Engrossing analysis of the US failed climate bill

It’s in the New Yorker, here: www.newyorker.com… Excellent writing about a key moment in US and Earth’s history. Enjoy, M  Read More

Food boxes report

I’m a volunteer City Cousin for Sydney Food Connect and locals come to my place each Wednesday to collect their fruit and vegie boxes. The October Newsletter contains the monthly report on food miles, how much of our money went to the farmers and sales; here it is: Impact last month Every box from Food Connect works very hard for a better world and over the month of September... Read More

Trees do furnish a street

A beautiful tree centred street, Surry Hills Mulberry tree and fruit, Surry Hills Here are two beautiful streets I walked down today in Surry Hills. One has trees down the middle. One is blessed with a banquet of mulberries some of which I picked and ate . . . mmmm.  Read More

65 Degree Compost

Free limes in Peace Park Someone put a box of free limes on the espalier fence in Peace Park.  Thanks. We put some mulch in the potato sacks L to R: Xavier, Rachel, Karlie One of the street compost bins today measured 65 degrees (Rose on corner Rose, Myrtle, south side).  Amazing. We were slack today and knocked off early.  Xavier brought some cumquat and orange marmalade he’d... Read More

Bob Carr blogs book launch

Bob Carr has blogged yesterday’s book launch of Sustainable House here:   bobcarrblog.wordpress.com… Enjoy, M  Read More

Soil, slavery and the American Civil War

Declining soil fertility was a prime cause of the US Civil War according to Peter Montgomery.  In his book, Dirt, the erosion of civilizations, Montgomery says: “The economic significance of limiting slavery’s expansion lies in the central role of soil exhaustion in shaping plantation agriculture and the southern economy . . . In the half century leading up to the Civil War... Read More

Painting the grass green

A masters student studying here in Sydney from the US, Amanda, told me last week that US banks are painting the lawns of their repossessed houses green. Here’s how it goes. Many US town Councils have laws requiring home owners to maintain green lawns.  This is so even where the towns get almost no rain.  In Amanda’s town they get just 200 mm of rain a year –... Read More

Early media on Sustainable House book launch

The online magazine, The Fifth Estate, has a story today on the launch of the second edition of Sustainable House, and an extract from it, too;  here – www.thefifthestate.com… Enjoy, Michael  Read More

Compost bin temperatures

Nathan has made a graph including the latest temperatures in the compost bins in Peace Park, Myrtlle and Rose Streets. Thanks to Nathan, Michael Temperatures in the compost bins – September 2010  Read More

From blokes in bee swarm to ravished garlic bed

These are a few of my favourite (recent) things; pics of things gardening brings to one . . . An excellent bush pick good for bush regen Bob in charge of the property next door Bob in the property next door where, as we can see here, she is Absolutely In Charge there, too. Bob dug up The Chook Whisperer's Garlic Here, Bob has overplayed her hand.  Well, her claws, really.  Following... Read More