balcony garden art for buoyancy foundation

This painting for the Buoyancy Foundation took:

*three meters worth of Acrylic paint

*weeks of floorspace in my loungeroom,

*reems of 80's music downloads from i-tunes

* a lot of vision. 3 meters of murkey undercoat for 90% of the painting time is not very self-encouraging.

You can see the whole thing on the balcony of Buoyancy Foundation, in Punt Road, just before Richmond Station

Enjoy. I did... eventually.

luxury worm farm for gorgeous compost

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wormfarm art by Cecilia
Possums, birds, water, all the usual wormfarm visitors.

The drawing is marker pen on photocopy paper, printed into a waterproof sticker.

Lucky worms. Loved worms.

Ladybugs at the show

Jane Davenport is on a mission to create one million Frogologists, and she just might do it.

I offered myself up to help her out at the Melbourne Flower and garden show, hoping some of her irrepressable, generative spirit would rub off onto me. She is all those things, plus sparklingly funny, and a graceful, raunchy user and abuser of the English language. "Discombobulating".



Photo by Jane Davenport

My house guest Mai Shimizu came along too - the dream she is chasing is to be a photogapher of fashion and flowers, just as Jane has done. Together things went 'click'. Of course: Mai too has big dreams, endurance, ability to find and savor small pleasures and treasures , and all the typical japanese virtures. Jane knows a good thing when she sees it, and took my Mai off to the Sydney garden festival, and Mai was beaming, brimming with happiness. There is nothing lovelier to see than someone you like feeling they are getting closer to their dream. Not ladybirds, not anything. Go Mai!

Blossom photos by Mai Shimizu

being a permaculture passive watering designer

No tapwatering, no problem, definitly no reason to let things die
The soil IS a tank


Replacing concrete with brick pathways like these, the water seeps into the ground, instead of swishing by dying plants down the stormwater drains. I found this charming place in Aukland: block by block, part of the street was taken over by this fellow who's hobby was laying this meandering reclaimed brick. That was the 50's Like attracts like, and it is still an enclave of creativity, deliciousness and uniqueness.

Its said that by May , drought-unaware Melbounians will be forbidden from watering their gardens. Of course its not true - we'll be forbidden from watering with Tap Water. Of course we can water with what we catch and store ourselves. Of course we can use our grey water. Except we aren't good designers yet, and don't have anyone to show us HOW.

If you know of someone who can re-arrange my bricks in this wild way, please introduce me.

Permaculture cuisine for Saturday's party - cooking day tomorrow.

These delectable party snacks by Mai and Aya, with help from Stephanie Alexander's cookbook, would qualify as 'Permaculture food'. Here is why....

The cottage cheese was made by Aya while she was WWOOFing at the Holmgren's - she even milked the goat. Parsley from our garden was added, and chives from the fridge, which made us wish we had planted more chives in our own garden : motivation preceeds action. The breadcrumbs were made by toasting and crushing old Philipa's bread, which reminded us to buy the best and use every little bit: turn leftovers into breadcrumbs BEFORE we need them (and buy more airtight containers). The olive oil is made in Australia (local) by organic farmers, bought in bulk (no jars to recycle), and the rest of it sits in the former laundry, for guests to decant in their own empty bottles they bring along - nothing for the recycling bin.

Creating just one permaculture dish can touch many areas of your cooking life.

"You try to pick up one thing by itself, and find it is connected to the rest of the universe"

Thank-you Mai for the cooking and photo. Thank-you Su for happy goats.

Fiddly food isn't worth it usually, but three of us did bits of the task, and it was effortless. Permaculture: the art of making things worth it.

Thank-you Jun, Yes, I would love to have you over tomorrow and make Okara-ryori together.('kara' is waste made from the tofu-making process,but can be reclaimed deliciously)

Festive weekend: balcony by the river

Day one, nearly set up. Where is everyone?

Wth Yumi, Maki and Hitomi, behind our stall with a very quiet wombat



Rearranged for a river view and breeze
(thank goodness I am surronded by designers)

My dear Conductor Raymond, making sure I'm feeling harmonious

Selling Permaculture

Hitomi is cool

Wetpots doing their thing

packed up and ready to go home

Herb TV and intrepid creator on their way home

and so are we

Wheatbag creation day this Sunday 5th Feb

Everyone who comes to live at my house gets taught how to make wheatbags, then gets addicted. They spend days making them for friends and family, to keep them warm and comforted through the winter.

You get some cotton material, a sixties skirt from the op shop is great. Fill it with wheat, and heat it five minutes in the microwave. Keep it on your lap as you study, or take it to bed with you.

It lets you heat yourself, not the air around you. You use five minutes microwave energy, instead of a whole night of heater energy. You don't get sleepy breathing in all that warm air.

I take a warm wheatbag and breakfast up to my balcony every morning through the winter. I took my Japanese textbook up there too, and stayed there studying for as long as it was cozy. Cocooned in another world. Wheatbags mean your investment in a balcony garden is one you can enjoy all year round. They are proof that you can reduce your energy usage not just by 10 percent, but by 10 times, if you get creative. Without sacrificing anything of value. Good Permaculture.

This Sunday Feb 4th, friends are gathering at my house to learn how to make wheatbags, make extra for me to sell at my 'Eden on your balcony' stall, and take a beautiful one home for free. Afternoon tea and new friendships, new inspiration all provided. Please come, but book first on ophelia@ocean.com.au

There will be a few more free workshop days - also Tuesday feb 6th. 0412-474-282