Groundswell | February 2021 by ngivictoria

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Volume 32 Number 2 February 2021 PUBLISHER

NURSERY & GARDEN INDUSTRY VICTORIA

PRESIDENT Simon Gomme CEO Craig Taberner

CONTENTS

CONTRIBUTORS Simon Gomme, Leigh Siebler, Craig Taberner, Matt Ross, Gabrielle

3 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Stannus, Chris Sheedy, Ross Wissing,

4 CEO’S MESSAGE

Ali Sardyga, Nicole Mulloy, Nan Cleven

6 A MASTER CLASS IN GROWING MEDIA WITH AGS

ADVERTISING NGIV T: (03) 9576 0599

8 BOMBORA POTS FOR EVERY PLANT

ADDRESS Unit 3, 307 Wattletree Road,

10 ROYAL BOTANIC GARDENS VICTORIA’S NEW ARID GARDEN

Malvern East VIC 3145. MAILING ADDRESS

11 MIFGS 2021 UPDATE

P.O. Box 2280, Wattletree Road LPO,

12 THE FORMIDABLE TEAM BEHIND LARKMAN NURSERIES

Malvern East VIC 3145. TELEPHONE (03) 9576 0599

14 AHT2020 HIGHLIGHTS

FAX (03) 9576 0431

16 FLEMINGS: REMAKING HISTORY

EMAIL ngiv@ngiv.com.au

18 COVID-19 HIGHLIGHTS THE VALUE OF AUSTRALIAN BACKYARDS 20 MAKING ‘BOOMERANG EMPLOYEES’ PART OF YOUR HIRING PRACTICE 23 HOW ADAPTABLE ARE COMMON URBAN TREE SPECIES UNDER DROUGHT CONDITIONS 24 TRADE DAY REPORT

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www.ngiv.com.au Our front cover: Add contemporary style with Bombora Pots www.bomborapots.com.au www.growbetter.com.au

FINISHED ART Vale Graphics M: 0409 88 77 06 E: angie@valegraphics.com.au PRINTING Norwood Industries 6 Wedgewood Road, Hallam VIC 3803.

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Simon Gomme President, NGIV I’d like to use this month’s President Report to update you all on developments surrounding the relocation of NGIV’s Trade Day and how you can get involved in shaping its future. The consultation and engagement process is now well underway. A Working Committee of myself, Adrian McCarthy, Trade Day Chair and NGIV Director, Matt Mills, NGIV Director, Greg Carrick, Trade Day Committee Member, David Matthews, Proteaflora Nursery, Andrew White, Humphris Nursery, Craig Taberner, Secretariat, David Reid, NGIV Staff; was quickly assembled and have already met to discuss a strategy. Communications to update our members on developments and seek their insights will be regular and ongoing during this process. Make sure you’ve subscribed to NGIV’s weekly e-Newsletter for full updates. We want to build not just an event, but an experience, that meets the needs of our current stand holders and buyers, whilst attracting, a new, and larger audience. We’ll be seeking your feedback to better understand the below questions and lots more: >

What’s important for us to retain at Trade Day?

What enhancements would be attractive for you?

What enhancements would benefit the industry?

What other services could NGIV offer during the event, for example, a central point of sale, stand to vehicle delivery, free trolleys, electric carts, forklifts for stand holders, technology?

Should the event be held weekly, fortnightly, monthly, quarterly or another configuration?

Do you have a preferred day, time and duration, for the event?

Would your member businesses consider leasing a space or constructing a purpose-built site for NGIV Trade Day?

What new industries and/or stand holders would you want to attract?

All members will have the opportunity to offer feedback through a combination of virtual sessions, registered emails and telephone discussions, survey, and more. If you do have any feedback at this stage, please do share them with Craig (e:craig@ngiv.com.au or m: 0417 337 349) Whilst we have many great memories of bringing the industry together at Caribbean Gardens, we’re excited about the opportunity that comes with change, to do things differently and create something special together.

