I thought that I should start this blog with a little bit of information about me and why I chose to volunteer to grow trees for Trees for Life.
EDITOR: Why are you writing this blog?
SIMON: Before my first season of growing for Trees for Life I did some research online. There was quite a lot of information on the Trees for Life website but I was only able to find a bit of information about the actual growing experience. I have since come across some blogs where the authors occasionally mention Trees for Life but I have not come across a blog that is dedicated to a volunteer grower and follows through the whole growing season. I am writing this blog as an online diary of my growing season. The idea is for me to update the blog every couple of weeks during the growing season with details of what is happening to the plants and some photos.
EDITOR: Have you ever blogged before?
SIMON: No. This is my first time.
EDITOR: What will be on this blog?
SIMON: Details of my volunteer growing experiences, perhaps a bad joke or two. The plan is to restrict this blog to my volunteer growing experiences, nothing more, nothing less.
EDITOR: What will not be on this blog?
SIMON: Anything that is not related to my volunteer seedling growing. So no politics, social comment, details of what my cat or dog gets up to on the weekend, good jokes.
EDITOR: Have you been interested in Australian Native plants for long?
SIMON: I think I have always liked Australian native plants. I have become more passionate about them in the past few years. Adelaide being in a drought and having water restrictions for the past 5 or so years encouraged us to plant more native plants in the backyard to save on watering. Recently I have been sourcing plants indigenous to my area. If the plants grew naturally in our area then they are well suited to the climate and the rainfall (or lack there of). Once they are established they should be relatively low maintenance (If only I could get rid of the weeds).
EDITOR: Where do you do your online research of indigenous plants?
SIMON: Most council websites contain lists of plants that are indigenous to their areas. They are a good place to start if you want to re-establish the natural biodiversity of your area/yard/property. Another good place to research is the Backyards for Wildlife website. They are a great source of information on native biodiversity for metropolitan Adelaide. You can even enter your suburb in their online database and it will list many of the indigenous plants to your suburb.
EDITOR: Why did you initially volunteer to grow trees for Trees for Life?
SIMON: I like gardening (not the weeding part, but seriously does anyone like weeding?) and I have an interest in Australian native plants. Trees for Life are an organisation that have been around for a while and have played a role in re-establishing native plants back into the wild. It is my way of helping re-establishing the indigenous biodiversity of our state.
EDITOR: Tell me a little about yourself?
SIMON: Here is a brief description (Details correct as of November 2010)
- Age: 30-40
- Work: in an office
- Family: Yes
- Pets: Yes. Cat, Dog, Budgie (small parrot/bird), Chooks (Chickens)
- Location: Adelaide suburbs (EDITOR: hmm not really a surprise given Trees for Life is a South Australian organisation based in Adelaide)
- House: yep a house with a back and front yard.
EDITOR: Any last comments?
SIMON: I don’t know if anyone will ever read this blog, but I am committed to blogging for at least 1 growing season. It would be a nice feeling if someone reads my blog and decides they would like to become a volunteer grower for Trees for Life.
Cheers Simon
Page last updated November 2010
