It appears the hottest piece of real estate in Altona can be found at the local community garden.

Over the past two months, plots have been snapped up by local residents who are keen to try out their green thumb.

A local environmental group known as Altona Community Action Network (ACAN) is managing the garden this year for the first time and has introduced several improvements that have generated an increased interest in gardening.

"We started out with 46 plots that we laid out and now we've rented about 56, so we had to expand with another row," said ACAN spokesman Jack Hoeppner.

Since this story was written, the number of plots being rented is now up to 58.

"Once we reach 59 plots we will close rentals off for this year," said Hoeppner.

ACAN has implemented a number of changes including a redesign of the garden which now offers smaller more manageable plots.

Also, an open area situated in the middle of the garden, called The Commons, has been created to give local gardeners a chance to meet and talk where they can get to know each other, according to Hoeppner.

"The common area is where we have a tool shed, a water tank, access to compost and a sandbox for kids to play in and picnic tables for people to sit and have a drink. And all of this has come about through the support of the community and local businesses who have donated the shed, tools, and picnic tables."

In an effort to keep the garden area clean and well organized, some hands-on instruction is being offered.

Hoeppner is part of a three-person task force that has been organized to provide guidance, especially to newer gardeners, on how to properly care for their plots. The move is aimed at avoiding a problem that occurred last year when weeds began taking over the garden because some plots were being neglected.

Hoeppner says the Altona garden has a real international feel to it with people from various cultures coming together in one area as one community.

"We have people from Eritrea, Congo, Venezuela, Syria, Philippines ... just a whole mix of people who are all scattered in among everybody else. It's kind of a new experience for some people who may have been a bit more isolated within their own communities and all of a sudden they have a garden plot right next to an African Muslim ... and now they start talking to each other and they're all learning from one another."

Out of the 58 plots that have been rented this year, about 29 of them are being rented by new immigrants in the community.