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Gardening.Australia.S36E05

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00:00Whoah!
00:01Whoo!
00:02Whoo!
00:03Hey!
00:04Hey!
00:05Hey!
00:06Hey!
00:07Hi!
00:08Ha, ha, ha, ha!
00:09Ha, ha, ha, ha!
00:11Ooh!
00:13Ooh!
00:16Whoo!
00:17Whoo!
00:18Hey!
00:19Ooh!
00:21Hey, mate.
00:22Hey!
00:24Hey!
00:25Hello and welcome to Gardening Australia.
00:36We are full to bursting this week with just about everything you need
00:41to flick that inspiration switch.
00:44I know you're going to love it, so take a look.
00:48I'm visiting a garden packed with powerful plants
00:51where modern science is researching traditional health benefits.
01:02Hannah checks in on some old friends.
01:04Right now, this worm farm is a little bit under the weather,
01:07so today I'm going to give it some TLC.
01:11We follow a young man on the trail of a horticultural giant.
01:15Jeez, this is cool.
01:17And we meet an artist finding forms in wood.
01:22By the end of it, you can really see what the artwork is going to be
01:25and I think it's like a really beautiful thing.
01:28I really love how growing food can help enhance our urban fabric.
01:39Millie's visiting a rental gardener in Melbourne
01:41who started with the front yard
01:43and is now well and truly on his way to transforming the entire street.
01:48There is no denying that when you're on your way to visit a garden
01:58for Gardening Australia, you will spot it
02:00well before you see the number on the fence.
02:04Hey Rishi, how you doing? Good day, Millie.
02:07I'm in Leylaw in Melbourne's north to meet Rishi Ramgutti
02:10who's created an abundant edible garden
02:12in the front yard of his rental home.
02:15Welcome to my front yard paradise.
02:18Oh, it's so gorgeous, there's so much going on.
02:20It's not a typical suburban plot.
02:23It's definitely not typical that you can say.
02:26I've really packed in a lot of plants and veggies together
02:30because I love the concept of an edibental garden.
02:33Edibental, so it looks as good as it tastes.
02:35Exactly, that's right.
02:36So a lot of flowers to look good
02:38and a lot of veggies to keep me fed.
02:40It works for the garden to do that as well.
02:42It does work really well
02:44and it brings in the bees and the butterflies
02:46and so many other insects
02:48and I really love the fact that it's feeding the ecosystem around me
02:51and keeping things really alive.
02:53I noticed your kale, it's in rude health I would say.
02:58I think I'm really lucky with the kale actually
03:01but it's also maybe just talking to them
03:03and giving them a little pat
03:05and really praising them for being so beautiful
03:07and they keep growing nice and lush
03:09and they feed me so...
03:11When you say giving them a little pat,
03:13you mean squishing the caterpillar eggs?
03:15Yes, that's what I'm talking about.
03:25So everything is natural over here.
03:27I don't use any kind of pesticides.
03:29So I just let nature do its thing.
03:31And you would find the ladybirds, the praying mantis,
03:35all the beneficial bugs just doing their little magic in the garden.
03:39And it's fascinating to observe.
03:41Especially me being a photographer,
03:43I'm always with my camera and just looking under the leaves
03:46and they keep me entertained.
03:48So it's the best of both worlds.
03:50Back in 2009, I left Mauritius to come and study in Australia.
03:58I thought it would be more or less similar to Mauritius,
04:01but the seasons are different.
04:03Here in Melbourne, you have extreme in temperatures.
04:06Yeah, it was not something that I was ready for,
04:08but kind of like it now.
04:10Rishi, being a renter, what was here when you signed the lease?
04:14What was here before?
04:16It was just a barren piece of land.
04:19Even the weeds were scarce over here.
04:21And I saw this as a blank canvas for me to work my magic into it.
04:26I chose this spot because of the sun.
04:28It's in the right spot.
04:30It gets full sun most of the year.
04:32It's not a really big place if you look at it.
04:34It's just 10 metres by 6 metres,
04:36so a total of around 67 square metres.
04:39So I started off with some very hard, barren clay soil.
04:45And I was all excited and ready to get gardening,
04:48and my axe pick just bounced off the soil.
04:51I could not believe it.
04:53I started off by doing a tiny raised bed.
04:55So as you can see, this is no more than 10 centimetres tall.
04:58It's just to give this little extra height
05:01and put in some new material on top.
05:04What is the reaction
05:06when you start putting vegetables in the front yard?
05:08It's not a typical kind of look around here.
05:11Yes, it's very unusual for the area.
05:14As you can see, all the other houses over here,
05:16it's very typical lawn and roses,
05:19and they do things very traditionally, as you can imagine.
05:22So the veggie patch is always in the backyard.
05:25But I wanted to change things up and get a beautiful front yard that pops.
05:39Morning. How are you?
05:40I'm all good. How are you?
05:41Good.
05:42What are you growing in here?
05:43Oh, as usual, lots of things growing everywhere.
05:46Beetroot, some Swiss chard, some peppers, and zucchinis still growing strong.
05:52Oh, wow. Look at that.
05:53Look at these beauties.
05:54Oh, beautiful.
05:55You'll enjoy them.
05:56Oh, wow.
05:57Yum.
05:58Awesome.
05:59Have a good day.
06:00Yeah, take care. Nice seeing you.
06:01Bye-bye.
06:04Some neighbors were actually concerned about what was happening over here.
06:08And eventually when they saw me putting in flowers and all of that,
06:12then they were like, okay, something nice is happening over here.
06:15And they were stopping by all the time for a chat and asking me,
06:19hey, what are you planting?
06:20What's this plant? What's this flower?
06:22So it was a really beautiful experience to have it in the front yard.
06:29Some baby carrots, not too big.
06:31Good morning, Luis.
06:32Hello, Anteo. How are you?
06:34I'm coming to see your garden again.
06:36Did you pick anything this morning?
06:37Oh, yes. I picked some beautiful carrots this morning.
