Hospitality is blooming in the place known as Hope Blooms.

Syrian refugees are now living near the organization's greenhouse and community garden in Halifax. Some were farmers in Syria and now, they're helping crops bloom.

Majid Alzamel says he had a 50-hectare farm in a fertile area in northern Syria. He now lends his skills to the community garden plot.

Alzamel says he misses his farm in Syria, growing his own food on his own land, but in Halifax he can use this community garden plot to grow food for his family.

Majid has 11 children. All but one, a daughter, made it out of Syria with their parents. He says his children love to work in the garden, including 14-year-old Mohammed.

But the language barrier can be frustrating for everyone, so Hope Blooms staff are looking for a volunteer with special skills.

"An English-Arabic translator, somebody that can interpret with us and the Syrian families,” says Hope Blooms program manager Alvero Wiggins. "We still have some basic words that we use, we also had some cheat sheets that we made up, with images and some Arabic words that we kind of make do with what we've got."

Wiggins says they appreciate the depth of the Syrian refugee’s agricultural knowledge.

"In terms of the materials that they use, because they can put little boxes around the plants that protect them from the wind and shelters them until they get a bit bigger,” says Wiggins.

Hope Blooms and the Syrian families involved have worked side-by-side from the start of the growing season.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Ron Shaw.