Welcome to the Garden Club Members Area
Welcome to THE GARDEN CLUB MEMBERS AREA
Welcome to your exclusive Garden Club Members Area. Consider this place your private haven for all things books! Explore new exciting content at the beginning of each month, and throughout the month escape into the resources whenever you need reading inspiration, solace or joy.
Your welcome emails will give you everything you need to know about how to enjoy the club, but please always reach out to us at any time if you need support
support@connectedau.com.au or call 0481 139 332
Meet the team here
Join the Club Chat here
"Street gardening is creating a garden in a public space (often by a resident outside their home) combining site awareness, observation and immersion with a particularly determined, generous, positive and community-centred mindset."
Did you know that in Melbourne, more than a third of all public green space is nature strips? That's quite something if you think about it and if looked at in a positive light, there is very real potential for the environmental and social benefits of gardens and gardening to have a profound effect on the wellbeing of cities and all things within them.
The best place to start is, of course, on your doorstep and in your local community and naturally, within local council constraints. Sometimes this process can be slow and difficult but don't lose heart - every little bit counts and if you focus on what you CAN do, rather than some of the challenges and obstacles that will inevitably arise, then you will be so incredibly proud of the impacts and results.
Scroll down for some more inspiration and information on Street Gardening to get yourself ready to make a big impact in your local area.
with the weather turning into the perfect time to get out and get planting, we wanted to highlight what might be an untapped area to spread your green thumb goodness - the street.
Street gardening
We hope you enjoy creating a special space for your community! Happy Gardening!
share your knowledge
It might be as simple as sharing the type of shrub that is hardy in a particular location, or the secret to seedling that take - whatever it is, your kind words and wisdom will make a positive impact and encourage everyone to get out into the garden and onto the street to enjoy the wonders of the plant world.
TIMED DRAWING CHALLENGES
Try to tie this in with your garden theme if the weather is nice head out into your garden for this activity and have a go at some fast drawings of something that takes your fancy outdoors! If there weather isn't ideal, you can easily bring it inside.
The time can be tailored to your group, so you can extend times as needed.
TWO MINUTE: DRAW THE GARDEN
Sit near your facility garden and pick out five items. Focus on each one and draw them within two minutes.
THREE MINUTES: DRAW YOUR SHOES
Shoes are the one article of clothing that retain the character of the wearer when they’ve taken them off – all other clothes just drop in an ambiguous pile. This means our shoes have a personality and life of their own and are great subjects for drawing. Note that leather shoes are more interesting to draw than sneakers! Look for buckles, laces or any interesting details.
FOUR MINUTES: DRAW THE BOOKSHELF
Look around and find a shelf with some different objects on it. Start the timer. Draw what you see, starting from the front and working towards the back. Don’t overthink it, just start drawing.
FIVE MINUTES: DRAW THE VIEW THROUGH YOUR WINDOW
Draw the view out of your nearest window. Start with whatever you see first (even the window frame), then draw in the next closest thing – maybe it’s a telegraph pole, a tree in the garden or something on the windowsill. Work back into the distance, making your lines lighter as you go to give visual perspective. If you have window panes, draw each pane as a separate picture.
A cheaky romance and another from the same author - both of which came with positive vibes and reviews.
This section of the members area is where we share lots of brilliant things we have found to keep you entertained and fulfilled for the month.
We don't expect you to get to it straight away, or even get to it all! You can re-visit this section anytime throughout the month to explore.
If you have anything you think the club would love, send it through and we can share it with everyone.
Top 4 recommendations by members this month
Fun for the month
Hellstrip Gardening by Evelyn Hadden, the author of the acclaimed Beautiful No-Mow Yards, is the first book to show you exactly how to reclaim this oft-ignored space. This comprehensive guide covers how to determine the city and Home Owner's Association rules governing the area, how to choose plants that thrive in tough situations, how to design pathways for accessibility, and much more. Gorgeous color photographs of hellstrip gardens across the country offer inspiration and visual guidance to anyone ready to tackle this final frontier.
A book to read
A little blog to discover
The Heart Gardening Project is a community initiative bringing humans and nature together joyfully through street gardening. It’s pretty awesome. Their blog is full of wonderful information, tips and tricks so it's a great place to start.
Some helpful info and Links
Here is an article from ABC Everyday by Jane Canaway "What you can plant on nature strips in Australia (and how to do it)"
What is and isn't allowed various enormously between councils so be sure to contact them to see what is possible. Be aware that they may be better at informing you of what is not allowed and not as confident in providing information on what is possible. This article is a great place to give you some direction and insight in to the movement and the councils that are making the most of the spaces they have.
A movie for a bit of fun!
A Little Chaos
The Heart Gardening Project
Something to watch
read it here
Watch
Hellstrip Gardening - Create a Paradise Between the Sidewalk and the Curb
by Evelyn Hadden
2. Chinese Yu Xiang Eggplant Recipe
Recipes from
the garden
SOME OF OUR FAVOURITE WAYS TO USE YOUR PRODUCE!
1. UPSIDE-DOWN MANDARIN POLENTA YOGHURT CAKE