06:40Wow.
06:41You can actually have them because I have so many more.
06:43All of them?
06:44Yes, these are all yours.
06:45Always, you're very generous.
06:46Yes.
06:47Yeah, yeah.
06:48I actually really love it.
06:49It brings the neighborhood together.
06:51And we share seedlings, we share plants, we share veggies,
06:54we share banter and laughter,
06:56which is absolutely fantastic for this neighborhood.
06:59It's really beautiful.
07:00It's just positives.
07:01Yeah.
07:02They love it, yeah.
07:04After about three years of gardening in this very productive patch,
07:09there was bad news.
07:11Unfortunately, as this is a rental,
07:14the landlord asked me to move out because he wanted to move in,
07:18and it was a sad day for me.
07:20But fortunately, the landlord is really nice,
07:22and he allows me to keep gardening, and we share produce,
07:26and we share good times now.
07:28So this isn't your garden anymore?
07:29It's not my garden anymore.
07:31But I still get to enjoy the fruits and the flowers over here.
07:35This is really unexpected.
07:36Then came another twist of fate.
07:39The landlord's brother bought the house next door,
07:41and Rishi was invited to move back to the neighborhood.
07:45It's really unexpected when you think about it.
07:48So you say you live next door now?
07:49Yes, I live next door.
07:50Are you gardening there?
07:51Definitely.
07:52You know me.
07:53We'd better go and have a look.
07:54Let's go and have a look.
07:55Come on.
07:56Let's go.
07:57I love.
07:58You have this empire of gardens.
08:00Yes, it is.
08:01This time, Rishi has started in the back garden.
08:07Oh, what a great new garden.
08:09Yes, it's beautiful, isn't it?
08:10Not too big, not too small, just the right size.
08:13And you got this in straight away.
08:15Straight away.
08:16I did not waste a minute.
08:17So I moved in about two months ago,
08:19and that was the first thing that I did.
08:22You've got a front yard next door.
08:23You've got the back yard here.
08:24You've almost got a whole garden, Rishi.
08:26Almost, almost.
08:27We're getting there, and it's coming together.
08:30Fantastic.
08:31I reckon I need to try one of those tomatoes.
08:33Yes, go for it.
08:37Oh, it's firm.
08:38Yes.
08:40Mmm.
08:41Mmm, so sweet.
08:42How good is this?
08:43Mmm.
08:44You can't get these at the supermarket.
08:51Mauritius, to me, sounds like it's an extraordinarily beautiful place.
08:54It is very beautiful.
08:55It's a little tropical island, beautiful sandy beaches,
08:58and tropical forests, and it's a very nice place.
09:02You should visit sometime.
09:03I would love that.
09:04Were you a gardener there?
09:05I was not a gardener back then, but my parents were very avid gardeners.
09:10My mum used to plant a lot of flowers.
09:12My dad used to plant a lot of fruit trees.
09:15And maybe I got the best of both worlds, and I just love growing everything.
09:21It's clear that that is a really joyful garden that you've created there.
09:25Yes, it's a practical garden, but it's clearly something that you love.
09:28Yes, I've put in a lot of love into it.
09:30It's not just something mechanical to get veggies to eat.
09:35Yeah.
09:36It's a labour of love, and I've really poured my heart and my soul into it,
09:41and I enjoyed every second of it, and it gave me back everything in tenfold, I can say.
09:47And it's a beautiful adventure, and it's just the beginning.
09:50That's what's even more exciting.
09:52So, don't be afraid to approach your landlord if you've got dreams
09:56of cultivating a patch in your rental.
09:59I would encourage any renter to just start with what they have, where they are.
10:05Have fun.
10:06Do it small.
10:07Do it big.
10:08Do it however you want.
10:09And it's going to reward you for sure.
10:12Do not hesitate.
10:13Just go for it.
10:14Why are the leaves on my Asperdistra turning brown, and what can I do about it?
10:27Well, one of the most common causes is sunburn, and that's what's happened here.
10:32Asperdistra prefers mild light, and these leaves have been burnt from a scorching hot day.
10:38What to do about it?
10:39Well, these leaves are permanently damaged.
10:42So, you need to remove them by cutting the stems back at the base, and they'll reshoot from the rise line.
10:48Nice and fresh and green like that.
10:50To stop it happening again, just put some light shade cloth over them if the weather's going to be really hot,
10:55or move the plant to a shadier position.
10:58When are olives ripe?
11:00Olives are generally considered ripe for picking when they've reached their full size and undergone a colour change.
11:07The timing of harvest will depend on the olive variety, and whether you want to eat it or use it for oil.
11:14Green olives turn shades of red, purple or black when they're ripe, although some varieties start off black when they're small.
11:22Ripe olives are plump, with a softer texture and a different skin feeling, and generally they have a less bitter taste.
11:30Harvesting usually occurs from late summer into the winter months, although the exact timing depends on the region and the climate.
11:40Olives for oil are often harvested slightly earlier when they have a higher oil content.
11:46On the other hand, olives for table consumption are generally picked slightly later when they've developed a milder flavour.
11:53When is the best time of year to split a colony of stingless bees?
11:59Well, I guess it depends on where you live.
12:01You see, in warm temperate Sydney, you'd need to do it in summer, because you have a shorter season.
12:06Here in subtropical Brisbane, we can do it in summer and in early autumn.
12:12When you split a hive, it's quite traumatic for the bees, so you've got to be sure you've got enough pollen, enough sugar bag and enough brood,
12:21so they can recover and rebuild before they go into the cool winter weather.
12:27And in my case, I did some recently and there wasn't enough, so I've sealed the hives back over and I've got to wait for another year.
12:36This hydrangea quirkifolia, or the oak-leafed hydrangea, is a standout because of its flowers,
12:48and in autumn, the oak-like foliage puts on a show that gradually turns bronze, crimson and then burgundy.
12:56It's one of the best flowering shrubs for the autumn garden.
