You may have noticed the Bass Coast Landcare Network River Garden taking shape in the paddock on the Bass Highway between the BCLN office and the Bass River. The River Garden is a trials site for horticultural innovations that can be applied across the region from a household to commercial scale, that will also incorporate a community garden and education facilities. The garden has been conceived as a co-creation with the local community and we would like to invite interested community members to participate.
To date we have planted a ‘water-wise’ orchard on a gentle slope in the north-west corner of the site, a series of swale beds, nuttery and berry trellis with the guidance of horticultural expert Jarrod Ruch, former head ranger at The Briars on the Mornington Peninsula, local Horticulture Trainer Adrian James and Permaculture Guru Ric Coleman.
There is space and the opportunity at the River Garden for much, much more....
At the centre of community involvement will be the community garden, a collaborative growing area in the middle of the site featuring a permaculture style food forest and a variety of organic vegetable beds. We can't wait to involve you in a range of Volunteer sessions and Master Classes to collaborate and learn together, some of the innovative solutions to grow our own, nutrient dense, sustainable food. We also hope to eventually use the commercial kitchen in the Bass hall for cooking and preserving demonstrations with the wonderful produce from the garden.
To date we have planted a ‘water-wise’ orchard on a gentle slope in the north-west corner of the site, a series of swale beds, nuttery and berry trellis with the guidance of horticultural expert Jarrod Ruch, former head ranger at The Briars on the Mornington Peninsula, local Horticulture Trainer Adrian James and Permaculture Guru Ric Coleman.
There is space and the opportunity at the River Garden for much, much more....
At the centre of community involvement will be the community garden, a collaborative growing area in the middle of the site featuring a permaculture style food forest and a variety of organic vegetable beds. We can't wait to involve you in a range of Volunteer sessions and Master Classes to collaborate and learn together, some of the innovative solutions to grow our own, nutrient dense, sustainable food. We also hope to eventually use the commercial kitchen in the Bass hall for cooking and preserving demonstrations with the wonderful produce from the garden.
New volunteer and Workshop Programs
We are very excited to get our community involved in our new River Garden Volunteer program which will run alongside our River Garden Workshop Days. Read below for more details.
River Garden Blitz!! Community Volunteer Sessions
Monthly River Garden Blitz
August blitz postponed we will be back on: Saturday 10th September 9.30am-12.30pm Companion Planting and Integrated Pest Management with Ric Coleman. Do you want to find out some better ways to manage pests in your garden without all the harsh chemicals? Have you heard of Companion planting but are not sure of how to go about it? Our next River Garden Blitz on Saturday 10th of September will feature local Permaculture teacher Ric Coleman, who will be showing us how companion planting works, discussing useful plants and leading a planting to improve the integrated pest management at the River Garden, all while discussing how you can do it at home. This day will start at 930am and run until 1230pm in the format of part demonstration and part hands on planting with a free morning tea for those who register. Booking details will be available soon - please keep checking back or follow us on social media for the latest updates! Parking is in the car park between the Bass Hall and Op Shop, entry to the River Garden is via gates at either side of the Landcare office. There is also an all-access entry and small parking area via the road at the side of the op shop for anyone with mobility issues. We would love your help in continuing to turn the River Garden into a fully functional, productive growing space where we can learn from each other and grow healthy nutrient dense food... see you there! |
Thanks to new funding from VicHealth, we will now be featuring speakers and demonstrations at each of our Monthly (second Saturday of the month) Blitz days, YAY! Please let us know if there is anything in particular you would like to learn about at the River garden and we will see what we can do.... |
River Garden Guiding Principles
Community Projects
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