Simon Gomme President, NGIV Powerplants Australia GROUNDSWELL FEBRUARY 2021

CEO’S MESSAGE

We are also starting to offer in-person events again. The Tree & Shrub Growers recently got together to enjoy a game of lawn bowls and a chance to socialise again.

Craig Taberner CEO, NGIV It’s certainly been a busy start to 2021 with the demand for plantlife showing no signs of letting up and the industry adjusting to operating under COVID-Safe conditions.

The ever-popular NGIV Annual Golf Classic will have taken place by the time you read this. Held at Settlers Run Golf Course at Botanic Ridge on 5 February, it’s always well supported and a great chance to socialise with industry peers. Let’s see if anyone wrestled the win from Tall Trees this year. After more than 40 years of calling the Caribbean Gardens site in Scoresby ‘home’ to our trade day, the Caribbean management team have exercised their right to serve us with a six-month period of notice. We’re excited about the opportunity that comes with change, to do things differently and create something special together.

It was with regret that a decision was made in January not to proceed with the scheduled dates, 24-28 March 2021, for the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show.

The NGIV Board, Management and a newly formed Working Committee, have commenced an exhaustive consultation and engagement process, to ensure we understand the diverse needs of our membership.

Towards the end of 2020 we had a great sense of optimism and were very much hoping everything would have returned to normal in time to stage this year’s event. However, a recent spike in interstate case numbers, border closures and other Covid-19 related restrictions has again added further uncertainty to the Covid-19 impact and presents an extremely challenging environment to deliver an event of this magnitude.

We are committed to exploring different opportunities to evolve from what we currently offer at Trade Day and the NGIV Board is very openminded about what that will look like; its frequency, timing, location and format. Those are all criteria that our working committee will address in consultation with our members.

After carefully considering the interests of all our stakeholders, we cannot proceed with any confidence to stage an event in March 2021 that meets the high expectations of all our partners and visitors. With so much planning and effort required to bring the Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show to life, we have an obligation to make the decision sooner rather than later. It cannot be under-estimated how important the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show is to the horticultural industry – it is a platform for an entire industry and for the public to learn, be entertained and inspired. With that in mind, we are exploring alternative options and dates for a show in October 2021. At NGIV things are slowly getting back to normal, with the team transitioning back to the office during January.

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I’d like to encourage you all to take part in the consultation process, so we can deliver an event that meets your needs. Find out more about that in Simon’s President Report. Finally, I’d like to encourage members to reach out to our Communications and Marketing Officer, Matt Ross, for assistance with your communications; it may be that you want to build your social media following, experiment with video content or you just wan to bounce some ideas around. Matt (matt@ngiv.com.au) has over decade of experience in communications and would be glad to help out.

Craig Taberner CEO, NGIV

PROFILE: AUSTRALIAN GROWING SOLUTIONS

A masterclass in Growing Media with AGS By Matt Ross I arrived at Australian Growing Solutions (AGS) Tyabb site with very little idea about growing media; what it is and how it’s made. “You’re not alone, most consumers think growing media is dirt, they wouldn’t be aware that it’s mostly predominantly pine bark,” Adrian McCarthy, Commercial Business Manager, was on hand to deliver a masterclass; I left with a much better understanding; impressed with the intricacies of what they do. Adrian, a former nurseryman, was given his own tuition by David Nichols; a generous and knowledgeable man who was recognised as an authority on potting media throughout Australia. “He was so generous with his time and knowledge; you couldn’t help but learn from him,” said Adrian. The site itself is vast, everything else is vast too, from the machinery to the piles of growing media. Materials are dropped off, finished product is shipped out. The place is a hum of activity. As a company AGS are always looking for opportunities to innovate; whether it’s the materials or the machinery they use.