13:00It grows to about a metre by a metre, and it's best planted in moist, acidic soils.
13:06Full sun's okay, but it does appreciate a little bit of afternoon shade, so the leaves don't burn.
13:12Spread a thick layer of mulch over the roots after planting, just to retain soil moisture, and there'll be no need to fertilise.
13:20It spreads by suckering, and it's a beautiful plant.
13:23You'll see them as a hedge or a single plant. Have a look out for them.
13:30If you're a gardener, you know the power of plants to make us feel great when we're working with them, and taste great when we're eating them.
13:49But many plants can also have powerful inherent properties that can be harnessed for our needs.
13:57Think about things like coffee, and what about quinine, and even aspirin that was originally derived from willow tree bark.
14:06I'm at Southern Cross University in Lismore, New South Wales, and spread out across the campus is an extraordinary collection of plants for study and research.
14:20It's a plant nerd's paradise, and the perfect place for researchers to explore the powerful properties of plants.
14:33This here is the herbarium.
14:48Think of it as like a big plant library.
14:52There must be thousands of specimens in here.
14:56I can't wait to have a look around, but I think I'd better ask first.
15:03Peter Mowat is a pharmacognicist.
15:06That's a scientist who studies the chemistry of natural compounds.
15:12Peter, I knew I'd find you deep in the herbarium, but tell me a little bit about this title of yours, pharmacognicist.
15:21Pharmacognosy is the science of understanding plants and plant drugs.
15:27So here we have a collection in the herbarium of plants that have been used historically for foods and herbs and medicines.
15:35So we look at their chemistry and their relationships, and we find some pretty surprising, interesting things.
15:41So we can go and have a look at some of those if you're interested.
15:43Oh yeah, count me in for a surprise or two.
15:45Yeah, yeah. Okay.
15:46Okay.
15:47Which way, this way?
15:48This way, yeah.
15:49Like the garden, the purpose of the herbarium collection is to assist in the study and particularly the correct identification of plant species.
15:59Yeah, we'll have a look at this one.
16:00Oh, okay, that's a rosemary.
16:10What's the surprise here?
16:12Well, the surprising thing here in this case is the name of it.
16:16So we know it as rosemary, it's a common herb.
16:18But what they've found is that when they've looked at the genetics, it's closely related to the sage, the salvia, which is a very big genus of plants.
16:27Yeah.
16:28So it's more than, it's about 15% of all the mint family.
16:31So this has been found now to be part of that same genus of plants.
16:36So what's its new name?
16:38Its new name is Salvia rosmarinus.
16:41I mean, it's the same plant to us, we all know rosemary, but the official name and designation and the relationships are changing and that's something we try and keep up with and understand.
16:54So the name change with rosemary, is it a one off or are the changes more widespread?
17:01No, there's definitely changes much more widespread.
17:03So the whole of flowering plants or angiosperms, we're really looking at a lot of the relationships.
17:08Because a lot of traditional plant naming and classification is based on their flowers and their morphology, their leaf shape.
17:16We have situations where you have kind of convergent evolution.
17:19So plants have developed similar forms and traits depending on the environment they might be growing in.
17:26And so what we thought might have been closely related, we're actually now understanding different relationships.
17:32It's great to see plant people diving deep and using this new technology to take our knowledge to the next level.
17:41Yeah, and to an extent genetics allows us to actually look back deep in time to the relationships between plants,
17:48because, you know, they've been evolving over millions of years on the earth and that's giving us new insight.
17:55And the genetic identification of plants can also reveal their extraordinary deep history.
18:03I was having a look at this and when I smelt it, it's got a really strong scent.
18:08What is this plant?
18:09This is an interesting one. So this is actually a native licorice.
18:12Glyceriza racantha carpa. Mostly it grows around the river land in Victoria into South Australia.
18:19It's most closely related to the other licorice from Northern China.
18:23So this is like really isolated in Southern Australia.
18:26Not many people are aware that we actually have a native licorice.
18:29And that separation based on the genetics appears to have been about 2.8 million years ago.
18:36And it seems that the way that it got here, based on the fact that its fruit have quite spiky little things,
18:43is that it was probably carried here by birds that do the annual migration,
18:47have actually picked up some of these fruit and sort of carried it here millions of years ago.
18:52And it's become established and obviously adapted to the environment here.
18:58Along with their ancestral pedigrees, the scientific study of traditional uses of plants
19:05is a focus for research by Professor John Wardell.
19:09Alright, this is our medicinal citrus section that actually has a lot more medicinal history in use
19:14than most people would probably realise.
19:17Look at this, what exactly is this fruit?
19:21Well this is an orange, of course, but it's probably not the orange that most people would know.
19:25It's called a bitter orange, used in a lot of cultures traditionally for medicinal purposes.
19:30But this orange has been specifically bred for all those things we don't usually like in oranges and food.
19:35Bitterness, sourness, really good stuff.
19:38I love bitterness and sourness. Can I give it a taste?
19:40You go for it.
19:41Oh, that's something that I grew up with.
19:43You know, lemon and Greek go hand in hand.
19:47Here goes, I'm keen, I love bitter.
19:51It's a really thin skin, isn't it?
19:53It comes on quite thin and that's because, you know, the sort of things that we usually think of in pith,
19:58which are those bitter compounds, the pectins, they're kind of hidden in the orange itself.
20:03But as you chew more and more on that pectin and that sort of fibrous compound,
20:07the chewier it will get, the more bitter it will get.
20:10Mmm.
20:11Yeah.
20:12Quite different, right?
20:14Oh.
20:15Mmm.
20:16Mmm.
20:17Yeah.
20:18It's good.
20:19It's good?
20:20Yeah.
20:21It's tangy, it's bitter.
20:22It gives you that.
20:24And it tastes good for you, right?
20:26So, you know, that bitterness, that sourness, you know, complements that sweetness.
20:30Mmm.
20:31Yeah.
20:32Oh, I want more.
