Tag Archives: Gardening

The Rotary Club of Blackheath has launched a Birds, Bees, Butterflies and Bats Pollinator Project. With 65% of the world’s flowering plants, including crops and trees, requiring some form of animal pollination, helping pollinators is critical to planetary health. Club President Sherlie McMillian explains how we can support pollinators in Blackheath, the Blue Mountains and beyond.

The Long-nosed Bandicoot is back in the Lower and Mid Mountains, and many residents are rejoicing at having visits from these furry friends. Find out about the benefits they bring and how to create a bandicoot-friendly garden here.

Julie Paterson and Manda Kaye’s home in Blackheath was designed with bushfire in mind and they are now preparing for the bushfire season. They’ve also moved to renewables and Julie is working on collaborative community art projects that embody the philosophy of re-using and re-making.

Bushcare's bimonthly Weed Walk and Talk in Hazelbrook is attracting both young and old to learn more about protecting our bushland. Getting rid of weeds supports biodiversity and reduces fire risk by maintaining healthy native bush with less fuel. Volunteers are also joining the group to meet people and do something for the environment.

Mid Mountains Seed Savers in Bullaburra maintains a seed bank as a security measure for the future. The seed bank preserves diversity, offers an ongoing supply of locally adapted varieties, provides options for breeding more resilient varieties, and safeguards food supplies in the event of disaster.

Mushroom season may be over, but edible mushrooms are just one kind of fungi, as Tracie McMahon found out when she attended a mycology workshop run by Lithgow Oberon Landcare and Maldhan Ngurr Ngurra Lithgow Transformation Hub.

Dr Megan Halcroft, a native bee specialist and her husband Steven Ruttley, are certified Bee Friendly Farmers in Hampton. We look at what this certification means and the choices Megan has made to ensure their sheep stud is bee-friendly as well as environmentally and economically sustainable.

After focusing on protecting NSW wilderness areas for more than 30 years, conservationist Keith Muir turns his attention to his own Blue Mountains backyard.

The garden is the first line of defence in a bushfire, but that doesn’t mean sacrificing liveable spaces for the rest of the year. Landscape architect Sue Bell explains how we can balance good garden design with sound bushfire principles.

Nurtured by the bushland around his studio and the storytelling of past cultures, Jonathan Drew recovered from depression and became an oral storyteller. He believes these stories provide clues to living a good life in harmony with the natural world.