Category Archives: News

So: what’s that grey discolouration in the water of Forest Creek at the Wheeler Street bridge, after rain last week? Answer: It’s pollution runoff come down the gutter from somewhere in the town. We won’t speculate as to exactly what … Continue reading →

Speaking of tradition: we occasionally hear complaints that conservation reserves ‘lock up’ public land, and deprive people of their traditional rights, including the right to drive anywhere they like. The fact that millions of Australians visit our reserves each year … Continue reading →

Eight new FOBIF greeting cards (series 2) are now available. They feature photographs of our local bushlands by Frances Cincotta, Joy Clusker, John Ellis, Patrick Kavanagh, Sarah Koschak, Doug Ralph, Bronwyn Silver and Albert Wright. Our first series has now … Continue reading →

Readers of the Castlmaine Mail sports section on June 5 will be aware that there are plans afoot to create a mountain bike network of ‘about 50 kilometres’ in the Walmer State Forest. This forest is already networked by informal … Continue reading →

Anyone tried to look for useful info on the Parks Victoria website? Anyone had a go at finding the Castlemaine Diggings NHP management plan, for example? Forget it. Parks website does carry a number of management plans, but not for … Continue reading →

That persistent gold…is it gorse? Is it oxalis? Is it Cootamundra Wattle? Is it a pain? Yes to all four! Let’s forget about Oxalis and Cootamundra, and focus on gorse  (Ulex europaeus). Introduced to Australia as a hedge plant in … Continue reading →

When we published the photo below five years ago, the only features in this bleak wasteland were a single golden wattle, a pile of rubbish, one patch of Gold Dust Wattle, and two small bushes of Daviesia ulicifolia, Gorse Bitter … Continue reading →