Gardening Australia episode 13 2020: Millie Ross gets stuck into autumn propagation, Sophie Thomson swings into a professional tree climbing competition, Josh Byrne showcases the tools behind his productive patch and we meet a pair of tropical plant collectors.
Gardening Australia has always provided practical, trustworthy and credible gardening advice to inspire and entertain. Inspiring, entertaining and full of practical advice, join Costa Georgiadis and the team as they unearth gardening ideas, meet avid gardeners and look at some of the most inspiring gardens from across the country.
Gardening Australia episode 13 2020
Food Organics Garden Organics
Costa lifts the lid on household organic waste and looks at the growing initiative to put it to good use on a grand scale. Costa lifts the lid on a growing council initiative converting community organic waste into a valuable resource, compost. It is known by the acronym FOGO, which stands for Food Organics Garden Organics.
Kate Bradshaw is a waste educator working with Penrith Council who have operated a FOGO service for over a decade after they identified that on average, that around 60% of waste going to landfill was organic. “It was not only as a wasted resource but was costing rate payers money to collect. Dumped into landfill, organic waste produces greenhouses gases as it breaks down anaerobically; it was also having a terrible impact on the broader environment”.
Initially the program was a mixed success. “We worked out quickly that you need to roll out education and support alongside the bins. People were used to having a general waste bin collected every week, that they could put anything in. The first step is to change people’s habits. Once your materials are sorted into recycling and FOGO, there is very little that needs to go into the residual bin, which is collected less regularly”.
FAQs – Chilling bulbs | Monoecious vs Diecious | Pot size for vegies
Gardening Australia presenters answer commonly asked gardening questions.
Pruning Blackcurrants
Tino demonstrates how to prune blackcurrants.
Rare Aussie Gems
Jerry explores a suburban backyard that is growing some of Queensland’s rare and threatened plant species.
Tip Top Tool Kit – Gardening Australia episode 13 2020
Josh takes us inside his tidy tool-shed and shows us which tools are tops for managing and maintaining all kinds of gardens. He shows off his newly streamlined tool-shed and highlights what you really need for a well-oiled productive patch. Josh says his little shed is, “4 square metres of beauty!” Having spent a little time tidying up, “I got rid of years of things I didn’t need and organised everything so I can put my hand on the right tool straight away and get a job done quickly anytime”.
While there is a myriad of tools you can have, there are only a handful you really need for a thriving productive patch. Here are some tips for the essential kit you need and how he uses them.
Earthworm Communication
Clarence explains how worms communicate with each other. Did you know that in Australia, we’ve got over 1,000 species of earthworm and that globally, there are over 7,000 species? It’s estimated there are 300 individual earthworms for every square metre of soil on earth. They’ve even been ranked the number one most influential species in the history of the planet.
Worms are vitally important for soil ecology, in our farms, in the bush and in our gardens. But have you ever wondered how worms can find a mate, how they can avoid predators or how they even know which direction to travel in?
Branching Out
Sophie swings into a tree climbing competition and discovers how the country’s best arborists race against the clock to hone their skills. We’re in the small, South Australian regional town of Kapunda. With a population under 3000 people, Kapunda’s usually a pretty quiet place. But for this weekend, 155 professional arborists and thousands of spectators will descend on the town for Australia’s biggest, richest and most competitive tree climbing competition.
Arborists are trained professionals who assess and look after tree health. As our cities swell and need more trees and the services they provide, we need more skilled arborists. It’s a challenging, technical and hazardous job, but one that is vital and increasingly in demand, but an event like this lets hard-working arborists let their hair down and engage in some friendly competitions.
Historic Cranlana
Jane gets a rare glimpse of the historic Victorian garden of the Myer family.
Autumn Propagation
Millie propagates some of her favourite native plants and gives us some good tips for keeping cuttings happy in cool weather. Millie gets stuck into some autumn propagation of a couple of native species. Propagation is rewarding anytime, but in late summer and autumn, you can get lots of plants for very little work! In the warmer months, cuttings will form roots quickly, but they also require more attention, so if you’re a lazy (or busy!) gardener, the milder weather can be a winner.
Ornamental Gourds
Sophie gives tips on harvesting and drying gourds.
My Garden Path – Chris Hall and Arden Dearden
We meet a couple who have travelled the world to build an incredible collection of rare and unusual equatorial plant species.
