The Sustainable Communities Plan is on the web

Sydney City Council asked me to make a plan to make the whole suburb of Chippendale sustainable. It’s not just a plan for this suburb; it can be used to make any suburb sustainable – it’s free and you’re welcome to put it to work where you are. Now the Plan can be read on mobiles, kindles and is very easy to search, use and tweet.  Get it here: theplan.sustainablehouse.com… Enjoy. You can see some of the folks who support the Plan. Please sign the... Read More

Great new vid about how to make Chippo Plan real for us all

Mikey Leung tells stories on video.  He’s just made a beaut vid about our plan to make Chippo sustainable and the people who love it so much they’ve spent hours and hours putting it on a new web page for anyone to use to make the place where they live and work sustainable, too: youtu.be/SHkMh8wwlXY…   Thank you, Mikey – you’re terrific and so’s your vid. Join with us to make the Plan happen and watch the vid and go to the link there .... Read More

Mushrooms lead the way

A friend, Jessica, sent me this link; thanks, Jess – its wonderful images and respect for the power, magic and beauty of mushrooms is worth a look – enjoy: bit.ly/H7ux2O…   May the mushies be with you, M  Read More

NSW Minister Humphries gardens with us in Chippo

Photo Left to right: Nathan (about a quarter of him), Bob, Paul, Minister Kevin Humphries, Michael, Greg, Paddy, James (about a quarter of him) Here is a photo taken today of Kevin Humphries MP, NSW Minister for Mental Health and some TAFE Outreach gardeners at a vertical garden in Chippendale. The Minister planted a lettuce and inspected the Chippendale gardens, compost bins and will be in touch soon about how the state may become involved. Great to see a hands on Minister... Read More

Can I use treated pine in a raised bed garden?

I asked this question of a soil expert, Phil Mulvey, Chief Executive Officer of Environmental Earth Sciences and Phil’s advice is: In regard to CCA treated timber, there has been a lot of research with CCA treated logs and vegetables.  Slow leaching of metals does occur and impacts the soil in contact with the logs (50 mm).  Little uptake does occur to the vegetables but the same issue occurs with roots crops in close proximity to the logs as it does for lead.  The root... Read More

Things that grow up, things that grow down

Things that grow up may (beautifully) be planted with things that grow down. For we city gardeners,this is news we may grab with both hands. It means we can grow more tucker in less space. This natural intensity, easy as it is for us to apply in our urban farms, can bring: plant, insect and bug diversity more competition between pests, and perhaps the triumph of those pests we prefer – the ones that predate the pests which destroy our tucker more birds, particularly the... Read More

Some riches from the day

I’m staying at Varuna House, Katoomba, the writer’s retreat.  It’s the house once owned and lived in by Eleanor Dark and her husband, Eric.  Painted yellow, facing north, set amidst fruit trees and native plants, its a big yellow grin of a place, full of heart, spirit and truly reflecting the courage and independent lives of Eleanor and Eric. And I’ve just got some riches in this heavy fog day with the rain coming down. Liz, one of the folk there who... Read More

Chippo Garden & Compost Workshop Wed 23 March

On Wednesday 23 March – next week – Sydney City Council will hold a workshop about composting and gardening in Chippendale. Commencing at 630 and finishing at 8 pm at the Pine Street Creative Arts Centre, the workshop will enable each participant to express their ideas and opinions and to offer criticisms and to ask questions. The information from the workshop will be used to develop the Sustainable Streets and Communities Plan being prepared for Chippendale by the... Read More

My plan to secure Australia’s food

In a column (Bathurst Burr) I write for an online magazine called, The Fifth Estate, I’ve offered a plan to secure Australia’s food, and it’s here: www.thefifthestate.com… Enjoy; may we have action from all that we’ve got in government now and from ourselves, no new committees or agencies  . . . beginning now, Michael  Read More

Asylum Seekers Gardeners

Asylum Seekers Centre gardeners and friends L to R: Teresa, Robyn, Stefan, Vera, Michael, Jessica, Figgy the bird, Auntie Fran When the newly planted food forest at the Asylum Seekers Centre in Surry Hills was launched in December a photo was taken of the gardeners standing in the garden at the front, including Auntie Fran who suggested indigenous food and medicine plants, Figgy the young Figtree bird who was pushed out of its nest by the bully bird from New Guinea, the Koel,... Read More