The Mary River Turtle: Uniquely Australian, Ancient and Endangered.

The Mary River freshwater turtle (Elusor macrurus) is one of the most uniquely Australian and critically endangered turtles, living only in south east Queensland’s Mary River. Forty years ago, Mary River turtles were sold as ‘penny turtles’ through the pet trade, hatching just in time for Christmas. Twenty six years ago, this turtle was finally scientifically described. Ten years ago, the Australian government ruled against the Queensland government proposal to dam the river, which would have exterminated this species. Now, Queensland’s Tiaro and District Landcare volunteers monitor Mary River turtle nest sites, protecting them from extreme weather and predation, while the Mary River catchment group look after the health of the river system, the only home that this endangered turtle has, giving it a better chance of survival.

FAQ: Can I Grow Plants In Polystyrene (Styrofoam) Boxes? Someone Told Me They Are Toxic.

This blog looks at ways to convert expanded polystyrene foam boxes, a single use plastic used for packing vegetables, into a useful gardening asset. Most Australians call expanded polystyrene foam styrofoam, but this is a trademark name, owned by Dow Chemicals, who claim to have ‘discovered’ this product which was first made in Sweden. If you endorse the reuse of waste, visit your local fruit shop and get some polystyrene vegetable packing boxes. Retailers are happy to sell them for a couple of dollars and you’ll find them suitable for a range of gardening jobs whether your climate is hot, cold, wet or dry.

My Gardening Family: Farewell Auntie Sheila

Sheila wanted a natural burial, and tomorrow my cousins have organised for her to be laid to rest in an eco-coffin under a forest tree in the grounds of the Sustainability Centre within Hampshire’s South Downs National Park.

Vireya Rhododendrons

If Vireya rhododendrons have started blooming, it’s winter in the subtropics. Vireyas are a subgenus of rhododendron, they are tropical shrubs originating from SE Asia to Australia. Many hybrids have been produced, some are very fragrant, and most are ideal for container growing on a balcony, on (or under) a tree, or in a shadehouse. In my experience, treating Vireyas as you would an epiphytic orchid really helps. Vireyas make good cut flowers and buttonholes (remember them?). If you start a collection, you can have them blooming over many months.

Bellis Website To Become Part of Australian National Archive

The State Library of Queensland and the National Library of Australia to copy, retain and provide public online access to the Bellis website the online publication of Bellis, Brisbane’s award-winning sustainable house and garden under the Copyright Act 1968 in the PANDORA Archive. The public will have online access to this website through the Australian Web Archive at the National Library of Australia which shall preserve it and make it available to the public in perpetuity.

Sheila. My alternative mother figure and counsellor.

Auntie Sheila. My alternative mother figure and counsellor, there for me when I needed one most. A thoughtful, academic, independent thinker who taught me how to reason and who’s sound second opinion was always available during the period when my family life was on shifting sands.

Meadow Gardens In Australia?

“You can’t grow a meadow garden in Australia”, stated an article in Horticulture Week (Rural Press, 1992). Really? I started working with Sydney Botanic Gardens in the same year, and their attempt at growing a meadow garden had been swamped by ryegrass and other annual weeds. There’s nothing like a challenge. By all means experiment with plants, but if you don’t understand how differently individual species can behave in a foreign climate and soils, be sure to do your research first, or get informed advice.

How Correct Care Can Extend The Safe, Useful Life Of A Tree

How correct care can extend the safe, useful life of a tree: the role of bark boring beetle; the impact of poor pruning on tree health; the value of pruning to a branch collar; the risks of injecting trees with chemicals and painting wounds; the need to investigate for structural weakness; and assessing the potential expense of collateral damage to property if the tree collapses.

Basil In The Subtropical Winter?

Basil: In a sustainable garden you can’t really ask for much more from a herb: here are four basils capable of growing through a subtropical winter in either pots on a balcony or in the ground. Four basils which provide all year round beauty, distinctive flavours and aromas, high productivity, and all of them attractive to pollinators and other beneficial insects that help to control pests.

Winter Gardening In Temperate Australia

The culture of winter gardening evolved in Europe, a response to their long, gloomy winters. By contrast, Australian winters are briefer, sunnier and filled with interest – if you know what to do. What is a European winter garden? What can an Australian gardener in a temperate zone do to keep their garden filled with interest? What can food growers grow during the coldest season?

How Best To Feed Backyard Birds?

How best to feed backyard birds? Professor Darryl Jones from Griffith University, Queensland, has written the first sensible, science-based guide to feeding wild birds in Australia, says Paul Sullivan, the CEO of Birdlife Australia.