So just how relevant or valuable IS an American farmer like Joel Salatin coming to Australia to talk small farm skills and enterprise planning? As it turns out, quite a lot. The techniques + thinking of Polyface Farms’ founder has influenced many amazing small farm enterprises in Australia that we know of, helping them to thrive,…
Wow, this book is a cracker. Friendly, in-depth knowledge at its best. Written by US mycologist and dedicated home-scale mushroom cultivator Tradd Cotter, it’s a great blend of practical cultivation how-tos, fungi ID and strategies for mycoremediation. Organic Mushroom Farming and Mycoremediation is a great addition to any shroomish library and while it doesn’t replace the…
The food is all around us. Or so I like to think. You just need to know where to look, and always have a bucket or basket with you. Following on from the quietly inspiring visit from Artist as Family, who parked their bikes at our place for a day or two and proceeded to…
Calling all potential local food futurists! A quick note that the South East Local Leaders program is open for applications. South East Local Land Services, South East Landcare and the Small Farms Network have teamed up with leadership training providers Global Learning to run three high quality local leadership development opportunities in the South East Local Land…
If I’m honest, as we head towards the end of the year and the regular gift giving period…well, I start to get a little bit nervous. While I adore the hot weather, school holidays, early morning swims, slurping on the deliciousness of slightly green mangoes, extra time off the working week, and a generally more…
You know it’s going to be a good day when you jump out of bed, pull on overalls and work boots, and head for the door with your big straw hat, garden gloves in your pocket. It was raining in Redfern when we arrived in the morning, but that didn’t matter one little bit. It was…
If you haven’t been following ArtistAsFamily‘s current and epic journey around Australia, you should be. It’s seriously got it all – pedal-powered travel, foraged food, big hills, and bigger revelations. Lucky for us South Coasties, ArtistasFamily are stopping for a breather in Kiama next Tuesday night, and giving a free talk about their year on bikes and foraging Australia as…
A pocket full of seeds. Ever since I heard of the concept, I’ve loved this idea. The idea of always, always having something in your pocket to sprinkle on any bare patch of ground that you see. A day could start out completely ordinary. Nothing to see here. But then, you’re walking along, and you spy…
When we first moved to Mudgee in 2007, clearing sales were a big part of our life. Infact, they basically were our social life. Because a clearing sale is a farm un-packed, and we needed to start one. We bought everything from windows and doors to tools and furniture. Oh and that bridge, that one time.
We all know darn well that there are many facets within our food system that have to change – and what we love most is that in just about every nook you look there are passionate folk who are doing their bit to help create change.
Allsun Farm’s market garden down at Gundaroo is like this little magic pocket of green in the middle of the scrub. A secret garden you can eat, if you like.
It’s coming up to berry season, folks! There is nothing quite as good as eating a handful of summer berries picked at their seasonal best. You can taste the summer sun in their tiny delicate bodies, all the while wondering how nature could get them so deliciously perfect.
It’s been a month of growing, building, adventuring and making in these parts. And I’m slightly bemused to say that life is no less crazy living in a town than it is on a farm. But much of the craziness is good, in the forms of rabid broccoli growth, mushrooms everywhere, and adventuring with hand drawn maps.
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