Bellingen Seed Savers
Grow your own food. We share locally adapted, open-pollinated, non-hybrid seeds, plants & knowledge for edible gardening
  • Home
  • About
    • Past Newsletters
  • Events
  • Seed Saving
    • Basics
    • Seed Packing
    • Sow What When
    • Seed Saving Handbook
  • Blog
  • Contact
October 15, 2023

Macleay Valley Seed Savers visit, Kati’s farm, Toorooka

NewsletterDon Open Gardens

Join our sister group the Macleay Valley Seed Savers to visit a small farm with food forest and medicinal garden.

We will definitely organise carpooling for this event.

RSVP below for details. Carpooling is encouraged, so note on the RSVP if you need a lift/ can offer one.

 

October 15, 2023

How to grow food workshop, Bellingen

NewsletterDon Open Gardens

You asked for it – “I want to learn more about how to grow food”, so Bellingen Seedsavers will deliver.

In this first workshop, Jeff will cover propagation from seed and cuttings. Nick will look at style, soil and light.

Be prepared to get your hands dirty! Bring a chair, plate to share for lunch, and sun protection.

 

RSVP below for details. Carpooling is encouraged, so note on the RSVP if you need a lift/ can offer one.

 

August 29, 2023

Bellingen plant fair

NewsletterDon Plant Fair 0 Comments

No need to RSVP just turn up on the day and support your local community of growers.

 

If you wish to volunteer for the Bellingen Seed Savers stall, please email Gillian plantfair@bellingenseedsavers.com.

 

For more information about the fair please visit the Bellingen Plant Fair website https://bellingenplantfair.org/

 

July 30, 2023

Plant fair seed processing and EpicEarth garden tour

NewsletterDon Open Gardens

We’ve lined up a seriously seed-centred gathering, with three-part agenda as follows:

 

  1. Seed processing for plant fair.

Bring in any A-grade, labelled heirloom seed you’ve collected for processing, sorting and packaging, in preparation for the Spring Plant Fair. Don’t have any seed? Come in anyway to help, or to learn about handling seed.

 

Have seed but can’t make it? Contact Jeff (phone 0438 655 728, email seeds@bellingenseedsavers.com) or Nick (phone 0474 114 773, email mail@bellingenpermaculture.com.au).

 

  1. Seed collecting for Ian’s wild experiment!

Bring in your B-grade, crossed, old or otherwise surplus vegetable seed. Ian wants to put together everything he can get from as many sources as possible, plant it out and see what happens! Maybe some super-resilient varieties will emerge, and if they do, Ian will distribute these back into the community.       

 

Have seed but can’t make it? Contact Jeff (phone 0438 655 728, email seeds@bellingenseedsavers.com) or Nick (phone 0474 114 773, email mail@bellingenpermaculture.com.au).

 

  1. Tour of Ian’s Garden

A number of Seedsavers highly recommend Ian EpicEarth as a teacher and soil consultant. He’s put together an impressive garden in three years, and will show us around. For more about Ian, check www.thegourmetgarden.school or on intagram @thegourmetgardenschool.

 

 

 

RSVP and troubleshooting:

 

RSVP by clicking the link below. When you’ve filled the form and submitted, you should receive confirmation and the address after a few minutes.

If you don’t receive confirmation, check your spam box and if the confirmation is there, mark it “not spam”.

Done all that and still nothing from us? Email Nick at mail@bellingenpermaculture.com.au and you should get that address within a day or two.

Still nothing after that? Keep trying! We will to get you there! Ring Nick at 0474 114 773. Good luck!   

July 2, 2023

Visit Vivienne’s and Paul’s garden, Bellingen

NewsletterDon Open Gardens

Paul and Vivienne are hosting us this time at their place a few minutes out of town. They are growing food and planting trees after starting from scratch, learning along the way. Here is what Paul had to say:

When we arrived seven years ago we really didn’t have a clue about how to start from a bare one Hectare paddock. We started to grow our paddock into a comfy home. And we had a lot of ideas about growing some food and propagating our plants to turn our paddock into a garden and forest for us and the animals. Just two crazy kids with a dream and a 15-foot caravan.

If you RSVP for this event, an email (containing directions) will be sent to the email address you provide on the RSVP form. If you do not receive an email, please check your junk mail folder.

