Founder Robert Riley on ICAN, a native nursery in Dubbo with a social focus

ICAN houses incredible stories from people who have become a part of it. Founder Robert Riley told Daily Liberal of an Aboriginal man who found his roots at the nursery.

"I have a story about a Aboriginal guy in his 40s from the Stolen Generations who visited Dubbo for the first time and then realised that's where his family was from," he said.

"He came to the ICAN nursery, he wouldn't answer the phone, wasn't confident enough to talk to the general public. Then within 12 months, he was one of our main sales guys, he was going and doing talks around the stolen generation.

"We have those stories everyday."

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Mr Riley established ICAN nursery in 2011 to welcome community members that needed help. ICAN would find ways to fulfil individual needs, whether it was skills training, curiosity around flora and gardening, or just a relaxing place to have a cuppa and a yarn.

"I saw a gap in the system where Aboriginal people weren't being looked after," Mr Riley said.

"The people who attend ICAN aren't just a number, they're a person."

Brought under a blanket business called Pathways Together Aboriginal Corporation, the nursery is situated at the Old Ganarrin Garden site. Now known as 'ICAN Learn Achieve Believe', the disability and elder-friendly nursery functions as a business and a charity.

"ICAN is a business that has a social focus. We fund all of our own programs," Mr Riley said.

The nursery runs school programs where Aboriginal students are taken out on country. Students learn about different plants and their Aboriginal uses; such as plants that are edible, medicinal, or can be used to make tools and weapons.

ICAN also does projects for Transport for NSW, they include revegetation, reirrigation, and fencing across the state.

At any given time, up to 200,000 plants can be found at ICAN nursery. From small tubestocks to large trees, people can find a variety of verdure to take home.

"We are a business, but we depend on people buying our plants so we can continue to run our programs," Mr Riley said.

"We invest most of our plant sales back into our social programs."

Moving forward, the nursery is in the early stages of setting up a a cultural and wellness space in Dubbo.

"It would be like an Aboriginal men's shed, and we'll be partnering with NSW Health."

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