20:34And what's really interesting about this is that bitter taste has a lot of really interesting compounds that support digestion.
20:42And traditionally that's what bitterness is used for.
20:45Growing up Greek, bitter was a big part of it.
20:50Lemon was involved in so many foods, but also bitter greens, horta, such a staple at every meal.
20:59And it got you used to that, that it wasn't all about sweet and salty.
21:05Yeah.
21:06And when you look at modern food, we bred all that out and tried to make things sweeter and juicier and get rid of all that problematic texture and, you know, bitterness.
21:15But when you actually look at where these things come from, every citrus, you know, apart from the first four, pomelo, true mandarin, kumquat and citron, have all been developed.
21:24They're all human made.
21:26So these oranges have been developed over hundreds and thousands of years to be as bitter and as sour as possible because that's where the interest in medicinal use is.
21:34And that's what traditional medicine did and that's why we here at this university are trying to work from plant to patient to find out more about what we can learn from traditional knowledge and actually start validating the science.
21:47Not everything will work, but, you know, we can actually learn a lot from the ways that traditional knowledge owners actually used these kinds of foods and medicinal plants.
21:56And, you know, we're using that to actually start the process of finding what does work and what doesn't work.
22:02There may be huge opportunities for health science in the study of traditional medicine.
22:09This is our bush food and bush medicine garden.
22:11And John and his colleagues are keen to see the honours shared.
22:17What do you see looking forward when it comes to the important role of plants and our plant-driven future, really?
22:26Yeah, look, I think, you know, we're really passionate about what potential can come from plant medicines,
22:31and we're also really passionate that the traditions from which those plants come are also properly respected.
22:36And here at our university, we're really lucky to have an incredible Pekana woman leading Australia's first Indigenous-led First Nations medicines program.
22:44Dr. Alana Gall, Dr. Gall, is actually in Geneva working with the World Intellectual Property Organization, developing protections and frameworks to make sure that, you know, knowledge owners are actually not excluded from any benefits that might come from plant medicines and that, you know, any company that might want to actually work with them actually, you know,
23:00really engage with those communities and benefit sharing and recognition.
23:08As gardeners, we all know that plants are powerful.
23:11They're the source of so much good health in our lives and in our gardens.
23:16And they're the foundation of many of our medicines as well.
23:20But as traditional and new uses are researched and identified, it's critical that the plants and more so the knowledge itself is respected.
23:37Keeping an eye on my worm farm is very satisfying.
23:40It is super pleasing to see my worms being so happy and healthy.
23:44But right now, this worm farm is a little bit under the weather.
23:47So today I'm going to give it some TLC.
23:53Worm farms are a wonderful way to turn your kitchen waste into valuable resources.
23:57Worm castings as soil conditioner and worm tea for liquid feeds for your garden.
24:02About once a week, I like to come down and have a good rummage through and check up on my worms to make sure they're all happy.
24:09And of course, I come down as needed and pop in the scraps in my kitchen.
24:14And you'll see a few different things in here, including onions and citrus skin.
24:19And it's totally fine to include both of those things.
24:22Ideally, you chop them up a bit smaller than this one, but it'll still break down eventually.
24:27But generally, just make sure you have a good diverse range of food scraps all mixed in together and you're totally fine.
24:35We put a lot of cardboard into worm farms often as the topping to keep moisture in and moderate temperature.
24:41The worms love cardboard. They get inside the corrugations and basically eat it from the inside out.
24:46So eventually there'll be no cardboard left. You have to replace it.
24:49Meantime, they're having a good feed.
24:52If you see a few maggots in there, don't be alarmed as they won't affect your worms too much.
24:56In fact, you'll see all sorts of creepy crawlies in a healthy worm farm.
25:01So embrace it.
25:02You might notice my worm farm is pretty big.
25:05It's actually made from a recycled bathtub and I treat it like two compartments.
25:09I feed one side first and let the worms do their thing.
25:12Once that's full, I then move over to the other side and the worms just kind of move back and forth.
25:17When one side is full, I just let it rest for quite a few months.
25:20And when it resembles beautiful brown soil, that's the worm castings, it can all come out back onto my garden.
25:27If you see little vinegar flies buzzing inside your worm farm, just add some more carbon rich brown materials like newspaper clippings or straw.
25:35Hi Ollie.
25:36Hey mate.
25:37You in the help aren't you?
25:39Do some helping?
25:40I'm just mixing through some straw to help balance out those vinegar flies.
25:44But also, I had too many food scraps in there so I was getting a bit stinky.
25:47Adding that dry brown straw will get rid of any smell and restore balance.
25:52Worm farms also need insulation, especially when the weather gets too hot or too cold.
25:59Today, I'm just going to pop on some old brown cardboard and I've also got a towel which is 100% cotton which is ready to retire to the garden.
26:09Tuck it in.
26:11And we're also going to water it in to make sure it's got good moisture content.
26:16Worms love their water but it's kind of like Goldilocks conditions because it has to be just right.
26:21So, not too wet, not too dry, not too hot and not too cold.
26:26Just right.
26:28That ought to be enough.
26:31And here we've got some worm tea, which is the brown leachate that comes off your worm farm.
26:37Importantly, it has to pass through some mature worm castings and not just food scraps for it to be fertile.
26:44Mix it one part worm tea to 10 parts water and then pop it on your garden.
26:50A well looked after worm farm is a garden treasure.
26:54So by doing these few simple welfare checks, you can keep your worms thriving and your garden humming.
27:05Which native plants should I source for my green wall?
27:09And with a limited soil profile and often very exposed conditions, plants for green walls and roofs need to be both tough and adaptable.
27:17Fortunately, there is a huge range of Australian natives that are proving they can work in these applications with both drought resilience as one factor and also dense fibrous roots as another.
27:30It's no use if a plant can withstand the dry by using a 50 centimetre taproot if the green roof or the green wall only has a 30 centimetre deep growing medium.
27:40Now rounded noon flower, also known as cacalla, is a succulent similar to pig face which works really well on a vertical wall or your living sculpture.
