Issues around the natural environment
Best selling author and sociologist, Vance Packard, was very critical of America’s consumer culture in his book ‘The Waste Makers’. In Australia we are also a ‘throwaway society’, with households across the country producing vast amounts...
Bitou bush (Chrysanthemoides monilifera ssp. rotundata) is a sprawling, woody shrub from South Africa. It was deliberately planted in New South Wales from 1946 to 1968 to stabilise mobile sand dunes in sand mining areas. Unfortunately, bitou bush has proved to be a...
Imagine what life would be like if you could never have a barbecue, go on a picnic or play outdoor sports. Gardening and walking barefoot would be out of the question, your kids couldn’t play in the backyard and you couldn’t have a pet. It sounds...
Don was interested to see rainbow lorikeets picking at something on the road. He soon realised that these clever little birds were eating the seed from capsules of Eucalyptus gummifera, the red bloodwood. The gumnuts had fallen on the road, and had already been...
If you want to make a difference to the Australian environment, plant a grevillea. They are easy to grow and nectar-feeding birds adore them. Many grevilleas flower nearly all year, even in the winter when food for the birds is scarce. There are hundreds of species of...
Most people think of oxalis as a serious garden weed, which must be eradicated at all costs. However, Peter Valder explained that there are many beautiful, ornamental species of oxalis that can be planted safely, without any fear of them taking over the garden. Peter...