Firstly our thoughts are with all the communities that have been devastated through the recent bushfires and drought that our beautiful country has endured. Thankfully the recent rain bought some much-needed relief it also bought fierce winds and flash flooding, sending debris into our precious waterways and hampering vital back burning efforts.
The Yarra Valley and our Edible Forest has thankfully been spared from any damaging weather patterns recently. Since the fires I have listened to so many discussions on what the causes might be of these extreme events but feel we have a real rocky road ahead of us with so many different opinions. Let’s just hope we get the solution that is needed for change.
Through my work with our team at Global Gardens of Peace foundation, I truly believe that with any changes governments needs to look at developing green spaces within urban landscapes. Gardens and parks have the ability to bring temperatures down between 2-5 degrees and therefore are helping to maintain and cool our planet. Other major benefits of green spaces are that they are good for mental health and for social development. Unfortunately, too many of our new urban areas lack green spaces.
In the meantime, through all the hot days and severe weather, our team has been working tirelessly in the forest and our recently opened nursery. Our nursery offers our visitors the opportunity to purchase a vast array of unique plants that we grow in our forest, giving them the chance to enjoy some of the medicinal and edible plants at home.
Want to learn more about extending your harvest throughout the year? We have recently released some dates for fermentation, sauerkraut and pickling classes. It takes a lot of hard work to grow beautiful fresh produce, so why not continue to enjoy these in your meals in different seasons and learn the skills to properly preserve and ferment your harvest. Class timetables can be found at www.edibleforest.co/cooking-classes/
We have loved hosting the many visitors who have come to admire the Edible Forest over the summer holidays, they have certainly enjoyed the ‘tour & taste’ experience!
Louise Ward