27:49Still to come on Gardening Australia, we find out how to unearth a monster.
27:59Tammy gives us all the juice on apples and we meet a sculptor working with the grain.
28:08My father was an incredible gardener.
28:15We lived off all the fruit and veg that dad grew.
28:19And so we always had lots of veggies, a lovely garden.
28:25Yeah, my dad, my dad taught me to garden.
28:28Someone who inspired me for the love of growing was probably Peter Cundall.
28:34It was probably a big inspiration on like the vegetable garden.
28:41When I was in year five, I got into like a part school parliament thing and I was environment minister.
28:49And I started the veggie garden there and it was really good.
28:53So I'm fortunate that I come from a family of gardeners.
28:56But my biggest inspiration is my granny, Pat, who's here with us today.
29:00She's always, since I was very young, taught me different gardening, especially roses.
29:05When I would go and visit, she would have a single stem brown rose by my bedside table.
29:10Specially grown for me, that was always really special.
29:13And even now we garden together every time we meet.
29:17And every time I grow something special, it reminds me of her.
29:22Probably my mum.
29:24Yeah, because mum was always into the gardening and I think I just sort of followed suit.
29:29My nana.
29:30I feel like so many people have the same answer.
29:32My nana had this big beautiful, or still does, has this big beautiful garden down near Port Ferry, Killarney.
29:39And all of the grandchildren, we all would go out in the garden and just play all day.
29:44It was the most beautiful memories and I hope that I can kind of do the same thing for my kids.
29:49And maybe grandkids.
29:51Yeah.
29:52When I was young, it was my auntie, like we call her mama.
29:55Yeah, because she used to sing with her plants, in her plants.
29:59Yeah, because she always say, you need to talk to the plants and you need to sing to them,
30:03because they also have life and they have energy.
30:06In 2022, we met 15 year old Brisbane gardener, Aidan, and I was totally blown away by his passion for regeneration and native plants.
30:23This is my centrepiece.
30:25This is a Brachycine species Orme, so it's the Orme bottle tree.
30:30There's only, I think, less than 200 left in the wild.
30:33Yeah.
30:34And it'll hopefully count towards the conservation of the species in the future.
30:40So, it's a win-win, I guess.
30:42Well, we got wind of something big going down in his hometown.
30:49Something we knew that he'd love to see.
30:51So, I asked him if he'd cover it for us.
30:54Take it away, Aidan.
31:00I'm in Clontap, a coastal suburb in the city of Moreton Bay, about 35 kilometres north of Brisbane.
31:06Like lots of our urban areas, it's the suburb undergoing change.
31:11As more people move here, housing is being subdivided, demolished and otherwise renovated.
31:17Often, this means less space for mature, established gardens and trees.
31:22But it's not all bad news, and change can bring opportunities.
31:25Today, I'm at a fairly typical suburban block and house to see something inspiring.
31:30The owners of this house are renovating to create more space for their growing family.
31:37Sixty years ago, someone thought to plant this beautiful tree,
31:40and today we're going to see it safe in the skip as it's dug up, taken to its new home and replanted.
31:53Arborist Julian Ford and Michelle Tompkins specialise in transplanting rare and sensitive trees.
31:59Their first task is to protect the trunk of this Brachycontin rupestrus,
32:04so it can be craned up, out of the ground and safely moved to the Sherwood Arboretum,
32:0948 kilometres away.
32:14Next task is to safely dig out the root ball.
32:18Yes, it's got it on the outside of that.
32:21Yeah, about a metre.
32:23The couple keep an eye out for any large, lateral roots.
32:36Oh, look at that big sucker.
32:38And these are trimmed while still in the soil, using a reciprocating saw to minimise disturbance of the remaining root ball.
32:45The benefits of standing on the inside of the root ball while the excavator's digging,
32:58is that we can actually feel him picking up lateral roots or bigger roots,
33:02and like right now, you know, if he's picking that up and if he's going to damage that root,
33:07I would feel it move here and I would get him to stop instantly so I can trim the root so there's no damage to the tree
33:13and we can save that root.
33:15Yeah, that's looking good. Oh yeah, sweet as.
33:25So far, everything's going really good. I'm super excited and very happy.
33:29Oh, that's great.
33:30Yeah. How are you handling it?
33:31Oh, it's pretty interesting. I'm excited to see all the...
33:35I'm excited to see the excavation and see how deep the roots go.
33:38Me too.
33:39Yeah, it'll be interesting to see once it gets put up on the crane and everything.
33:43Hopefully not too much deeper, probably about another 30 minutes of digging
33:46and then the crane will be ready to pick it up.
33:51While Miss and Jules prepare the bottle tree neck to receive the crane arms,
33:55I'm taking a look at how much crane you need to make a bottle tree fly.
34:07Some extra protection for the trunk is added and the harness is connected to the crane.
34:12Hey Matt, could I get you on the bucket?
34:15Yep.
34:16Yep, we'll just dig around in this front corner.
34:18Righto.
34:19Before the first stage of the lift, a final dig around the root ball is done
34:23to ensure it comes away cleanly.
34:25Oh!
34:26Nice.
34:27Alrighty, how much do you guys think it weighs?
34:32Well look, I reckon it weighs six and a half.
34:36Alrighty.
34:37Six and a half tonne.
34:38Mm-hmm.
34:39I'm going to go with 6.8 tonne.
34:40What are you going with, Aidan?
34:42Oh, I don't know mate.
34:43I'll go seven.
34:44Seven?
34:45Mm.
34:46Alright.
34:47What's the weight?
34:48Eight and a half tonne.
34:49Oh!
34:50Eight and a half tonne.
34:51Hey!
34:52You're close.
34:53Now it's out of the ground, it's time to wrap up the root ball to protect it during the
34:58journey to its new home.
34:59Oh, zippies will be fine.
35:01Um, I actually want my pegs.
35:03It's pretty compact.
35:04Yeah.