They were one of the first to use coir (coconut husk) and after a lengthy period of trial and research they have recently developed GrowFibre; a new ethically sourced sustainable wood fibre substrate. The production of GrowFibre consists of the thermal and mechanical defibration of locally sourced Australian softwood chips. This process generates temperatures that can exceed 90°C, thereby making a sterilised and safe material that can be used as an ingredient in growing media. In European markets, wood fibre substrates typically make up around between 10 and 30% (by volume) of container substrates and have been growing in market usage over the past 20 years. It’s taken a while, but Australian growers can now access GrowFibre in their toolkit for nursery production. Having an alternative sustainable material like GrowFibre, with the same high porosity and water wicking ability of coir, while avoiding the negatives of requiring flushing with clean water

Proud Partners of NGIV Technology is what we do, innovation is what we live for Follow Us

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PROFILE: AUSTRALIAN GROWING SOLUTIONS

and calcium nitrate to remove harmful sodium and chloride levels, means a better environmental outcome for growers in the Australian nursery market. Some of the key benefits of GrowFibre include: >

Increased air capacity and drainage

Significant reduction of algae and liverwort growth on the substrate surface

Improvement of the rewetting capability of the substrate

Supports healthy and fast root development

Reduction of substrate weight and therefore transport costs

Sustainably and ethically sourced

Readily available and secure supply

Supports local horticultural industry

Australian-first production facility

Good balance of water holding and porosity

Another significant benefit of GrowFibre over coir and peat is that it is produced using Victorian wood chips. This reduces the carbon footprint of the material in shipping and transport and, importantly, supports the local horticulture and forestry industries. Adrian explains that every material they use, from coir and wood fibre to peat, requires its own custom machinery to create the finished product. The site is a wonderful example of man and machine working in harmony together, and with each new piece of automation, their capacity to create growing media increases. I was amazed to learn that on any given day, AGS have the ability to create any one of their 3000 customer specific blends of growing media, to fulfill the exacting needs of the customer. Customers will typically order two or three different products, with the larger customers ordering upwards of ten. They are fastidious about giving the customer exactly what they want. A sample of every order is tested before going to the customer and retained for 12 months. Adrian explains that they go to lengths to ensure the growing media never touches the earth, to eliminate any biosecurity risks. “The first time it makes contact with the earth will be when the customer decides it’s time.” There was an extra buzz of excitement on the day I visited. They have a festive tradition of senior staff cooking and serving a barbeque for the rest of the team. Adrian politely excused himself to take his turn at the grill. I left having feeling like I’d brushed up on school chemistry, physics and biology, my head full of new learnings and some appreciation of the science and expertise involved in making growing media.

natives / exotics / grasses ornamentals / contract grow specialists

INFO@TALL A TREES.COM.AU (03) 59830 166 | TALL TA TREES.COM.A T U GROUNDSWELL FEBRUARY 2021

PROFILE: BOMBORA POTS

Bombora Pots for every plant Bombora is a relatively new player in pot wholesaling, having been established only three years ago. It is a Growbetter affiliated business and acts in perfect synergy, with pots and potting mix delivered on the same truck creating greater efficiencies for the business and the retailer. Growbetter is a major supplier to independent retail nurseries of quality potting mixes, soil conditioners, fertilisers and mulches.

Range The fundamental mantra for Bombora is “to provide a unique product range with a strong point of difference”. This gives the retailer and consumer more options for pot selection.

Here are some simple tips to share with your customers to help them choose the right pot: 1. Use a top-quality potting mix – we recommend Grow Better mixes

Many years ago, a pot was a pot, but now it’s an integral part of indoor and outdoor décor and is very much a fashion item. Being on trend, therefore, is vitally important. Colours, textures, sizes and functions are important when procuring product for this ever-changing market.

2. Check out how your plants look in the pot prior to purchase

The growth in the indoor plant and succulents market is wellcatered for with plenty of great pots to choose from. The Bombora range includes indoor, succulent, hangers, decorative, light weight, large pots and water bowls.

5. To create interest and contrast, use lighter pots against darker backgrounds and vice versa.

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3. Consider matching colours of pots when grouping to create consistency 4. Use free standing urns in garden beds

Merchandising When selecting pots, the Bombora buying team considers how they will look when displayed in garden centres to create greater visual impact for the consumer. Creating inspiration is vital when matching plants and pots to sell the entire look. Many customers are looking for guidance to assist them in their purchasing decisions, as often people don’t know where to start. Color and range blocks incorporated with the right plant for the right pot leads to greater sales for the retailer.

