Blog
Our blog features a variety of gardening and sustainablity articles on topics such as soil biology, composting, grafting, pruning, water-saving and irrigation clean energy, waste and biodiversity. Plus we regularly post recipes to help you make the most of the ‘seasonal glut’ and tips on how to live in a more sustainable way.
Coddle your apples, pears and quince trees against codling moth
What time of year do I need to protect my trees from codling moth? It’s now a good time to protect your apples, quinces and pears from the ravages of codling moth. While any time is a good time to intervene in the lifecycle of the codling moth, they will lay their...
Banyule Candidates Sustainablity Survey
We emailed a survey to all of the candidates in the current Banyule City Council elections to allow them to indicate their position on a number of sustainability issues.
Tomato plants available for members to collect
Each member receives 6 FREE tomato plants each year. We currently have 6 varieties of cherry tomato, 5 varieties of medium size tomato and 1 variety of large tomato. And there are more varieties coming on. In the next few weeks, corn, zucchini, cucumber, and pumpkin...
How to plant seeds in punnets
Use seed raising mix if possible. Seed raising mix does not contain nutrients, is finer than other soils, and is designed specifically for seed raising. If you cannot access seed raising mix, use potting mix. Do not use garden soil as it compacts around the seed. Fill...
Preparing a spring/summer or autumn/winter vegie garden
There are three keys to establishing a flourishing edible garden whether spring/summer or autumn/winter: soil preparation, watering and site selection.
Greening your ride
Given the growing interest in electric vehicles (EVs), you might be wondering exactly what the Australian government is doing to support their take up. The simple answer is that there is no support. The interest in EVs is clear. According to the Electric Vehicle...
Welcome to the wattles
Walking through the bush at the moment, you can’t miss the yellow of Acacias flowering profusely. Acacias - commonly known as wattles - grow in different landscapes across the continent. With close to 1000 varieties they’re Australia’s largest plant species. There are...
Reducing waste during the pandemic
Many Sustainable Macleod members are passionate about reducing waste. Some of us have a particular focus on food; others have their sights on plastic, paper and cardboard, chemical, textile, electronic and other categories of waste. During the pandemic, it’s become an...
Growing kohlrabi – king of the cabbages
What is kohlrabi? It is hard to imagine why kohlrabi is not cultivated more often as it is easy to grow, crops twice a year and is delicious raw or cooked. There are two types of kohlrabi in Australia - white (or light green) and the princely purple. Both grow a bulb...
A clean energy plan for Banyule
Banyule City Council has released the Community Climate Action Plan, following feedback and submissions through the Shaping Banyule Portal on the BCC website. The Plan is intended to have the Council take the lead in "planning for, and responding to, climate change."...
Growing ginger, galangal and turmeric in Melbourne
This article is based on my own experience. Over 40 years ago my first shot at growing ginger was when I was owner of the first Tasmanian herb nursery. Planting ginger was an experiment with little expectation of success. I cut the ginger rhizome into pieces each with...
Garlic growing hints for September
From now until 2 weeks before harvest in November - December… Water your garlic twice-weekly, deeply, directly onto the soil. Don't allow soil to splash onto the plants and avoid overhead watering. Weed your patch. Mulch well with sugar cane mulch. Keep the mulch...
Growing celeriac
What is celeriac? Celeriac is the bulbous root of a member of the celery family. It is often described as ugly as it is rough and knobbly on the surface but when peeled this gives away to crisp flesh similar in colour to parsnip. Short celery fronds top the bulb. How...
A winning lime sorbet
Winning in-season recipe To celebrate the launch of our new website, Facebook Page and Instagram account, we ran a virtual baking/cooking competition using in-season item, LIME. Thanks for sharing your yummy recipes. Although we didn't get to taste all the entries, we...
Join Sustainable Macleod
Become a member and get access to the community garden, the tool library and our seed library. We welcome all members of the community and have regular events and workshops to enjoy.