35:05And with the wrapping done, the nail biting begins.
35:20This is the stage where the tree is most at risk.
35:24All eight and a half tonnes needs to be lifted over adjacent properties and then gently placed
35:29on its side to be transported.
35:30Geez, this is cool.
35:31Yeah.
35:32Wow.
35:33Real big.
35:34We've got to lay it over now.
35:36Uh-huh.
35:37I can see that Michelle and Julian are worried that the tree's not well enough supported to
35:44be tipped on its side.
35:45There's no way.
36:07Fortunately, none of the major branches were damaged,
36:13so now it's time to firmly strap it down to the trailer.
36:18Ah, I need those tyres covered.
36:31Alrighty, so you were just loading this tree onto the truck
36:33and then the unexpected happened. Tell us about it.
36:36Yeah, mate, my heart skipped. I don't know about yours.
36:39I think everybody else's did.
36:41But as they were loading it, we had a bit of a shift in weight
36:44and it came down just a bit faster than what we'd like.
36:47But otherwise, everything's all good.
36:49Lost a few skinny little branches, but we're all sweet.
36:52Oh, that's good. Nothing to worry about.
36:58And so, the next stage begins.
37:01The 48-kilometre drive to Sherwood Arboretum,
37:03just west of Bristons CBD.
37:05One key feature of Brachycottonbury Festus
37:09is its remarkable water storage.
37:12The tree's swollen trunk acts as a natural reservoir,
37:14helping it thrive during long, dry periods.
37:17It also means that these trees have a great success rate
37:20when they're transplanted.
37:22So, Prue, tell me about Sherwood Arboretum.
37:24So, Sherwood Arboretum is our heritage-listed collection of trees.
37:28We're at the Third Botanic Garden for Brisbane,
37:30and we feature over 1,300 trees from 250 species.
37:36It's a 15-hectare site, and this is a very special arboretum
37:41because it's exclusively Australian native trees.
37:44There's really nothing else like it in South East Queensland.
37:47So, what made you choose this particular tree?
37:49I love this particular tree because of its low squat form.
37:53It's got a really wide trunk on this tree.
37:55We have a number of other Brachycottonbury Festus on site,
37:58but nothing like this one.
38:00They're all individual in their form,
38:02and this one, you'll see,
38:04is really going to be a standout piece in the Arboretum.
38:07And how difficult is this tree to plant?
38:10So, this tree will take really successfully.
38:12There's almost 100% success rate in translocating.
38:15Well, what about the weather this afternoon?
38:17Well, you know, at least we won't have to water it in.
38:19Oh, and it'll be great for the plants as well.
38:21Yeah, absolutely.
38:22It's going to love it.
38:26It's unloaded on the ground here.
38:29Stand it up.
38:30Yeah.
38:31Turn it in.
38:34And hopefully we can beat the storm.
38:35All right.
38:37I think we'll beat the storm.
38:38I don't think the storm's going to happen today.
38:40I hope not.
38:57After a few false starts,
38:59the team worked out the safest way into the Arboretum for the tree.
39:02We'll get you to continue that.
39:05That's good.
39:11Yeah.
39:12That's a good half.
39:13I didn't want to go too deep.
39:14I want to have a little proud.
39:17Same.
39:17Yeah.
39:18Aidan, what we're doing here at the moment is
39:20we're going to take off the slings from the crane,
39:23re-sling it so we can lift it up straight up,
39:26and then we can spin it around all day long
39:29until we've decided exactly how we want it to face,
39:32and then we can play with the height of the root ball
39:35because you don't want these bottle trees being deeper than the ground level.
39:38Uh-huh.
39:39You want them a little bit proud.
39:40Sounds good, Leslie,
39:41to really customise where you sort of put it
39:44and what aspect you want and the position,
39:46so that sounds great.
39:50That's weighed off, isn't it?
39:51Put it in a hole, hey?
39:53As easy as that.
39:59It shouldn't come down too hard.
40:01Oh, I'll see how it's going to get...
40:06The other side of the root ball should stop it from...
40:17Oh!
40:19It's not too bad, not too bad.
40:21Sweet.
40:23Good work, Terry.
40:25I'll see how it slides into place now,
40:27so it sort of slides upright as you've rejigged it.
40:31I wish we had another sling.
40:38All right, bring it in.
40:39Beautiful.
40:39Yeah, let's get in.
40:55Yeah, we've got this guy here.
40:57Still got that.
41:03Yeah, we're still too high, aren't we?
41:13So what's going on here?
41:15We have to make the hole a little bit different.
41:17Yeah.
41:18The hole wasn't deep enough.
41:19Well, we need to dig it out just probably about 300 mil extra
41:22and it wasn't wide enough as well,
41:25so we're digging it out wider as well.
41:28All right.
41:28And then we'll add some new soil,
41:30and hopefully that'll do it.
41:32Oh, that's fair.
41:32Well, fingers crossed.
41:33The dance continues.
41:34The dance continues to try and fit that root ball, isn't it,
41:37in the hole?
41:37Yeah, it's like a puzzle.
41:38Yeah, it's like a puzzle.
41:39And you've just got to keep working it
41:41until you can get that puzzle to fit.
41:44A bit of experimentation.
41:45It's like a puzzle,
41:46but you don't know the answer yet,
41:48so you've got to figure it out.
41:49Yeah.
41:49And it keeps getting funner and funner.
41:51Here's the rain,
41:52so hopefully the thunder doesn't hit the crane.
41:54Oh, true.
41:55That'll make a TV, wouldn't it?
41:56That'll make a very good TV.
41:58I know.
41:59And boy, did it rain.
42:01So, with the bottle tree well watered in,
42:22it's set for its next 60 years, at least.
42:25Well, I had the best time today.
42:33Thanks for having us, Prue.
42:35And Aidan, it was a pleasure meeting you today
42:37and working with you.
42:38Oh, likewise.
42:39It was great to be out
42:40and see all the amazing work you guys do.