Ethical importing Bombora only imports from manufacturers in Vietnam and China that comply with ethical work standards for their employees. In Vietnam, for example, many factories use BSCI (Business Social Compliance Initiative) to undertake comprehensive audits. These criteria are vital to the Bombora business.

Showroom Bombora has an outstanding showroom at its facility in Bayswater for wholesale customers to view the entire range (by appointment only). Bombora is sold through independent retailers only. Sales representatives regularly visit retailers with samples so they can see the quality of the pots.

More information e: mike@growbetter.com.au e: richard@bombora.com.au t: 9720 7475 www.bomborapots.com.au GROUNDSWELL FEBRUARY 2021

INDUSTRY NEWS

Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria's new Arid Garden is finally open By Matt Ross Melbourne has a new place for wellbeing and relaxation. On 18 November, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria’s new Arid Garden is finally unveiled. Over 100 years in the making, the garden features over 3000 cacti and succulents of 400 different species donated by private collectors, some over 80 years old and weighing over 200 kg. It was a dream come true for renowned Landscape Architect, Andrew Laidlaw, who has created this stunning space after the original garden was decimated in 2013 by machete wielding vandals. “We had to repair it and we’ve now got this fantastic new garden. It’s probably the best collection of cacti in Australia.” Director and chief executive of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Professor Tim Entwisle. With many plants originating from South America and Arizona, visitors will experience the diversity colours, flowers and shapes that these fascinating plants have to offer, while educational signage and children’s activities embedded into the footpaths will encourage visitors of all ages to understand the wonders of these plants and their importance in a warming climate. The Arid Garden will be a contemporary take on the classic 16th Century parterre garden design, which describes a large space which is broken into smaller spaces, with pathways on

GROUNDSWELL FEBRUARY 2021

which to wander and view plants. These landscapes tend to be quite inward facing, which is the same for the Arid Garden. Green spaces are especially important right now and the new garden responds to evidence highlighting the link between connection with nature and improved physical and mental well-being, including reduced stress levels, increased energy levels and improved memory. It is one of a number of exciting projects under way at Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, which will renew and transform the Gardens for the benefit of all visitors. These are outlined in the new Melbourne Gardens Master Plan 2020–2040. Botanic Gardens have both the capacity and the expertise to display large collections of rare and unusual plants and ensure they are not lost when their owners are no longer able to take care for them. Without botanic gardens, many species would be lost from nature. The Aird Garden would not have been possible without the generous donation from long time gardens supporter, Mrs Joan Darling.

INDUSTRY NEWS

Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show 2021 will not go ahead in March With the high-risk and uncertain nature of running large scale events in a COVID-19 climate, a difficult decision has been made to not proceed with the scheduled dates, 24-28 March 2021 for the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show. With last year’s event being called off at the 11th hour, it’s incredibly disappointing for everyone that the 2021 show will not go ahead in March. Towards the end of 2020 we had a great sense of optimism and were very much hoping everything would have returned to normal in time to stage this year’s event. However, a recent spike in interstate case numbers, border closures and other Covid-19 related restrictions has again added further uncertainty to the Covid-19 impact and presents an extremely challenging environment to deliver an event of this magnitude. After carefully considering the interests of all our stakeholders, we cannot proceed with any confidence to stage an event in March 2021 that meets the high expectations of all our partners and visitors. With so much planning and effort required to bring the Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show

to life, we have an obligation to make the decision sooner rather than later. It cannot be under-estimated how important the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show is to the horticultural industry – it is a platform for an entire industry and for the public to learn, be entertained and inspired. With that in mind, we are exploring alternative options and dates for a show in October 2021. Thank you for your understanding and ongoing support. Marcus Gale, Event Director, Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show

Michael Warner, Chairman, Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show

