Just wanted to say a big thank you to our small band of dedicated volunteers who have been pitching in over the last 18 months to help a small green space be its true self. You make a difference.
If only there were less red tape and more green ribbons, but that is an interesting understory for another time. Time for a photo.
I’m so glad I work for love now. Box gum grassy woodlands with a healthy understory are critically endangered but not yet extinct in our suburbs.
Yuma from Ngunawal country. This week it was Landcare Week and to celebrate, Landcare ACT organised a conference for environmental volunteers. Our local government coughed up the money for the conference and many of their terrific parks and conservation staff, as well as a host of other experts, ensured it all went smoothly and shared their knowledge with us. A big thank you to everyone involved.
I particularly liked the field trips and the session on story telling, the latter being a subject very close to my heart. I haven’t written much about my garden conversion or landcare activities recently, so here is a quick and dirty update.
Above is a photo of my personal landcare project. Hasn’t it grown? I’ve had to fence it to keep the rabbits out. My True Love asked me whether I going to tell the story of how I came a gutser on the fence today? A passerby raced over to help me up. Some people are really kind. There’s not much more to tell. I’m fine. But that wasn’t quite what I had in mind.
Check out this Red-browed finch (below). These sassy little finches are becoming regular visitors to my yard. It is very difficult to photograph my little visitors with so much paraphernalia in the way. I digress.
Finally, there was much excitement today as my True Love photographed a Fuscous honeyeater at our official landcare session. Perhaps Fuscous honeyeaters visit a lot? It is hard to tell when we are normally heads-down, bums-up working. Anyway, it’s a great story. Can’t wait to share it with our whole team.
I told someone at the conference about my art and my website. I probably should have reviewed my website first. My stories have been a bit dreary lately and my artwork is hard to find. Hope I didn’t put them off. And my (3am) grammar is terrible! The moral of this story must be fewer words, right? Here goes.
Family Ties Fruits of our labour. Roll out the Welcome Matt. Your story of resilience and strength. Your vulnerability. The Difference you make. Our time to grow.
How was that?
More importantly, how’s my blog family going? I’ve been rather preoccupied lately, but that’s another story.
It is hard work being a campaigner/activist/decent human being.
During 2024, I spent far too much time rehabilitating our local green space. A big shout out to everyone who joined our Landcare team on this journey. Thank you. In my spare time, I also started a campaign to save some nearby trees. See here. I seriously doubt my ability to keep up the pace. Now I have to write some letters to the powers-that-be. Despite whatever conclusions you may come to while reading this blog, I can assure you that writing is not my forté. Eating chocolate while never getting past the first paragraph is more my thing.
I’m pretty annoyed at how my suburb has been treated. While other suburbs get rehabilitated green spaces and wetlands, we get another big shopping centre, a concrete footpath, yet another sporting oval, and a main road replacing our habitat trees. More trees will be planted apparently to offset the destruction. However, the remnant trees that are to be removed are irreplaceable. The little birds may also have something to say about the removal of many of the other eucalypts that fringe our suburb. Meanwhile, our Landcare team is waiting for a local eucalyptus sapling we requested, to be planted at our Landcare site. We have been waiting for nearly two years. Apparently, there is a shortage. Well, duh. It is no wonder the government’s vote declined at the last election. Wouldn’t it be good if I could send them a message another way, rather than wasting my precious time on writing letters that more than likely will be ignored? Something like this music clip below perhaps.
Yuma, everyone. After months of no rain, the temperature and humidity is rising here in Canberra, Australia’s national capital. In West Belconnen, the rain often splits around us, a promise broken. For example, Canberra airport had over 30mm of rain today, while we had only 0.3mm. So when it rained in our patch recently, I draped my camera in bubble wrap and took to the street. I thought I would share a few photos of one of our Landcare sites.
The rain is magical, turning ugly duckling trees to swans.
The drain rapidly turns green.
We cut off the seedheads of the African Love Grass by hand. No electric tools allowed. And sneak in some carex and poa to hopefully out compete the ALG one day.
The casuarinas like wet feet.
Not sure about this magpie chick.
The new plantings are enjoying the rain. Newly arrived rabbits are enjoying the plants. We need a chicken wire fence around the bare patches to allow the winter-dormant redleg grass to re-emerge. But the wheels of bureaucratic approvals move slowly, if at all.
As for me, I’m feeling a bit flat. 600 trees nearby will be cut down for an “upgraded” road to a new sustainable housing development. I think people are oblivious to the irony. Or just oblivious. Or they don’t care or feel they can’t do anything about it. It certainly makes me kind of depressed. Same old, same old, eh?
Hug a tree, readers. Save a tree. You’ll feel much better.
Reflections of An Untidy Mind 