42:43Yeah, I just hope everyone will come out
42:45and see our beautiful new addition
42:46in our bottle tree grove.
42:55An apple a day keeps a doctor away,
42:58so they say.
42:59Therefore, growing your own apple trees
43:01must ensure a long and healthy life.
43:04You can grow them against a wall,
43:06on a trellis, in the garden,
43:09or create a small orchard
43:10if you have the room.
43:13Here, six different heirloom apple varieties
43:15are being grown.
43:17They fruit from January to June,
43:19providing a succession of crop
43:20for much of the year.
43:21Heirloom apples are really worth investigating.
43:27They are passed down through multiple generations
43:29and have unique colours, textures, and tastes.
43:34Apple trees can grow too large for most gardens,
43:37but these are espalier,
43:38which is an ancient tradition of growing
43:40that controls the tree size
43:42by tying and pruning.
43:44For restricted places,
43:45like a wall in your backyard,
43:47it's a great way to grow.
43:49These apple varieties have been grafted
43:50onto dwarf rootstock
43:52to help keep them more compact.
43:54The branches are trained to grow horizontally
43:56from the main stem at intervals.
43:58Just remember to place the ties
43:59at the knee, the navel,
44:01the nipple, and the nose,
44:03and this ensures you can easily pick your apples
44:05and net the trees too.
44:07Magna's summer surprise
44:09was developed in Tasmania,
44:11an unusual scarlet-skinned apple
44:13that tastes a bit like berries.
44:14The fruit is small to medium
44:16with a sweet flavour.
44:17The tree produces numerous fruits regularly,
44:21making it a lunchbox favourite.
44:23The added bonus is you can either store,
44:26dry, freeze, bottle, or juice the surplus.
44:29Heirloom varieties of apples
44:31stand out from the crowd.
44:33They're good lookers,
44:34crunchy, and children will love them.
44:36And if you plant several different trees
44:38to prolong the harvest throughout the year,
44:40you'll probably keep the doctor away
44:42for a very long time.
44:53Our next story is with a Perth artist
44:56who's creating real works of art
44:58through their connection with the timber.
45:00Working with timber,
45:14it's such a warm and inviting material.
45:17I think that it's a material
45:18that everyone's quite familiar with
45:20because we've all grown up
45:21with timber elements in our homes.
45:24I think it's a material
45:25we all know the touch of.
45:26We all know that kind of warmth.
45:29I think because it comes
45:30from a living thing as well,
45:32it's quite connected to our own matter.
45:37There's a real tactility to the work.
45:39It's a material that just invites touch.
45:46My name is Olive Gilhealy
45:47and I'm an artist, sculptor, and designer
45:50based in Western Australia.
45:52I mostly work with native Australian hardwoods,
45:55so things like jarrah, things like carrie,
45:58and also she-oak.
45:59There are other timbers like Chewitt,
46:01which are a little bit more rare
46:02because they grow only
46:03on such a specific little patch of land.
46:05They're probably the four top timbers
46:07that I work with
46:08that are native West Australian hardwoods.
46:10I try to source timber as ethically as possible,
46:17so it's usually salvaged timbers.
46:19I'm very lucky that I've got beautiful friends
46:21and family that have property in the South West.
46:24It'll be a matter of going on to people's farms
46:26or to people's properties
46:27and finding timber that's already been felled.
46:30I try to find things that are essentially
46:33what I call roadkill timber.
46:34Sometimes it will have fallen naturally through storms
46:38or sometimes it might be power lines coming in
46:40and it needing to be cut down.
46:43When I go out into nature
46:45and I try and source these fawn timbers,
46:48often I'll be looking at the shapes even within the wood.
46:51When I get to a kind of gnarled or unruly piece of timber,
46:56it is about following some of the shapes
46:58that are already within it
46:59and sort of working in a collaboration with the natural forms.
47:06I come from a family of artists.
47:07Both of my parents were painters actually
47:09and I think I was always drawn to being an artist.
47:13I've always used my hands to make things.
47:15Making's always been a really big part of my everyday life.
47:19When I was 18, I moved to Melbourne
47:20and studied at Victorian College of the Arts.
47:23I studied sculpture and spatial practice
47:25and I tried out a variety of different mediums.
47:28Like I did sewing, I did carving, casting,
47:31just a variety of different materials as well.
47:34But I had always been quite drawn to timber as a material
47:37and in order to explore that,
47:39I actually went to RMIT after that
47:41and studied furniture design
47:43where I really learned how to use woodworking equipment
47:46and really fell in love with working with timber.
47:53I ended up moving back to Perth
47:55because my dad was quite sick
47:56and it was just timing really.
47:59But in that process,
48:00I really fell in love with living in WA.
48:02I'm really glad that he kind of brought me back home
48:05because it is such a big part of my artwork
48:09and my art practice.
48:11I feel so connected to the natural environment
48:13and so connected to the coastline and the landscape.
48:16I feel like there is a beauty working in this kind of solitude as well
48:21and within this sort of natural environment.
48:23I spend a lot of time on my own in the bush or at the beach.
48:27It's really about being connected to nature.
48:29I live and work in Fremantle.
48:35The home that me and my partner share, it's got a wonderful garden.
48:40Such a big part of my practice is being in the natural environment
48:44and we try to bring some of that into our home so we plant natives.
48:48My boyfriend's a wonderful gardener.
48:51He has made a beautiful space here.
48:53It is a really calm place.
48:55There's something really wonderfully calm about living so close to the ocean.
48:59So when I go into the forest or the bush,
49:03I'll look for something I call Goldilocks timber.
49:06So timber that isn't too degraded and isn't habitat.
49:09It hasn't dissolved into the soil.
49:12Something that while it isn't too far gone, it also isn't too green
49:16because it still has to be a little bit seasoned, a little bit cured
49:19so that I know it's not going to crack in weird ways.
