Field Days: Lectures and workshops

The Mudgee Small Farm Field Days are celebrating their 40th anniversary this year. Watershed Landcare be in attendance with a great program of lectures, workshops and activities for the event.

The Mudgee Small Farm Field Days will be held on Friday 14 and Saturday 15 July at the Australian Rural Education Centre (AREC) Ulan Rd, Mudgee.

Have you ever wondered how to eat sustainably in the modern world? Come along to the Straw Bale lecture room where Agro-Ecologist David Hardwick will de-mystify the modern food system and show how your choices impact on the environment, farmers and your health.

Other lecture topics will cover free range pig farming, Stress Free Stockmanship, the secrets of designing a home that’s warm in winter and cool in summer using natural local products and, how you can implement regenerative agricultural techniques on your farm.

We have invited Doug Purdie from The Urban Beehive back this year to talk about how easy it is to keep bees on a small scale and produce your own honey. Doug’s presentation will cover the types of hive, basic equipment and the do and dont’s of backyard beekeeping.

The Mudgee Bee Group will also have a display including different types of hives. Members will be on-hand to answer your questions and share their experiences.

Join us for an active workshop building bee motels and learn about our native pollinators and how to provide habitat for them in your backyard. Hone your skills in spotting the difference between serrated tussock and the innocent native bystanders at a workshop in which you will learn how to identify the key features of these plants.

We will have also have plenty of information and displays at the Waterwise Garden demonstration site, locally grown, native tube stock for sale, and, of course, our beautiful display garden of waterwise and salt tolerant plants for the Mudgee district.

Do you have a mystery plant growing in your paddock or bushland? Bring along a specimen to the Watershed Landcare botanist/grazier Christine McRae to identify (bring a GOOD sample, including leaves/roots/stems/flowers/seeds if possible).

Or just drop by for a chat with other Watershed Landcare members, thaw out by our fire and find out what we do, how to get involved in our projects and become a member.

These events are supported by Watershed Landcare and are a part of the NSW Government’s Local Landcare Coordinators Initiative, supported through the partnership of Local Land Services and Landcare NSW.