Volunteering

Grounds and Garden Volunteers help care for gardens and outdoor areas. This is an active outdoor role that involves practical, hands‑on work.

After training, volunteers may sometimes work independently and unsupervised. Volunteers should be reliable, willing to take initiative, and comfortable working outside in different weather conditions.

Tasks May Include:

• Weeding and mulching garden beds
• Planting and watering
• Basic pruning and plant care
• Composting and green‑waste handling
• General garden and grounds upkeep

This role is suited to volunteers who enjoy physical work and helping keep gardens healthy and well maintained.

Tuesday, Thursday or Friday mornings from 9.30am to 12.30pm.

Nursery Volunteers support the care and propagation of plants. This is a hands‑on, practical role focused on growing healthy plants.

After training, volunteers may work independently and unsupervised. Attention to detail and willingness to follow instructions are essential.

Tasks may include:

• Pricking out seedlings
• Taking plant cuttings
• General plant maintenance
• Keeping nursery areas tidy and organised

This role is ideal for volunteers who enjoy working with plants and supporting their growth from early stages.

Wednesday, Thursday or Friday mornings. 

Food Garden Volunteers help grow and maintain edible plants in the food garden. This is a hands‑on outdoor role focused on practical food production.

After training, volunteers may work independently and unsupervised. Volunteers should be reliable, able to follow instructions, and comfortable working physically outdoors.

Tasks May Include:

• Sowing seeds and planting seedlings
• Watering and weeding food gardens
• Pruning and general plant care
• Harvesting produce
• Keeping garden beds and paths tidy

This role suits volunteers who enjoy growing food and contributing to productive, healthy gardens.

Fridays 9.30am - 12.30pm

Volunteers in this role assist outdoor staff with the daily, hands-on care of animals. This is a fast‑paced and physically active position that plays a vital role in the smooth running of animal operations.

After initial training, volunteers must be capable of working independently and unsupervised, sometimes on their own. We are looking for individuals who:

• Show strong initiative
• Pay close attention to detail
• Can adapt to constant change
• Are comfortable with the challenges of working around animals
• Can reliably commit to a weekly shift and can attend most weeks

Please note: this role is not focused on patting or grooming animals.

Typical Tasks May Include:

• Preparing and measuring detailed feed mixes
• Milking goats
• Poultry care and daily chores
• Feeding livestock
• Renewing bedding
• Cleaning yards and animal areas

This role is ideal for volunteers who enjoy practical work, responsibility, and contributing meaningfully to animal care outcomes.

Shifts are available every day - either 8.30am to 10.30am or 3.30pm to 5pm, every day, one shift per volunteer.

This role is focused on changing the leaves for the Spiny Leaf Insects and the water in the fish tank.

Flexible times.

Visitor Interaction Volunteers help provide safe, supervised opportunities for visitors to interact with Edendale animals, under staff direction.

Tasks May Include:

• Supporting animal interaction activities such as guinea pig patting, sheep feeding, goat kid interaction (including bottle feeding), stick insect holding, and goat brushing
• Assisting with preparation for public activities (e.g. chook feed packets, collecting goat browse)
• Assisting with booked activites as required
• Helping maintain visitor and reception displays

Time Commitment:

• Saturday or Sunday
• 2‑hour shifts, subject to availability

This role suits volunteers who enjoy working with people, following procedures, and representing Edendale in a friendly and professional way.

  Weekend Nursery Volunteers assist with the care of indigenous plants in the Edendale Nursery. This is a hands‑on outdoor role with a primary focus on watering seedlings.

After initial training, volunteers must be able to work independently and safely.

The Indigenous Seed Processing volunteer role will assist Edendale staff in the preparation of indigenous seed that has been already collected. The seed will be used in the Edendale Nursery over the coming months and years.

Tuesday mornings 9.30am to 12.30pm.

• Visit all your favourite Edendale animals and say hello
• Buy a small packet of chicken feed at the farm and feed the chickens
• Feed some browse from the bucket to the goats
• Please do not bring any food from home for the animals – it can make them sick
• Take photos of the animals and start a photo album
• You can watch and record the young animals growth at birthing time
• Sit quietly and observe the different animals behaviour
• At home, research the farm animals– what they eat, how to care for them

• Walk around the different garden beds at Edendale
• Visit the plant nursery
• Learn about how to grow indigenous plants
• Plan an indigenous garden bed at home
• Buy some indigenous plants and plant them in your garden at home
• Look after your plants and watch them grow
• Learn how to identify indigenous plants and their names
• Take walks in the local bushland reserves in Nillumbik such as
  • Bunjil Reserve
  • Along the Diamond Creek Trail
  • Challenger St Reserve
  • Lenister Farm Wetlands
• See if you can identify plants in these reserves
• Take pictures of the different plants and stick them in an album
• Learn how to use the app iNaturalist and upload pictures of indigenous plants into it

• Explore the Edendale food gardens
• Learn about healthy eating and taste lots of healthy fruit and vegetables at home
• Investigate starting a vegetable garden at home
• Buy some vegetable seedlings from Edendale
• Grow and eat your own vegetables
• Share your home-grown vegetables with friends

• Bring some sketching material and draw your favourite animal
• Start a nature journal and sketch what you see when you visit Edendale
• Collect different types of leaves that are on the ground – can you identify what tree they have come from
• There are clipboard activities to complete near reception
• Visit the other displays – hopping mice, spiny leaf insects
• Have a refreshing drink at the café
• Visit the nearby Eltham North Adventure Playground
• Bring your bike and enjoy the nearby bike track

There are many environmental volunteering roles in our local area. You can get involved in a Council-managed volunteer program, or community-organised volunteer program. You can also volunteer your time to contribute to citizen science by recording your plant and animal sightings as part of your day-to-day life.

Options include Friends groups, Gardens for Wildlife, Landcare groups, Forest Health monitoring and more.

Find out more about environmental volunteering at the Nillumbik website.

Established in 2022, the Friends of Edendale have organised several planting and revegetation days on and around the Edendale site, planting hundreds of indigenous plants grown at the Edendale indigenous nursery.

The Friends of Edendale are keen to welcome new members. 

Joining a friend's group is a great way to meet new people, learn new skills and contribute to the protection and enhancement of the Edendale site and nearby bushland reserves. 

Contact via email at friendsofedendalefarm@gmail.com