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PROFILE: LARKMAN NURSERIES

The formidable team behind Larkman Nurseries By Matt Ross In December 2020, NGIV CEO Craig Taberner and myself headed for Lilydale to visit Larkman Nurseries, catch up with the owners Clive and Di and take in the recent developments they’ve undertaken. Larkman Nurseries sits perched on a hill in Lilydale enjoying vast and glorious views across the Yarra Valley. Not only is it home to a major tubestock nursery, it’s also the home of Clive and Di Larkman. Both passionate growers, bursting with ideas and energy, I suspect living on site suits them down to the ground. Clive found himself in the world of plants and botany by chance. As a Year 12 student he had picked seven of eight subjects for the following year of schooling. Pushed for one more, he chose biology, fell in love with it and never looked back. Di Campaign was a farmer’s daughter, who had an appreciation of plants, nature and growing, as far back as she can remember. Di left the farm to live in Sydney where she attended Hales Business College. She worked for a range companies before spending seven years working for Estee Lauder. Di then moved to Adelaide with her first husband and three young boys.

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The two met and married in 1990 and Di moved from Adelaide, where she was working for Lasscocks Nursery in Adelaide, to Lilydale. And together they make a formidable team; Clive, a qualified botanist with an understanding of how plants grow and business management and Di, with her appreciation of how to grow plants and office management. The nursery itself is a hum of activity. Other growers come and go after depositing plants at the onsite commercial quarantine facility. Son and sales manager, Simon, zips around the place doing deals as he goes. And a small army of horticulturists tend to the real stars, the plants. And they certainly have their work cut out for them, Clive believes you can never have too many varieties, in any given year the nursery grows somewhere around 6,000 species.

“The customer comes first, whatever they want, we’ll grow it. We grow to demand, if the demand is for 500 of a particular plant, that’s what we’ll grow. We’re not in the business of growing too many or too few.” said Clive. He’s also quick to apply his scientific thinking to growing to prevent waste, working out exactly how much fertiliser or water a plant might need, through carefully considered equations. If knowledge is power, Clive looks for every opportunity to apply it to help grow the business and the industry. On meeting Clive, you quickly get the sense he has a thirst for life, for learning and for challenges. Not content with one business, he has six. Not happy with a piece of growing equipment, he will adapt it to suit his needs. Not convinced by existing botanical theory, he’ll conduct his own research. He’s also a committed industry-man. He has been a member of most major horticultural bodies, this includes 12 years on the board of the International Plant Propagator’s Society, 10 years on the Australian Institute of Horticulture state council, 17 years on Primary Industries Training Board, three terms on the NGIV board, a life member of The Australian Lavender Growers Association, Chairman of Agribusiness Yarra Valley and Chairman of Victorian Agribusiness Council. If that wasn’t enough he writes regularly for several trade journals and is a member of the Horticultural Media Association. “If you’re going to be in an industry, give back to it and change it. Leave your mark.” Another reason for our visit was to admire the recent developments they’ve undertaken. Sparkling new greenhouses, spacious potting sheds, bespoke automation, and glistening solar panels. All a signal of their intent to continue growing, learning and leaving their mark on the industry. GROUNDSWELL FEBRUARY 2021

EVENT: AHT2020

HIGHLIGHTS FROM Australian Horticultural Trials Week By Gabrielle Stannus If you couldn’t make it to the 2020 Australian Horticultural Trials Week we’ve got you covered. Here is a quick summary of a highlight on display at each of the six plant exhibitors. Dahlia LaBella® Maggiore Yellow Botanical name: Dahlia pinnata LaBella® Maggiore Yellow Dimensions at maturity: Height = 45-70cm, width = 19-23cm Flowering colour and timing: Large yellow ﬂowers Landscape uses: Use in pots on the balcony, terrace and patio. Suitable for the gift market. Other interesting features/notes: Check out Yellow’s counterparts: Deep Rose, Fire, Purple and Rose Bicolor Available from: Haars Nursery

Dahlia LaBella® Maggiore Yellow℗ (left) with Dahlia LaBella® Maggiore Purple℗ (right) (Image: Haars Nursery)

