Category Archives: News

How to do it: Golf!?

FOBIF’s recommended lockdown reading for this week is a short article on a Golf Course! The article by Megan Backhouse can be found here. It’s to do with management of native vegetation on the Royal Melbourne course: ‘The club’s Black … Continue reading

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How not to do it 1: the Maldon catastrophe

Late last month Forest Fire Management crews groomed a significant area of Parks Victoria managed land on the south eastern edge of Maldon township. Grooming (that is, slashing to ground level) is common fuel reduction technique close to urban areas, … Continue reading

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How not to do it 2: the problem is…

Maybe as important as all of the above is this: workers should be fully briefed. The golfer’s artless comment that ‘there aren’t any plants’ in a recently burned patch exactly replicates the comment made by one of the workers to … Continue reading

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Don’t be put off by the big words

Prevailing wisdom in the political class envisages big population increases in Victoria in the next few decades. Whether these increases are a good idea, or will prove to be illusions after COVID 19 is not clear, but in any case … Continue reading

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Send a card to stay in touch . . .

Our greeting cards are now available from Buda, 42 Hunter St, Castlemaine, Friday to Sunday, 1-4 pm and Falkner Gallery, 35 Templeton Street, Castlemaine, Thursday to Saturday, 11-4 pm. We can also deliver them if you live reasonably close to … Continue reading

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Cats, dogs and biodiversity

Readers of the daily press will have noted the damning report on Australia’s biodiversity protection laws, which concluded, among other things: “The EPBC Act is ineffective. It is not fit for current or future environmental challenges, such as climate change.” … Continue reading

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Dogs, cats, chooks, biodiversity…and viruses

Which one of the above is the odd one out? Answer: none. The world is a pretty tangled place, and pretty well everything in it is linked. This is the gist of our recommended lockdown reading for the month: On … Continue reading

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Want to do your bit for biodiversity? Do it in the garden!

You have to admire weeds: their tenacity is an example to us all. Every gardener knows that they don’t give up without a fight, and the struggle against them can seem to be both thankless and futile. Even talking about … Continue reading

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Free spectacle on show now

This year has been a good one for mosses. Their bright green colours have been prominent, even dominant in many places. The roadside pictured below is a fair sample: With a bit of luck the season will get even better … Continue reading

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FOBIF July walk: Exploring the valleys

Yesterday’s FOBIF walking group was divided into two for the expedition into the upper reaches of the Columbine Creek catchment—COVID 19 regulations obliging us to keep each group’s numbers below ten. The two groups approached the circuit from opposite directions, … Continue reading

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