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 southern agriculture’s reliance on slave labour precluded the widespread... 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 – about as much as Moree or some far west Aussie town. When the banks repossessed... 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 this travesty, when most of the garlic was rooted out after... Read More