any surplus produce can be shared!
The gardening session will be followed by a complimentary tea or coffee in the Planetary Health cafe.
📆Day: Every Tuesday 🕙Time: 10AM - 12PM
📍Where: Blue Mountains Planetary Health Centre 33-39 Acacia Street Katoomba (follow the pathways at each side of the building, round to the terrace and gardens).
What shall I bring? All you need to bring is water, gardening gloves and a hat.
Last week we had the pleasure of hosting the first year Medical students from @notredamesyd for their Rural and Indigenous Immersion trip across Katoomba and Lithgow. Across two days, 150 students learnt about the link between human health and a healthy environment, the work of the @bluemountainsplanetaryhealth Initiative and the @bluemountainscitycouncil to create climate resilient communities, and got to explore our site using heat mapping tools....
Join Rotarians for Planetary Health on International Women`s Day, from 2.30-4pm Sun 8 March, for the opening of a portrait display to celebrate local women who have made a meaningful impact on protecting animals and nature. The photographs by Sue Lightfoot and others are part of a long-term initiative to build a living, community-driven database of women working to protect animals and the natural world.
The display will be open until 1 April, Thursday to Saturday, 9.30am–3.30pm at the Junction 142 Village markets (church space). As the project develops, community members will be invited to nominate women whose work deserves recognition.
The launch follows the Uniting Church and Plant Inspired`s monthly community luncheon from 12-2pm, which this month features the Older Women`s Network Blue Mountains. For more information contact 0434 691 496 (Teya)
In a world being threatened by war, greed, cruelty and selfishness, the Planetary Health Wellness Weekend will close with a gathering of people who have faith that kindness, generosity, love, creativity and community, and the healing of our land, are a better way forward. We`re thrilled that harpist Dawn Egan will be performing at this inspiring event in the Planetary Health exhibition space. Afternoon tea will be provided. Register to attend here (link in profile under Wellness Weekend): https://bit.ly/4kUkzfm
Had lunch yet? Head over to the Planetary Health Centre for these delicious offerings from @8thingskatoomba today (Sat 28 Feb): South Indian dosa, Korean bao, NY Cheese burger, Bali nasi, Mullum tofu fries, shoestring fires & red bean mochi!
Don`t miss hearing Andrew Skeoch at 2pm today at the Planetary Health Centre! He`s an acoustic ecologist and author of `Deep Listening to Nature` and uses technology to help identify the different `conversations` happening in the world around us. His presentations are a revelation! Reserve your spot here (link in profile under Planetary Health Wellness Weekend): https://bit.ly/4kUkzfm
Experience the joy and sense of purpose that connecting to community, nature, and your own creativity can provide this weekend at the Planetary Health Wellness Weekend. There will be delicious food and coffee, music, art, workshops, nature walks, talks, an Interfaith Gathering and the following stalls:
Food vendor: @8thingskatoomba Zensational Coffee Cart @blue_mts_conservation_society Blue Mountains Wildplant Rescue Blue Mountains Women`s Health & Resource Centre (BMWHRC) Greater Blue Mountains Rotary @permaculturematters Acoustic Ecologist and author of ‘Deep Listening to Nature’, Andrew Skeoch @lacebrookstitchery Sustainable death care BMCC Sustainability and Waste team BMCC Bushcare team View the full program and reserve your spot for a range of activities here (link in profile): https://bit.ly/4kUkzfm
Hamish Dunlop is a writer, visual artist and environmentalist. During his career he has worked in communications, as an academic at UNSW and ACU and more recently in the conservation space. He is currently completing a Diploma in Conservation and Ecosystems Management. He lives on the bush in Medlow Bath and is a passionate bush walker, gardener and cold-water enthusiast.
The concept of planetary health is rapidly gaining attention globally, as the world increasingly confronts the interconnected challenges of environmental degradation, climate change, and public health crises. But what does the term 'planetary health' really mean, and why does it matter?
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