Dianthus Constant Cadence® Milk Cherry Botanical name: Dianthus hybrid Constant Cadence® Milk Cherry Dimensions at maturity: Height = 15-25cm, width = 20-25cm Flowering colour and timing: Early spring through spring in containers. Landscape uses: Plant in the garden for use as seasonal perennial with stunning blooms Other interesting features/notes: From Green Fuse® Botanicals Dianthus Constant Cadence® Milk Cherry (Image: Green Fuse® Botanicals)

Available from: JD Propagation

Schismatoglottis wallichii (Silver Fin) Botanical name: Schismatoglottis wallichii Flowering colour and timing: n/a Cultivation and maintenance notes: Thrives in high humidity and prefers bright, indirect light. Landscape uses: Indoor use Other interesting features/notes: Originates from the rainforest of Borneo, Malaysia and Thailand. Oblong foliage has a heart-shaped coloration and a light green band around the margin. Available from: Majestic Young Plants (late 2021) 14

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Schismatoglottis wallichii (Image: Majestic Young Plants)

EVENT: AHT2020

Grownet – Biodegradable plug liners Mansfield’s Propagation Nursery has been reaching its limits as to how many plants it could produce in a season. To move to the next stage of production, this nursery decided to install more automation and a transplantable plug. Mansfield’s Propagation Nursery’s new Grownet is a concept developed over the last decade in the Netherlands, where it is called ‘Growcoon’. The Grownet Grownet (Image: Mansfield’s Propagation Nursery) is a completely biodegradable plug liner, made up of a biodegradable web, with an open net structure. The net structure not only ensures binding of the root ball, but it also provides a structure so that the plant’s roots can continue to grow uninhibited. Mansfield’s Propagation Nursery claims that by using the Grownet, their customers can remove the de-tubing process and eliminate tube waste. More importantly, plants grown in this liner rapidly develop a stronger root system and experience less root disturbance. Available from: Mansfield’s Propagation Nursery

Lomandra Bananarama (Image: Touch of Class Plants)

Lomandra Bananarama Botanical name: Lomandra longifolia ‘Bananarama’ Dimensions at maturity: Height = 1m, width = 1.5m Flowering colour and timing: Large ﬂowers the size of a banana (hence their name). Highly fragrant - some have said they smell like lolly bananas. Cultivation and maintenance notes: Full sun or part shade, adaptable to most soil conditions Landscape uses: Garden beds, especially edging. To attract native bees.

Petunia Blueberries and Cream (Image: Ball Australia)

Petunia Blueberries and Cream/Ball Australia Botanical name: Petunia x hybrida ‘Blueberries and Cream’

Other interesting features/notes: A new, albeit smaller form of Lomandra longifolia, Bananarama has a narrower foliage that creates a smaller clump Available from: Touch of Class Plants (Greenhills Propagation Nursery)

Dimensions at maturity: Height = 25-30cm, width = 35-40cm Flowering colour and timing: Striking, double ﬂowers in blue with white edge. Long ﬂowering period. Landscape uses: Great for baskets and mixed containers Other interesting features/notes: Neat compact, mounded habit. Flowers easy to pick off once tired Available from: Ball Australia

Information is provided here as a general guide only. Consult with the relevant nursery before purchasing to ensure the plant or product meets your needs.

This article is republished with permission from Greenlife Industry Australia

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PROFILE: FLEMING’S GROUP

Fleming’s: Remaking history By Nicole Mulloy

Fleming’s is well-known for growing superior trees – but did you know it also creates amazing landscapes? Celebrating 100 years in operation, the Fleming’s Group is a passionate business founded in horticulture; taking great pride in growing and shaping the great outdoors of Australia. The Group’s landscape arm, Fleming’s Landscapes, is fast becoming renowned for its high-quality landscaped environments with a difference.

construction managers, in addition to a specialist team of tilers and rock work experts.

A fully integrated landscape service, Fleming’s Landscapes delivers comprehensive solutions across commercial and domestic developments.

