August 29th, 2013
REAL WORLD GARDENER Wed. 5pm 2RRR 88.5fm Sydney,
streaming live at www.2rrr.org.au and Across Australia on the Community Radio
Network. www.realworldgardener.com
Real World Gardener is funded by the Community
Broadcasting Foundation
REALWORLD GARDENER NOW ON FACEBOOK
The complete CRN
edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s edition. The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album
Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the website www.songsofthegarden.com
Design Elements
with Landscape Designer Louise McDaid
Did you know that people have
cultivated roof gardens for centuries.As far back as 600BC, people living
in Mesopotamia were growing trees and shrubs above ground. Ever heard of the famous hanging
gardens of Babylon? Basil Fawlty from Fawlty Towers, certainly has!
You may not have a rooftop – but
this is a very interesting garden and many of the elements can be incorporated
into a ‘ground’ garden as well, like your backyard.
Listen to this…
Today’s inspirational garden also
came from the RBS Rooftop garden at this year’s Chelsea Flower show that I visited.
Roof gardens can combine all
elements to support wildlife and biodiversity.
OK Australia’s climate can be a bit
harsh in some areas for us to even consider having a rooftop garden on your
shed or garage, or even your house.
But if you’ve got a balcony, you
might try it there instead.
If you have any questions about this
week’s Design Elements, send it our email address, or just post it.
August 29th, 2013
REAL WORLD GARDENER Wed. 5pm 2RRR 88.5fm Sydney,
streaming live at www.2rrr.org.au and Across Australia on the Community Radio
Network. www.realworldgardener.com
Real World Gardener is funded by the Community
Broadcasting Foundation
REALWORLD GARDENER NOW ON FACEBOOK
The complete CRN
edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s edition. The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album
Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the website www.songsofthegarden.com
Wildlife in Focus
with ecologist Sue Stevens
According to National Geographic,
the habits of migratory birds are something of a mystery Scientists think that
the birds take their cues from the landscape from above of course. Perhaps with
their fantastic eyesight, they can see waterholes appearing in the landscape
that link up through river paths.
But one of the strangest things
though is they tend to go back to exactly the same place, and exactly the same
spot.
Let’s find out what this bird is…
Did you know that Straw-necked
ibises can fly up to 20,000km. and may follow landscape cues back
to their breeding grounds in wet years - these grounds remain in the same small
area.
If you have seen some Straw Necked
Ibis in your area, why not drop us a line. Or send in a photo to realworldgardener@gmail.com or by post to 2RRR P.O. Box 644
Gladesville NSW 1675, and I’ll send you
a copy of the Garden Guardians in return.
August 23rd, 2013
REAL WORLD GARDENER Wed. 5pm 2RRR 88.5fm Sydney,
streaming live at www.2rrr.org.au and Across Australia on the Community Radio
Network. www.realworldgardener.com
Real World Gardener is funded by the Community
Broadcasting Foundation
REALWORLD GARDENER NOW ON FACEBOOK
The complete CRN
edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s edition. The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album
Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the website www.songsofthegarden.com
Design Elements
with landscape designer Louise McDaid
Do you know someone who thinks a
cottage garden is a row of Agapanthus, lawn and maybe a fountain?
Yes, I know someone who thinks just
that.
What is a cottage garden then?
It
started in England in the 1870’s and is an informal design but lots of plants.
Even mixing ornamental or decorative
plants with edible plants, and a rose covered gateway.
This year at Chelsea, there was a
modern twist to the cottage garden.
Listen to this…
The earliest cottage gardens were
more practical, you could even say, took a leaf out of modern day permaculture.
These gardens had an emphasis on
vegetables and herbs, along with some fruit trees, perhaps a beehive, and even
livestock!
If you have a cottage garden, send
in a photo, and I’ll send you a copy of Jane Davenport’s the Garden Guardian.
Send it to our email address, or just
post it.
August 23rd, 2013
REAL WORLD GARDENER Wed. 5pm 2RRR 88.5fm Sydney,
streaming live at www.2rrr.org.au and Across Australia on the Community Radio
Network. www.realworldgardener.com
Real World Gardener is funded by the Community
Broadcasting Foundation
REALWORLD GARDENER NOW ON FACEBOOK
The complete CRN
edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s edition. The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album
Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the website www.songsofthegarden.com
The Good Earth
with permaculture devotes Lucinda Coates and Margaret Mossakowska
Do you have a boggy patch in the
garden? What about watering you garden without turning on the hose? Sounds
impossible, but there are ways you can save water from disappearing down the stormwater
drain but altering the landscape of your garden. And no, it doesn’t have to
look ugly at all.
