Right now is the best time for you to get blitzed!

Spring is now in full swing, and we reckon the best part of the year is now upon us – spring planting time! The risk of frost is pretty much over now, daylight savings is days away and fruit trees are already bearing the beginnings of stonefruit and tasty little treats. Even the bees and chooks are happier!

Given that everything is warming up now, we in the Permablitz Collective have decided to pick up the pace a bit and make it even easier to get blitzed – more on that below…

To honour this time of new growth (and the leaves forming on our grape vines), we’re dedicating the song of the month to soul man Marvin Gaye, with his classic I Heard It Through The Grapevine.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HzsWImONTBM

Permablitz News

Permablitz #211 - Upwey

Not long ago we blitzed Ros’ place – and it was a blast! We set up both hugel and wicking beds, made trellises from locally-sourced bamboo and met really cool people too. Thanks to all the blitzers who made the day so much fun.

Check out the pics of the day here!

Permablitz #212 - Reservoir

Not long ago,we blitzed Sarah and her family’s place – and it was a blast! We moved a mountain of soil and compost into their new wicking beds (big thanks to The Green Centre for the soil donation!), dug some mini-swales, set up a trellis for some yummo passionfruit, and planted up a storm! There’s even a mini urban orchard – give this place a year or two of good growth, and it’s going to look amazing!

A big thanks to everyone who made the day such as smash.

Check out the full report here!

Wanna get blitzed?

Don’t be shy! If you’ve been to the odd permablitz and you think maybe you’d like to be blitzed yourself, let us know.

Usually we say you need to come to two or more permablitzes before you qualify. Sometimes this is a lot, especially given we know how hard it is to get into blitzes when they are booking out so quickly.

So to keep blitzes happening, we are bending the rules a bit. Til the end of the year, if you’ve been to a blitz and want one of your own – hit us up. We’re keen to make your part of the suburb edible for you!

Last month's Facebook picks

Could restoring forests help ease drought in Australia?

‘It’s just sugar syrup’: Supermarkets accused of selling ‘fake’ honey

Strawberry crisis: eight easy ways to use up your excess fruit

10 fast growing edible hedge plants

Permaculture Is Bringing Farming Back To Basics

Goats Know When People Are Smiling And They Like To See It Happen, According To New Research

Hero of the Month

Kangaroo Apple

To get your hit of vitamin C, then check out the unsung Melbourne local Kangaroo Apple!

Dom from Victorian Indigenous Nurseries Co-op (VINC) tells us all about this edible native, and how it can be eaten fresh, raw or cooked and is easy to grow.

Read more about this amazing native here!

Beets and Pieces

A real history of Aboriginal Australians, the first agriculturalists – with Bruce Pascoe

In this powerful talk, Bruce Pascoe demonstrates a radically different view of Australian history that we all need to know – one that has the potential to change the course of Australians’ relationship with the land.

Bruce Pascoe‘s career has spanned teaching, farming, bartending, writing, working on an archaeological site, and researching Aboriginal languages. A Bunurong, Tasmanian and Yuin man born in Melbourne, he grew up on a remote island in the Bass Strait.

Bruce has written more than 20 books. His non-fiction book, Dark Emu (2014), won the Book of the Year and Indigenous Writers’ Prize in the 2016 NSW Premier’s Literary Awards.

He says, “Aboriginal people have always had a story to tell. We have always been storytellers and artists and singers and dancers and we’ve just brought this into the general Australian culture. Non-Aboriginal Australians enjoy it and are starting to embrace it”.

Check out his TedX talk here!

South-East Melbourne’s Food Scraps Will Soon Be Put to Good Use

Households across Melbourne’s south-east will soon be able to throw food scraps into their green bin thanks to a new $65 million composting plant in Dandenong South. Currently, residents can’t put anything other than garden waste into their green bins.

Each year the South Eastern Organics Processing Facility will transform 120,000 tonnes of food and garden waste from homes in Bayside, Cardinia, Casey, Frankston, Glen Eira, Greater Dandenong, Kingston and Monash into 50,000 tonnes of compost, which will then make its way to municipal gardens and parks.

“This facility alone, which will be the most advanced of its type in Victoria, can process around 12,000 truckloads of waste per year,” Federal Environment Minister Josh Frydenberg said in a statement. “It means food and organic waste produced by south-east Melbourne residents will not end up in landfill and will instead produce high-grade compost for our gardens and parks.”

You can read more about this initiative on Broadsheet.

In the Garden

October is possibly the best time of year to be a gardener – there is a CRAZY amount of seeds and seedlings that you can start thinking about planting now that the ground is beginning to warm up. It’s also the last chance to remove dead winter growth, and to dig up and divide perennial plants, and you can plant evergreen shrubs and trees – including citrus trees!

Remember: some seeds do better starting off in punnets, some in pots and some in the ground. To get the best from your seedlings be sure to check the best methods first! If you’re not sure how to get your seeds started, you can check out these fine guides from Sustainable Gardening Australia or Gardening Australia. In fact, given it’s still quite cold overnight, check out Gardening Australia’s guide to creating a simple hothouse to kickstart those seedlings along.