 

June 13, 2023

Winter Solstice in Gleniffer with David Pepper

NewsletterDon Open Gardens

It’s that time of year again – exactly halfway through according to the sun.

Join the Bellingen Seedsavers in a feast (bring a plate to share), a walk around an interesting food forest garden, with an interesting guide (Sir David Pepper himself).

 

Please bring any seeds you have saved for sharing.

 

If you RSVP for this event, an email (containing directions) will be sent to the email address you provide on the RSVP form. If you do not receive an email, please check your junk mail folder.

 

May 14, 2023

Norfolk Island garden tour, with Leonie

NewsletterDon Open Gardens

 
 
Bellingen Seed Savers are going to Norfolk Island! We have at least one garden per day lined up, with time left over for the National Park, beaches etc.  
 
Dates are: leaving Friday, July 21st (6.30 departure from Coffs), returning Friday, July 28th (8pm return into Coffs). This is flying Qantas, which costs $1100 return right now, but the longer you wait, the more the price will rise.
 
Accommodation is basically free, crashing at Leonie’s house, or there are self-contained apartments as a package – all up $1840/ person/ week for airfares plus self contained unit (plus car hire). Again – the price will probably rise the later you leave it. 
 
Documents: Photo ID is required. A passport is useful but not essential, as Norfolk is part of Australia.

If you RSVP for this event, an email will be sent to the email address you provide on the RSVP form. If you do not receive an email, please check your junk mail folder.

 

May 13, 2023

Lisa’s Garden at Urunga and Planting Guide

NewsletterDon Open Gardens

Lisa’s been learning to grow vegies for a couple of years and her garden is a good model for how to make starting out easier. The setup is small, accessible, ergonomic and protected from pests. Soil is good and thanks to Lisa, it’s getting better. She’s still trying to out what you can grow in Urunga, so we’re going to workshop it!

 

On Sunday 28th May, the Seedsavers will meet, check out Lisas garden and collaborate on a basic planting calendar: cool season and warm season vegies, a dozen of each. The easiest, most productive, morale boosting crops, when to grow them and how.

 

Bring a plate to share for lunch. Car parking is limited, so carpool if you can (say on the RSVP if you want/ can give a lift).

Please do not attend if you are coming down with flu-like symptoms.

If you RSVP for this event, an email (containing directions) will be sent to the email address you provide on the RSVP form. If you do not receive an email, please check your junk mail folder.

 

April 16, 2023

The Patch Organics and Levenvale Farm at Bellingen

NewsletterDon Open Gardens

Some of you will already know The Patch Organics from their stall at the Bellingen growers markets. Luigi and Nidya will show us around their market garden, which is based on principles of certified organics, permaculture, biodynamics and traditional Italy.

The garden is a plot within an organic, regenerative beef farm. Georgina from Levenvale farm will also drop in for a chat about that too.

Bring a plate to share for morning tea. The site is not far from Bellingen town and carpooling is available – please advise if you need/ can offer a lift.

Please do not attend if you are coming down with flu-like symptoms.

If you RSVP for this event, an email (containing directions) will be sent to the email address you provide on the RSVP form. If you do not receive an email, please check your junk mail folder.

 

March 24, 2023

Garden tools workshop at Hans’s garden in Dorrigo

NewsletterDon Open Gardens

For thousands of years, gardeners have gathered together and compared the tools of their trade. Seedsavers keeps the tradition going on Saturday 1st April, from 1.30- 4.30pm at Dorrigo. If you have a favourite tool or two, then bring it in and we can have a chat about it. Hans – you may remember him as our garden host last November – will demonstrate tool sharpening and if you’re lucky you may get a chance to hone an extra fine edge on your best secateurs.

There will be afternoon tea – bring a plate to share. There is also carpooling available, so leave a note on your reply if you need or can offer a lift. The event is outdoors (in the shade) so it may not run in wet weather.

 
Numbers are limited so RSVP ASAP!

Please do not attend if you are coming down with flu-like symptoms.

If you RSVP for this event, an email (containing directions) will be sent to the email address you provide on the RSVP form. If you do not receive an email, please check your junk mail folder.

 

< 1 2 3 4 5 >»

Subscribe to our newsletter

Looking for advice?

We have a public Facebook Group for chats between seed savers – we all know gardeners love to talk about gardening! Trying to source a plant? Looking for gardening advice? This is the right place: Bellingen Seed Savers Chatter

↑