49:21And at the studio, I'll remove a lot of the bark
49:24and a lot of the soil from the work
49:27and from there, I'll kind of attack it with chainsaws
49:30and my more aggressive wood carving bits
49:33and remove a lot of the outer layers.
49:35Once I see the general shape that I like, I'll more intuitively carve it.
49:46So I'll start grading away and to reveal whatever the underlying shape may be.
49:51Sometimes it'll be heavily manipulated by myself
49:54and other times it might be more gentle.
49:57It might be more what I leave as well as what I remove.
50:00After I've carved it and there's often a lot of texture left behind,
50:04sometimes I really like the texture.
50:06It might be, you know, scalloped and quite beautiful repetitive sort of shapes
50:10but then other times I want to remove that.
50:15Using orbital sanders, I'll go up from, you know, 40 grit all the way up to 240 grit
50:20and really polish the work so that it gets to a smooth finish.
50:27It's quite a transformative process.
50:30By the end of it, you can really see what the artwork is going to be
50:33and I think it's like a really beautiful thing.
50:36And after it's sanded, there's a series of hand sandings that happen.
50:41Something special about Jarrah and also about She-Oak and Kari
50:45is that it's timber that's very high in tannins.
50:48The tannins within these red timbers actually have this wonderful natural reaction
50:53with a vinegar iron oxide solution.
50:57That is the ebonising solution.
50:59And so with that, I'll apply it to the finished product
51:03and it'll turn into this wonderful black colour,
51:06which I think really highlights the form of the work.
51:09I think what's really lovely about ebonising is that it's not like just painting the work
51:14and removing any sign of the grain.
51:16There's this lovely natural quality of it, which isn't artificial.
51:19It's almost like the timbers speaking itself.
51:24There are some pieces of work that happen so naturally.
51:28They just feel so freeing and so easy because I feel very connected to that piece.
51:34And then there are other pieces of timber that are a struggle the whole time.
51:38And in some ways, those artworks are more rewarding because they've been that much harder to make.
51:44But in other ways, they can be quite difficult.
51:49I try my best to bring a fairly young female perspective to the work.
51:54A lot of the shapes and forms that you see in my work, it'll be about my surroundings.
52:00So it'll be about the natural environment that I'm so drawn to.
52:02But it'll also be about my own shapes and my own forms that I have on my body.
52:07I think the work is really reflecting on the things I know.
52:13I work in a realm of woodworking and sculpture.
52:16And I think those are two things that have been really male dominated throughout time.
52:20I feel like there's a long history of men sort of admiring women's shapes and creating work in an almost voyeuristic way.
52:28Whereas I feel like I take those shapes and I try to make them into almost a form of self portraiture.
52:34Really, it's the shape or form that I really know because it's my own or it's my girlfriend's.
52:40A big part of each individual piece is the narrative surrounding it.
52:44So the narrative really starts with the tree from where the timber comes from.
52:48And then from that, it's the narrative I imbue in the work.
52:52So the process continues with me making each individual piece.
52:56And I think what's really interesting is that after I've worked with the timber, it starts a new life in someone's home as a new object.
53:05So there's a real life cycle to each of the works, the living tree, the dead timber, and then reworked into an art object.
53:14The garden never stops and there's always something out there to do.
53:28So we've got your jobs for the weekend ready and waiting.
53:32In cool areas, wind down your watering of indoor plants as the temperatures drop.
53:43Cold plants plus excess water equals root rot.
53:47Autumn's the best time to plant local native tube stock.
53:51So head on down to your local indigenous plant nursery to pick up some favourites.
53:56It's a great weekend to sow Mitsuba seeds, an unusual and aromatic Asian herb.
54:03In warm temperate areas, if the flowers on your curry bush have finished,
54:07give it a good prune to maintain shape.
54:10Cut flowers will dry well.
54:12Make the most of the extra rain and warmth left in the soil and sow coriander from seed.
54:19Winter cover crops like oats and mustard can be sown now
54:23to improve the soil fertility of dormant beds for future crops.
54:27In the subtropics, give your turf a good air rate this weekend ahead of autumn and winter rains.
54:34Plant subtropical bulbs like blood lily, whose otherworldly foliage and flower will fascinate any gardener.
54:42Can't keep up with your custard apple?
54:44Remove and freeze flesh for a sweet treat in the heat.
54:49In the tropics, if your papaya isn't as productive as it used to be,
54:53it might be time to take it out.
54:55They only last about three years, so put in a new one in a different spot
55:00to avoid disease crossover.
55:02Why not try something a little different and grow a mushroom plant?
55:06A quick grower in tropical areas, the edible raw leaves have a delicious mushroom flavour.
55:12Pump up the protein in your patch and plant some snake beans.
55:16It's a fast grower and expect harvests within seven weeks.
55:22In arid areas, now's the time to plant fennel,
55:25either sown directly or planted in pots for transplanting later.
55:29Notice little moving dots and fine webs on the edges of leaves?
55:33It's spider mite, sorted out with regular sprays from the hose and a good hard prune.
55:39If your date palm is setting fruit, cover bunches with a muslin bag.
55:44This will protect it from birds and insects and catch ripening dates as they drop off.
55:50And remember, you can always head to our website to catch up on info you may have missed,
55:55including all the plants featured on the show.
55:58Well, that's all we could squeeze in this time.
56:08But join us next week for our native plant special.
56:12I think you'll love it.
56:15What could be more special than an abundance of native blooms?
56:19I'm at a flower farm to get tips on growing your own bouquet of beauty.
56:24We've developed this method of growing them in containers in our greenhouse
56:27and we grow them quite well now.
56:30I'm visiting Goulburn Wetlands, a community and wildlife hub
56:34with two stunning native gardens,
56:37made possible by the collaborative efforts of local volunteers.
56:42Everything that's grown in here is local prominence.
56:45And if you wanted to create the perfect native habitat,
56:48I've found just the person to help us all understand
56:51what to be choosing for our gardens and how to grow up from seed.
56:55This is Australia.
56:56Australian animals need Australian plants.