His 1000 litre tank can hold 10-20 perch or 40-60 crayfish

By Liina Flynn
Northern Rivers Echo
21st October 2010

Excerpt:

Wayne believes if more people can produce food in urban areas then rural land could be used for growing large-scale grain crops, or crops to make products currently made out of oil such as bioplastics, or hemp for clothes.

In the backyard in his 1000 litre tank, Wayne currently has a few perch, but said it can hold 10-20 perch or 40-60 crayfish. There are plant pots sitting in the pipes running around the tank, which are watered with the nutrient rich tank water. Deep-rooted plants are planted in the garden to pick up nutrients deep in the soil and are even used in the tank to filter the water. He has created a biological cycle where everything is used: from food scraps which feed the worms, which in turn feed the garden and the chooks.

On the roof of the house, Wayne has installed a three kilowatt solar energy system and said the household only uses half of the power generated from it, with the rest being fed back into the grid and generating about $3000 a year in income. Next to it is an efficient solar tube-style hot water system that only needs two hours of sunlight to generate hot water for showers and washing clothes.

“For a $20,000 investment, people can have a sustainable house,” Wayne said

Future plans include installing more water tanks and a grey water system to reuse kitchen and shower water in the garden.

Read the complete article here.

Docklands has come a step closer to achieving a community garden with the establishment of a demonstration urban agriculture project in Victoria Harbour.

A project of the Future Canvas organisation, the garden is a six-month experiment playfully called “reforestation” and is the brain-child of 25-year-old environmentalist Emily Ballantyne-Brodie.

Ms Ballantyne-Brodie said Docklanders could expect to see food grown in raised beds in a small plot on Victoria Harbour in front of Dock 5.

“It’s a demonstration in the art of being sustainable every day,” she said.  “Sustainable living is about well being and it’s about being active.  And gardening is part of that.”

“We aim to use this garden as both a wonderful source of organic food, to find out about the Docklands community opinion for a longer term garden and a community art project,” she said.

“We hope that it will become a hub for the community to gather, get to know each other, and learn a bit about how they can garden and recycle organic waste from inner-city homes.”

She said the site would be used to run programs such as composting, worm-farming, wise water use and to encourage people to think about how they acquire food.

Reforestation hopes to run environmental education programs with local businesses, primary schools and youth drop-in centres in the City of Melbourne, and work alongside existing sustainable lifestyle events such as Ride To Work Day on October 14.

“We have had amazing support from the City of Melbourne, Lend Lease and VicUrban, and we hope that we can really get to know the community while we’re here and find out what they would really love to see in a community garden,” Ms Ballantyne-Brodie said.

The above from Docklands Community News here.

See more at Community Garden Engagement and Education Site Docklands – Urban Reforestation here.

And more at Future Canvas here.

Book by Andrea Gaynor
2006 – 264 pages

Drawing upon sources ranging from gardening books and magazines to statistics and oral history, Gaynor presents an environmental history of non-commercial suburban food production in Australia. Her narrative traces animal, fruit, and vegetable production from the close of the 19th century to the present day. Particular attention is paid to the effects of economic conditions on home food production. Gaynor teaches at the U. of Western Australia. The text is based upon her PhD thesis.

Ch. 1 Into the suburbs
Ch. 2 Fecund and fetid : 1880-1918
Ch. 3 ‘His own vine and fig tree’
Ch. 4 Prudence and preference : 1919-37
Ch. 5 Fear and pride : 1938-54
Ch. 6 The contemporary and the cautious : 1955-73
Ch. 7 Circles and cycles : 1974-2000
Ch. 8 Conclusion : a diverse harvest

Purchase at Amazon here.

“As a community centre, CERES is also about helping people break through cultural barriers. They offer international cooking classes, migrant training programmes and set up education villages from the likes of Indonesian, African or Aboriginal cultures. Volunteer workers try to ensure that multiculturalism in Australia is not lost, but respected.

“While CERES’s programme is unique in its range of programmes, the urban farm trend is catching on around Australia, with city farms sprouting up in almost every major city. There is the Northey Street City Farm in Brisbane, established in 1994, where an education centre and a Sunday morning farmers market are a popular retreat.

Read the complete article in The Epoch Times, Mar 11, 2008

Link to CERES.
CERES farm demonstrates how an urban city farm can contribute to the local community by providing locally grown organic food, education in community food systems, a happening & ethical market place and employment for farmers, teachers and market workers.

“Ecocity Farm is an improved aquaponics system of food production which combines the breeding of fish with the growing of vegetables and, importantly, is designed for use in areas where farmland is at a premium – namely the urban, village and suburban environments where 75 per cent of the world’s population live.

“The Ecocity Farm produces more food per square metre than any other farming system, because unlike existing aquaponic systems, the Ecocity Farm produces little to no waste. All solid wastes within the system are converted into nutrients (through a biofilter) and used to “nourish” the vegetables. The system is also drought proof as all water is continually recycled within the system.”

Link to short video. Video loads slowly.