Bringing old-world charm and nostalgia together with grand plans for a new era, was the challenge set before Fleming’s Landscapes when restoring the grounds of Marnong Estate, located 30 kilometres north of Melbourne in Mickleham.

The company, backed by decades of experience and knowledge, works hand-in-glove with its landscape architects and garden designers from Flow Design Studio to design, build and deliver amazing landscaped environments, from concept to reality. With a focus on delivering unique solutions to its clients, the team uses its practical background, experience in and love of horticulture to produce landscapes designed and built from the viewpoint of Australian horticulture, which makes all the difference to the end product.

With a passion for creating beautiful, landscaped environments, Fleming’s Landscapes believes in delivering urban developments, public open spaces, parks, and gardens that will serve communities now and for generations to come.

Originally built in the 1840s, Marnong Estate is a heritage homestead, now fully restored and offering world-class event facilities. An integrated venue destination incorporating a vineyard, brewery, farmer’s market and agribusiness – an Angus cattle farm that runs approximately 650 head of cattle to provide meat for the onsite restaurant, Bankvale Run – the estate is a first of its kind for the region and offers an authentic cultural and historical experience for visitors.

Synonymous with quality Australian landscape design, the name Fleming’s was forged on the world stage with honours that include participation in prestigious events like the Chelsea Flower Show – taking out top honours with a Best in Show award in 2013.

With such a grand vision, restoring the grounds to their former glory was paramount to the success of the project. Redeveloping the site and integrating the heritage gardens of the original estate with the bold architecture of the new function facilities was an act of balance and grace for the expert team at Fleming’s Group.

Fleming’s experienced team is comprised of registered landscape architects, qualified garden designers, project managers, highly experienced landscapers, builders and

Fleming’s Landscapes collaborated closely with its sister company, Fleming’s Nurseries, and its team of horticulturalists to protect the integrity of the original gardens, while enhancing

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PROFILE: FLEMING’S GROUP

the site with the addition of new trees and plants. In doing so, they brought the historical site back to life. The new design also called for the installation of a grand sweeping driveway and additional landscaping for the newer buildings. Patience and careful assessment lay at the core of the Marnong project. A growth area, the Estate sits alongside Annandale, a new residential community currently under construction in Mickelham, which will continue to grow and develop over the next decade. With a brief that included the creation of a world-class tourism facility with a focus on sustainability and protecting the rich history of the homestead and surrounding grounds, Fleming’s Landscapes’ involvement was integral to producing the right setting for this unique destination. Working around a myriad of construction and restorative workers to meet tight deadlines, the Fleming’s team had to be flexible, respectful and swift. Among the unique set of skills required to bring this landscape to life was the capacity for heritage restoration – and a great deal of muscle! A series of Phoenix canariensis (date palms), somewhat gargantuan in size, needed to be moved to a new location, while others needed to be replaced. Sourcing quality specimens that would match the originals in size was a challenge that Fleming’s met with relish. The heritage gardens required an indepth amount of tender care to get them to flourish once again. Replacements needed to be planted that were in keeping with the original style but would also serve as a background suitable for event photography, as well as make a lasting impression on guests as they moved from the carpark to the chapel to the restaurant. With the scope of works completed at Marnong Estate, it certainly seems Fleming’s hit the brief on the mark. The extensive restoration reflects the grandeur of a bygone era with all the promise of a thriving contemporary venue. GROUNDSWELL FEBRUARY 2021

INDUSTRY NEWS

COVID-19 highlights the value of backyards to Australians By Ross Wissing The word culture originally meant ‘to cultivate’, as in to cultivate the soil. In Western society, gardens have also long been identified as being important in cultivating human health. Hippocrates, the ‘Father of Medicine’ and author of ‘On Airs, Waters and Places’, is the first Westerner known to recognise the effects of the physical environment on human health and to introduce and use gardens as an important part of prescribed therapy of all patients in ancient Greek hospitals. Others such as Theophrastus, the ‘Father of Botany’ tried to distinguish the most fundamental dispositions in relation to health through classifying types of personality and Cicero the Roman statesman whose writings provide the best accounts of the suburban garden philosopher Epicurus’ work, is well known for his quote ‘If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need’. What is less known is the positive role that people involved in gardening has had on the health of the Australian environment. Aboriginal gardens have likely existed for 120,000 years with regular burning and digging by women and small mammals creating soils that were soft enough to push their fingers into. Likewise, Chinese miners returning from the goldfields in the 1860’s established market gardens in many cities and towns with their works in Geelong being described as redeeming the ‘neglected swamps’ of the Barwon River to produce garden crops within a few months.