Listen to this
Know you know that a swale is a slight depression that runs along the contour of the land. It can be deep or shallow, or even hidden (a ditch filled with mulch, pebbles or any other material, )The dirt from digging the swale is usually used to make a raised mound on the downhill side. You can make them any size you want.
Note: a swale is not a drain but stores water in the soil. By stopping the run-off, it prevents soil erosion as well. How it works is this: Rain falls on your property, and instead of running straight down the slope, it runs to the swale and gathers. There it soaks in slowly, forming a lens of water underneath the swale. This provides a area of shallow sub-surface water downslope from it for an amazingly long time, so your grass will stay greener, and you won't need to water very often.
If you have a question about any building
swales or anything about permaculture that hasn’t been covered in the show so
far, why not drop us a line. to realworldgardener@gmail.com or by post to 2RRR P.O. Box 644 Gladesville
NSW 1675, or post them on Real World
Gardeners facebook page, we’d love to hear from you.
August 18th, 2013
REAL WORLD GARDENER Wed. 5pm 2RRR 88.5fm Sydney,
streaming live at www.2rrr.org.au and Across Australia on the Community Radio
Network. www.realworldgardener.com
Real World Gardener is funded by the Community
Broadcasting Foundation
REALWORLD GARDENER NOW ON FACEBOOK
The complete CRN
edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s edition. The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album
Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the website www.songsofthegarden.com
Spice it Up
 |
Photo by Louise Brooks |
August 18th, 2013
REAL WORLD GARDENER Wed. 5pm 2RRR 88.5fm Sydney,
streaming live at www.2rrr.org.au and Across Australia on the Community Radio
Network. www.realworldgardener.com
Real World Gardener is funded by the Community
Broadcasting Foundation
REALWORLD GARDENER NOW ON FACEBOOK
The complete CRN
edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s edition. The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album
Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the website www.songsofthegarden.com
Spice it Up
 |
Photo by Louise Brooks |
with Ian Hemphill from www.herbies.com.au
Did you know that Nutmeg is not one
spice but two?
The Nutmeg tree’s pretty nice too, but you can only grow this
one in the tropics.
Even if you can work out a
microclimate for your Nutmeg tree, it takes up to nine years before you get any
fruit, plus you need a male and a female tree.
What’s even more tricky, the grower
wouldn’t be able to tell you what type of tree it was until it was at least six
years old.
Just sit back and enjoy the
fascinating tale about Nutmeg and leave the growing to the experts. Listen to
this
You can grow the Australian version
of the Nutmeg tree, but the fruits only faintly smell of Nutmeg.
However, it’s OK in dry conditions
and might be a nice addition to the native garden.If you have a question about any
spices, or want to know about a spice or
herb that’s hasn’t been covered in the show so far, why not drop us a line. to realworldgardener@gmail.com or by post to 2RRR P.O. Box 644
Gladesville NSW 1675, or post them on
Real World Gardeners facebook page, we’d love to hear from you.
August 11th, 2013
REAL WORLD GARDENER Wed. 5pm 2RRR 88.5fm Sydney,
streaming live at www.2rrr.org.au and Across Australia on the Community Radio
Network. www.realworldgardener.com
Real World Gardener is funded by the Community
Broadcasting Foundation
REALWORLD GARDENER NOW ON FACEBOOK
The complete CRN
edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s
edition. The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album
Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the
website www.songsofthegarden.com
Design Elements
with Louise McDaid
So you’ve cut out spraying with
chemicals, you’re growing bird friendly plants, but what else can you do to
make sure your garden is a haven for all sorts of wildlife? Let’s find out…
The key points were to seek out
local plants and incorporate them into your garden somewhere.
Louise also mentioned that sometimes
the local plants don’t always have great flowers, but you put them in with
other natives or even exotics and build up a plant base that encourages
biodiversity.
That way, you’re attracting good
bugs, birds and reptiles into your garden that do some of the hard work in the
garden for you.
Can’t have enough of those good bugs
I say.
There’s a new product out, by the
way, that’s not only a horticultural oil, but contains a good bug attractant
which the company calls HIPPO.
Look out for it next time you go
shopping if you have a pest outbreak.
It’s good because it’s organic.
