Vegemite Snail Trap

Vegemite Snail Trap
SNAILS and SLUGS – How to control them with kid-friendly products! 
Gardening can often seem like a constant battle between snails and the gardener, but here is a terrific blog written by Jade and Amy from Growing Green Thumbs.   They are 2 very enthusiastic school mums who spend their days volunteering at their children’s primary school in Bonbeach, Melbourne.   They share their gardening enthusiasm with parents, students and our wider community, learning along the way as they grow fruit, vegetables and flowers whilst making it fun to play outdoors in a sustainable environment. Continue reading

Cabbage Moths – How to keep them away from the vegie patch

cabbage moth
Adult Cabbage Moth
Cabbage Moths were accidentally introduced into Australia during the 1930’s.  Since then, the Cabbage Moth caterpillars have been merrily munching their way through vegie patches across much of the country.
In this blog, we’ll explain some kid friendly ways to remove and control them in your patch. Continue reading

Gardening and Sustainability Curriculum Resources

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Bad News for Teachers:            There are less than 3 weeks before kids go back to school!
Good News for Teachers:        Sustainability “How to Guides” and full lesson plans are available on the Landcare Australia website.
Good News for Parents:          The How to Guides are a wonderful resource that can be used in your home garden or natural environment as well. We loved the natural pesticide recipe!
Based on the 2015 Australian Curriculum, the lesson plans include engaging and easy-to-understand teaching and learning sequences.  The lessons plans and How to Guides cover a range of gardening and nature based activities and have been to assist Primary School teachers across Australia. Continue reading

Remember to Mulch

Children mulching the garden
Mulching is important as it helps stabilise your gardens soil temperatures in the root zone…and that means happy plants! With Australia’s hot summers, mulching means that your plants won’t struggle when it comes to surviving in rough conditions. The best time to mulch is right after the soil has warmed up and you are ready to start planting. Continue reading

Eco-Friendly, Kid-Friendly Weed Killer

Vinegar makes a good eco-friendly, kid-friendly weed killer
This weed killer is eco and kid friendly.
Are you after a cheap, eco-friendly, kid-friendly weed killer that uses common ingredients from your kitchen AND works fast? If so, read on…
I hate weeding, I really do. I wish I could wave a magic wand and all the weeds in our garden would disappear. In the past I’ve resorted to buying commercial weed killer but it never sat comfortably with me and now I have kids I don’t want them to be around it. A few years ago I bought an eco-friendly weed killer from a garden show. I got home and realised it was basically a mixture of salt and vinegar. I paid around $6 for 500ml and as I had quite a few weeds to fight, I decided I could definitely make it myself cheaper. I mentioned this to an old gardening friend and they informed me I could indeed and all I would need to add to the concoction was a dash of dishwashing liquid to help break down the waxy coating found on many weeds. Simple! Continue reading