Aquaponics is one thing I haven’t thought about venturing into. I always thought setting up an aquaponics system looked too labour intensive, and it needed a lot of water. Plus I love the smell and touch of soil, and all the little critters that good, healthy dirt brings.

However, through Greenfoot I have been in contact with a few people who run their own backyard aquaponics systems and, once set up, they assure me aquaponics is less labour intensive and uses very little extra water.

It’s also the symbiotic nature of such a system that I find quite fascinating. (more…)

Early last year my friend Matt began his journey into the mythical world of growing garlic. Towards the end of last year I was able to sample some of his delicious and potent little cloves of garlicky goodness.

According to Matt, late February to early April is the best time for planting garlic in Sydney.

Taking Matt’s advice, I’ve held onto my bulbs from him until now - although I did eat about half … yum. I finally planted them today. My son helped by stuffing a clove into each hole I made in the soil. He then used his little watering can to moisten the soil.

Being 29 weeks pregnant, my belly and bad back are beginning to hamper my gardening abilities. Therefore, I’m winding up most of my garden beds for winter by heavily mulching them over and letting them rest.

However, I figure garlic will be pretty easy to grow over these months and won’t need much care or labour. The garlic now lives in the sunniest sections (during winter) of my garden.

Matt has kindly provided another update on his garlic expeditions - no doubt he has just planted some more garlic in his own garden. Read on for Matt’s update. (more…)

Know someone, a business or organisation that has been working hard to help the environment? Then why not nominate them for the United Nations Association of Australia World Environment Day Awards 2008.

This is a national awards program that recognises businesses, local governments, organisations, community groups, individuals, schools and the media whose work serves to protect, manage or restore the environment.

Anyone can submit a nomination. Nominations close 2 May 2008.

To celebrate 100 issues of ReNew magazine, the Alternative Technology Association is holding free sustainable house open days. The houses will be open this weekend across Australia.

Last year I checked out a few houses in Canberra during Sustainable House Day which gave me loads of ideas and inspiration for my own home. You have to pay to enter the houses during Sustainable House Day so this free event is a great opportunity to get inspired by people who are living the “sustainable dream”.

The weird thing is I will be in Canberra again this weekend so if I get time I will try and check out the house in Mawson. If you are in Sydney, you can visit Michael Mobbs’ house in Chippendale, which was one of the first sustainable houses in the city. Bummer I will miss that one.

A friend at work has built himself a chook dome . This produces a generous amount of eggs for his family and work colleagues (the lucky ones) plus loads of excellent fertiliser for his garden.

Matthew has kindly provided Greenfoot with his tips for cultivating chickens. (more…)

There are loads of ways we can all take action to lessen our footprint on the earth. Many of us are reducing our water consumption, buying green power, retrofitting our homes or recycling food scraps and packaging.

However, one young woman has come up with the novel idea of walking from Sydney to Brisbane to raise awareness about global warming.

Sarah Bishop is 22 and has already left Sydney. She plans to arrive in Brisbane for Earth Hour on March 31. She says she was inspired by the film An Inconvenient Truth and Tim Flannery’s book The Weather Makers. Check out her website or read an interview with her on WWF’s website.

Imagine giving up money, your car, electricity from the grid, town water, supermarket goods, junk food and chocolate for six months! Linda Cockburn, her partner Trevor and son Caleb did just that as an experiment and adventure into domestic sustainability.

While living in their suburban Queensland home, Linda writes her experiences in a book called Living the Good Life. During this journey Linda and her family grow their own food, draw electricity from the sun, water from the heavens, transport power from bike pedals, goods from bartering and health from their lifestyle. (more…)

Whether you live on acreage, a suburban block or in an inner city apartment, there are many ways to create a greener and more sustainable life.

Janice, a Canadian who now lives in the inner city of Sydney writes about the potted garden she’s created on the large verandah of her apartment. She also shares her water saving, and organic fertilising and pest control tips. (more…)

Rohan, a friend who lives in Brisbane recently finished building his own grey water system for $121.

To quote Rohan, “This was a simple exercise! Now we have showers and brush teeth while watering our thriving QLD tropical garden.” He also says that a washing machine can also be converted to grey water with a hose connecter and irrigation line headed for a mulched garden bed. (more…)

A few months back I wrote about my search for good insulation. The search is ongoing but a Greenfoot reader called Paul recently posted a great comment about his experience with installing insulation in his home.

He talks about installing Air-Cell insulation and the differences in insulation. It is a great read for anyone considering insulating their home. Anyone else have any experience with installing insulation in their home? Please share your stories here. Read on for Paul’s advice.
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