Month: May 2012

Indira Naidoo author of ‘The Edible Balcony’

Indira Naidoo, author of ‘The Edible Balcony’ speaks with Emily and Viarnne about her passion for growing food on her small, yet highly productive balcony in Potts Point, Sydney.

From Penguin: Join popular media personality and foodie Indira Naidoo as she embarks on a mission to transform her tiny thirteen-floor balcony into a bountiful kitchen garden.  She soon establishes a productive urban oasis that takes just ten minutes a day to maintain, yet provides her with an ever-changing selection of fresh fruit, herbs and vegetables.

Featuring 60 delicious recipes showcasing her home-grown produce, plus plenty of practical advice, The Edible Balcony charts a year in the life of Indira’s balcony garden and gives a season-by-season account of the triumphs and challenges she faces.  This warm and engaging book will inspire even the most reluctant green thumbs to channel their inner gardeners and reconnect with nature, while also saving money and reducing their carbon footprint.

Pest Repellent Plants

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of interviewing Penny Woodward about her new book “Pest-repellent Plants”. Penny is a delight to talk to, her knowledge is formidable and she is passionate about sharing her love for organic gardening. Her book reflects this passion and knowledge with great information and fabulous pictures. An extract from Penny’s website http://www.pennywoodward.com.au/ says it much better than I could.

“This edition is completely updated with new information and new photographs. It covers the philosophy of pest-repellent gardening, that the garden should be a haven for all creatures and plants, big and small, not a battle ground. That sprays that kill (even organic ones) should be a last resort. That gardeners need to concentrate on healthy soil and healthy plants, as well as a diversity of planting, including predator attracting plants. We also need to provide homes and food for frogs, birds, lizards and bats, all of which feed on pests. Then the book looks at masking, repelling and killing plants and their numerous uses. As well as other solutions such as traps, trickery, netting and barriers to keep pests away from our precious plants. And common household items that are organic and can also be used against pests: soap, molasses, coffee, bicarbonate of soda, copper, sulphur and even water, to name but a few. The final section looks at the pests.”

 

So sit back and listen as Michael O’Connell and Penny Woodward explore the natural control of garden pests.

 

The Greening of Gavin

We present part 1 of an interivew with Gavin Webber whose blog “The Greening of Gavin” www.greeningofgavin.com won Alternative Technology Association’s sustainable blog competition.

Gavin is a self confessed “ordinary bloke” who had an epiphany while watching “An Inconvenient Truth”. This set him on the path to reduce his carbon footprint and make changes to his lifestyle to live in a more sustainable and planet friendly way. He and his family have acheived this without compromising their comfort and happiness. More than that, they have been documenting their transition on the very aptly named website,

So click on the podcast and have a listen to this wonderful interview and don’t forget to tune in to the show next month when we will play part 2.