Stories From: Gardening

What goes on under all those poly-tunnels at Lithgow & District Community Nursery? Get the low down here.

Chantelle Cambridge recently presented the final in a series of gardening talks hosted by Lithgow Library Learning Centre. Standing in the shade of fifty-year-old elms in a flowery white dress, she was Instagram perfect, but the journey that led her here would have flattened many.

Keith Brister is on a mission. He and his fellow Bushcare volunteers spent years “achieving the impossible”, protecting Blackheath’s stunning natural bushland, only to see the weeds return when COVID restrictions limited Bushcare. But Keith did not despair. Instead, he asked what else could be done, and set about doing it.

Planetary Health Initiative writer Hamish Dunlop talks to Amy St Lawrence from Blue Mountains City Council’s Healthy Waterways Team. Amy explains what she’s doing at her home to collect and use water. She also talks about how her rain garden reduces run-off during and after rainfall.

In the heart of Katoomba, tucked away behind the Uniting Church, is a well-stocked tool library where you can borrow a whole range of quality power and hand tools. Explore Toolo with Liz Durnan here.

Wigram Road in Faulconbridge is one of those special Mountains streets that is both close to town, and on the edge of a spectacular valley. Read about their Street Composting system here.

Imagine needing a treasure map to navigate around your own backyard. That’s exactly what Kim Wood created after discovering rare and endangered plants in her native garden. Kim and Martin had no idea how special the garden they inherited actually was.

Lawson writer and publisher Sharon Baldwin has written a series of children’s books based on the unique subject matter of permaculture. Read her story here.

Tom Gleeson was just 11 when he joined his mum and 20 other Warrimoo residents in a community-based program called Sustainability Street. Locals of all ages met regularly in backyards, lounge rooms, a school hall & parks to learn about sustainable ways of living, working, thinking & acting.

Mary's Garden is a catalyst for growing community, connection to nature, an understanding of history and food security.