August 11th, 2013
REAL WORLD GARDENER Wed. 5pm 2RRR 88.5fm Sydney,
streaming live at www.2rrr.org.au and Across Australia on the Community Radio
Network. www.realworldgardener.com
Real World Gardener is funded by the Community
Broadcasting Foundation
REALWORLD GARDENER NOW ON FACEBOOK
The complete CRN
edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s
edition. The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album
Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the
website www.songsofthegarden.com
The Good Earth

Are you an accidental organic
gardener? Turns out that you don’t have to be full on into permaculture to
actually be following their ideas.
Did you know that permaculture is ‘eco-friendly’,
organic, healthy and low maintenance?
Plus, if you just want to find more
ways to be organic, just go along to some permaculture workshops.
.
To find out about a local
permaculture group near you, go to www.permaculture.org.au and look up Our Social Network tab on the
website.
There’s a permaculture association
in just about every state.
For example in South Australia’s it’s
www.permaculturesa.org.au/
http://permaculturemelbourne.org.au/is for all across Victoria, and for
2UUU listeners there’s a permaculture shoalhaven network http://www.spn.org.au/
For local listeners, go to www.permaculturesydneyinstitute.org/
If you have a question about organic
gardening or want to know where to find organic gardening workshops in your
area, why not drop us a line. to realworldgardener@gmail.com or by post to 2RRR P.O. Box 644 Gladesville
NSW 1675, or post them on Real World
Gardeners facebook page, we’d love to hear from you.
August 4th, 2013
REAL WORLD GARDENER Wed. 5pm 2RRR 88.5fm Sydney,
streaming live at www.2rrr.org.au and Across Australia on the Community Radio
Network. www.realworldgardener.com
Real World Gardener is funded by the Community
Broadcasting Foundation
REALWORLD GARDENER NOW ON FACEBOOK
The complete CRN
edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s edition.
The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album
Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the website www.songsofthegarden.com
Design Elements
with landscape Designer Louise McDaid
When you look at your garden, can
you see the wood for the trees?
Have the trees and shrubs taken
over?
This problem seem to sneak up on us,
and before we know it, there’s too much shade, and you’ve lost a lot niceness
about your garden that you started with.
But before you get out those loppers
yourself, take a step back and listen to this.
Before you go out into the garden,
remember lopping big branches is really a job for the experts.
The branch is always heavier than
you thought it was, and has a habit of falling in a different direction to what
you had planned.
Not to mention that getting up
ladders with loppers and side cutters is quite dangerous.
August 4th, 2013
REAL WORLD GARDENER Wed. 5pm 2RRR 88.5fm Sydney,
streaming live at www.2rrr.org.au and Across Australia on the Community Radio
Network. www.realworldgardener.com
Real World Gardener is funded by the Community
Broadcasting Foundation
REALWORLD GARDENER NOW ON FACEBOOK
The complete CRN
edition of RWG is available on http://www.cpod.org.au/ , just click on 2RRR to find this week’s edition.
The new theme is sung by Harry Hughes from his album
Songs of the Garden. You can hear samples of the album from the website www.songsofthegarden.com
Wildlife in Focus
with ecologist Sue Stevens
If I said to you there is a group of
birds that belong to Megaphidae, would you think that meant that had something
big about them? Mega after sounds big.
In fact, this rather imposing name
simply means that this group of birds belongs to honeyeaters.
One of the smallest of these
honey-eaters sings with one note when it’s perched, and only twitters when it’s
flying.
Let’s find out a bit more about the
bird with one note.
Louise who lives in the lower Blue
Mountains, wrote in to say that this bird with one note, visits Louise’s garden
quite regularly, around 8am in the morning and again in the afternoon around
3pm.
But, being a small bird, she hasn’t
been able to spot it.
Did you know that many honeyeaters
have is a distinctive brush-tipped tongue, which varies by species in length
and is specially adapted to soak up liquids.
These birds lap nectar from flowers
much as cats lap milk from a dish, although the birds' lapping movements are
much faster.
When the liquid-moistened brush is
pulled back into the bird's mouth, the brush is squeezed against the upper
mandible to push all fluid out so the bird can swallow it.
If you’ve seen this bird, taken a
photo, or want to know more about it, why not drop us a line. to realworldgardener@gmail.com or by post to 2RRR P.O. Box 644
Gladesville NSW 1675, or post them on
Real World Gardeners facebook page, we’d love to hear from you.
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