We loaded the truck, we drove to Dandenong Market, we planted out interesting plants with the Horticulture team from the City of Greater Dandenong and then we drove home via Roth Hetherington Reserve to drop off some Themeda Oat Grass (‘the other Themeda’). It’s always a pleasure to work with the gardeners at Dandenong led by the formidable Steve Nelson. These guys are a precious example of passionate and creative municipal maintenance gardeners working on 800 hectares of open space across Dandenong and Springvale. “Urban Green Space” gets a lot of attention in the academic literature for its real and potential ability to ameliorate a range of urban induced problems. None of this will happen I don’t think without investment in high quality and dedicated gardeners... @cityofgreaterdandenong should be very proud of theirs! Plants that went in today included Mountain Paw Paw, Babaco, Abyssinian Banana, Taro, Sweet Potato and more #dandenongmarket #municipalgardens #plantingout #highviz #highvizgang #novelcrops #panc #ensete #babaco #plantsofecuador #soapboxmoment #editorializing #urbangreenspace #onthetools

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2QIES3R

My mum turns 80 today! Here she is as a three year old in 1942 with her uncle Jeff and an orphaned joey. This was on a farm my grandmother’s family were developing on infertile coastal plains at Inverloch in South Gippsland after escaping years of drought in the Mallee. Jeff died a year later shot down over Libya in a Hurricane during the Second World War. Anyway, after a 50 year career as a nurse my mum is still gardening and while as Anglo Celtic as you can get a huge eater of her son’s Taro and Yams Crops! Go Mum! #mumturns80 #familyphotos #familystories #babykangaroo #joey #anzacs #kelpies #farmdogs #inverloch #kongwak

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2L3PqoX

It’s that time of year when the Novel Crops Project is distributing plants from student pracs and projects to community gardens. Here I’m with designer and facilitator extraordinare Kieran Dickson. He’s taking a Ute load of plants to the West Brunswick Food Forest and the Pentridge Community Garden. In case you’re wondering I’ve decided to dress like a Stock and Station agent from now on, partly in honour of my favourite newspaper the #betootaadvocate and for all round quality hort/ag class. #burnleycampus #burnleynursery #novelcropsproject #givingstuffaway #foodforests #communitygardens #westbrunswickcommunitygarden #plantsonthemove

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2G1kUNp

Freshly picked and washed ‘Pink Eye’ potatoes, at gourmet size. I remain firmly in the Underground Storage Organs (USOs) are the best carbs School of Thought #pinkeyepotatoes #solanumtuberosum #solanaceae #freshlywashed #backyardstaples #homefoodproduction #urbanagriculture #foodoftheincas #undergroundstorageorgan #acronym

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2RsGtaR

I went for a snorkel at Gordon’s Bay, Sydney next door to Clovelly. I saw a couple of big Blue Groper, a few Morwong and a Wrasse, and plenty of algae (sea weed); certainly lots more biodiversity than in my normal haunt of the Northcote Pool #sydneybeaches #sydneysnorkeling #gordonsbay #talkingfish #snorkelling #decompressing #visitingmybro

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2zDBYDy

Growing peanuts for the first time, some as transplants, the rest by seed sown today, the last day of spring. This variety is called ‘Virginia bunch’ purchased from Green Harvest. The drip irrigation will consistent and carefully monitored as the packet says “avoid moisture stress as this can cause toxic aflatoxins to infect the crop” 😱#growingpeanut #legumes #peanutseedling #dripline #summercrops #burnleyfieldstation #novelcrops #lastdayofspring

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2P7stkV

Very lucky today to be part of a group workshopping ideas for the future of the Collingwood Children’s Farm. The Peacocks really make themselves known across the farm, both with their calls and through the in-your-face displays of the males - in this case a display of front and back! #collingwoodchildrensfarm #specialplaces #peacockdisplay #showingoff #toxicmasculinity #narcissism #imsobeautiful #chooseme #beautifulfeathers

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2DIDDKZ

I divided the Mother Corm of my Konjac/Voodoo Lilly and potted up the cormels. Here’s to many more generations of bizarro, foetid flowers and alien leaves, and one day clear noodles too #konjac #voodoolily #corms #plantpropagation #backyardnursery #alienplants #perennialedibles #plantsofchina #edimentals #novelcrops

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2DI5qLv

We’re getting the kitchen garden at the Northcote Pool revved up for summer! New volunteers @maddylivingston and @patchworkgardeners are getting stuck into the strawberries in between weeding and planting #kitchengarden #urbanagriculture #summerplanting #northcotepool #volunteering #volunteers #strawberries #weeding

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2B9rLjp

Seedling Desert Sweet Potatoes being potted on for a graduate research project, with tasty ‘tap root’ swellings already visible. These are an ancient and still popular food for indigenous people living on country in arid Australia. A future food for the rest of us? Quite possibly a regenerative agricultural crop in marginal, dry areas in the not so distant future; we’ll keep you posted on @ambrosia_jess trials here at Burnley through summer #ipomoeacostata #regenerativeagriculture #futurefoods #novelcrops #panc #indigenousfoods #nativeplantsofaustralia #desertplants #seedlings #plantexperiment #plantpropagation #perennialvegetables #bushfoods #indigenousagriculture #ipomoea #convolvulaceae

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2JKSe9E

Inside the purple-flecked interior of ‘Bun Long’ Taro. This is my first time harvesting this variety, originally purchased from Green Harvest in Maleny. It’s a delicious ‘fudgy’ type and keeps its purple colour once cooked...time for mass propagation! #bunlong #colocasiaesculenta #edibletubers #starchycarbs #starchyvegetables #tropicalplantsinmelbourne #novelcrops #panc #urbanagriculture #perennialvegetables

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2zqUDld

An Eastern Water Dragon on my ride home along the Yarra River this evening; not strictly native to Melbourne apparently but loving this really warm evening for a look about #urbanwildlife #urbanecology #novelecosystem #easternwaterdragon #riparian #reptiles #warmevening #yarrariver #wishiwasalizard

via People Plants Landscapes https://ift.tt/2ET1qdr