Among those who have had plants stolen is a family trying to beautify their street and a community garden established by a church as a place of healing in the wake of the Black Saturday fires.

But that church has a very Christian message of forgiveness for the mystery thief. 

Plea to church plant robber

A Long Gully church has issued a plea to a mystery thief after a number of plants – including mature fruit trees – have been dug up and removed during the night. 

St Matthew's Church coordinator David Fagg said at least five citrus trees and native shrubs had been stolen in three separate instances over the last three months. 

“These were established trees up to five-years-old – we’re talking serious holes,” Mr Fagg said. 

“I’ve never heard of that type of thing happening in the Gully before.” 

And it’s not just the church which has been hit – the Long Gully resident also had a three-year-old citrus tree dug out and stolen from his front yard during the night.

But Mr Fagg said the repeated raids on the church garden were the most disappointing, given it was created as a place of community and of healing. 

"We established the garden just after the Black Saturday fires which came very close to the church and affected a lot of people in Long Gully," he said.

"The flames got to about 100 metres from the church – a person was killed and quite a lot of houses were burnt.

"This garden was our way of creating a place of belonging, a place of beauty, where people could connect with one another and since then it's continued as a place for people to connect.

“Some people come because they like learning about gardening, some people come because they just like having a cuppa and connecting with people.”

Church garden volunteer Liesje Wilson said school children tended to the church’s vegetable patches, worm farms, native gardens, fruit trees and compost piles.

“I know they were particularly disappointed,” Ms Wilson said. 

“We have pizza oven nights, we have cooking groups which use the produce – the kids love using it.”

But Mr Fagg had a very Christian message of forgiveness for the Long Gully plant thief. 

"While we're disappointed, rather than get outraged about it, we just hope that that person is a passionate gardener,” he said. 

“They don’t have to own up to it, but we'd much rather they come and be part of things rather than feel that they need to take plants on the sly.”

Nature stripped in Long Gully

A Long Gully family trying to beautify their street and attract native wildlife has had their hard work undone in an overnight raid. 

The father – who asked to remain anonymous – said his family had spent the six months planting native grasses, shrubs and small trees on their nature strip. 

“A family member was so impressed she gifted us three silver princess gum trees,” he said.

​”They don’t grow so tall, and we thought flowering gums would look beautiful in spring and attract birds.”

But within days of planting the natives, one morning he emerged to find three empty holes in their place. 

“I planted them on the Sunday – they were gone by Tuesday,” he said. 

The Long Gully man said that he was disappointed by the plant raid but would continue his mission.

“Yes I’ll replant,” he said.

“It does make me think about installing CCTV or spending a few long nights on the veranda.

“But I’m not going to let them win.”

Do you know more about this story? Have you had plants taken from your garden? Contact the reporter via joseph.hinchliffe@fairfaxmedia.com.au