Paul and Fran Kirkpatrick's beautiful small-space garden in Cape Patersonis one of 15 very different gardens opening for the weekend.
By Sharon Willcox
THE bees are buzzing and producing honey and gardeners are pruning and mulching their gardens, getting ready for the return of the Bass Coast Edible Gardens Weekend.
The inaugural event in 2022 attracted about 600 people and it returns on Saturday and Sunday, February 4-5. Once again, 15 food gardens will open over the weekend, with the gardeners keen to share their tips and advice on what grows well in Bass Coast.
Nine of the participating gardens are opening for the first time this year. They are joined by six of the crowd favourites from 2022, including Bhavani and David’s permaculture farm in Ventnor, Mary and John’s food forest in San Remo, and Peter and Lyn’s rambling rural property in Glen Forbes.
THE bees are buzzing and producing honey and gardeners are pruning and mulching their gardens, getting ready for the return of the Bass Coast Edible Gardens Weekend.
The inaugural event in 2022 attracted about 600 people and it returns on Saturday and Sunday, February 4-5. Once again, 15 food gardens will open over the weekend, with the gardeners keen to share their tips and advice on what grows well in Bass Coast.
Nine of the participating gardens are opening for the first time this year. They are joined by six of the crowd favourites from 2022, including Bhavani and David’s permaculture farm in Ventnor, Mary and John’s food forest in San Remo, and Peter and Lyn’s rambling rural property in Glen Forbes.
Another new element in 2023 is that several of the gardens will be offering demonstrations or selling produce and gardening-related goods. Rooks Little Farm and the Phillip Island Community Orchard are hosting free workshops by a beekeeping expert. At Chill House Mini Farm in Cowes, Paul is offering tastings of his fruit and berry-flavoured meads (fermented honey), as well as selling honey.
| At June and Winton’s Inverloch garden, Native Seed Box will sell their ‘throw and grow’ native seedbombs. In Cape Paterson, Paul and Fran have drawn on their years of horticultural experience to offer well designed gardening tools. The Cape Farm, newly opened in the Cape Paterson Ecovillage, will have seasonal produce and seedlings for sale. And finally, Jane in Wonthaggi has written a book on gardening throughout the year and living resiliently. A weekend may not be enough time to take all this in! | Help wanted BCAL needs volunteers to welcome visitors and check or sell tickets, so the gardeners are free to chat with people and share gardening info. Shifts are three hours, 10am-1pm or 1- 4pm on Saturday or Sunday. Volunteers receive a free ticket to all 15 gardens over the weekend and our grateful thanks! If you can help, please contact Maddy Harford on 0414 685 276 or maddy.harford@gmail.com |
For those who are keen to get their hands dirty in their own gardens, raffle tickets will be available of a gardening cart filled with gardening products, kindly donated by Bunnings Wonthaggi.
To build on this weekend, Bass Coast Adult Learning (the organiser of the weekend) will be offering workshops on composting, pruning, preserving and other gardening and sustainability issues later in 2023.
Tickets are $25 to visit all 15 gardens, or $5 to visit individual gardens, with entry free for children under 16 years.
Tickets are on sale at www.basscoastediblegardens.com or through cash sales on the weekend. All 15 edible gardens are open from 10am to 4pm on Saturday and Sunday February 4 and 5.
Sharon Willcox is the events co-ordinator for Bass Coast Edible Gardens
To build on this weekend, Bass Coast Adult Learning (the organiser of the weekend) will be offering workshops on composting, pruning, preserving and other gardening and sustainability issues later in 2023.
Tickets are $25 to visit all 15 gardens, or $5 to visit individual gardens, with entry free for children under 16 years.
Tickets are on sale at www.basscoastediblegardens.com or through cash sales on the weekend. All 15 edible gardens are open from 10am to 4pm on Saturday and Sunday February 4 and 5.
Sharon Willcox is the events co-ordinator for Bass Coast Edible Gardens