Home gardens continue to be a key part of Australian culture, not just in growing plants in soil, but in artistic endeavours and societal ideas, customs and behaviour. Today, nearly 90 per cent of Australians have a private domestic garden, and for many, particularly those over 50 years of age, gardening is their main form of exercise. Evidence suggests that producing all vegetable and fruit requirements in the Australian diet for an average Australian family can be met with about six hours of gardening per week. Not only does this go a long way to reducing the biggest part of the Australian ecofootprint, it also helps meet physical health guidelines. This can assist in reducing overweight/obesity rates, which impacts two thirds of all adult Australians, and the incidence of heart disease by a third. Further, increasing the number of Australians who are self-sufficient in fruit and vegetables is likely to encourage the 95 per cent of Australians who currently do not meet the Australian dietary requirements for fruit and vegetable consumption to do so. Recent academic research in the UK and Japan is starting to emerge and quantify the health benefits that engaging with the outdoors provide that we have long intuitively known. Yet the vast majority of this research is focused on psychological

Activity

Primary Health Benefit

Frequency (at least weekly) (%)

Important or very important (%)

Growing vegies

Physical

Growing fruit

Physical

Propagating plants

Physical

Weeding

Physical

Hand water garden

Physical

Play sports and games

Physical

Family gatherings

Relational

Friend gatherings

Relational

Neighbour gatherings

Relational

Interact with pets

Relational

Eat outdoors

Relational

Relax

Psychological

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INDUSTRY NEWS

benefits in public open spaces. While extremely important, public parks only account for about 10 per cent of the area of our cities. In contrast, residential homes comprise 70 per cent of our urban landscapes, about half of which is the domestic garden.

into the barriers of issuing green prescriptions by medical practioners in Australia and have installed, and are currently trialling, wellness trails in public open spaces aimed at increasing connection with nature.

COVID-19, and the range of lockdowns particularly in Melbourne and Victoria have re-emphasised the importance of outdoor places to our health. Recognising this once in a century opportunity, a collaboration between Macquarie University and The Connective, released a national survey in June to better understand how Australians used their outdoor environments during this time. This survey was based on research questions first asked of Geelong residents in 2017 and 2018 as part of a PhD undertaken by Ross Wissing that investigated the sustainability of residential backyards.

The national survey is still open, so if you would like to participate, visit theconnective.co/community-survey.

Preliminary results from the survey at the end of August show that nearly 90 per cent of Australians engage with their home gardens at least weekly. Psychological activities, in particular connecting with nature, relaxing and being alone are generally more important and more frequently undertaken by respondents in their home gardens than activities that improve physical and relational health. However, mental health accounts for 20 per cent of Australia’s disease burden. The other 80 per cent is related to physical health, including obesity/overweight, high blood pressure, diabetes, and sore backs.

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For the first time, this survey has used the internationally recognised SF-12 health assessment to understand holistic health impacts and benefits associated with interacting with our backyards, streets and parks. Another first is the use of personality traits to see whether involvement in various activities is influenced by factors such as openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeability and neuroticism. Analysis of such factors has yet to occur but will in 2021. So too will differences between states and the influence of different stages of lockdown. The collaboration between Macquarie University and The Connective has also undertaken preliminary investigations

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BUSINESS NEWS

Making ‘boomerang employees’ part of your hiring practice By Chris Sheedy In the past, people who chose to leave a business were considered gone for good. Today, progressive businesses are thinking differently about rehiring. There was once an attitude in business that said anybody who chose to leave was disloyal. The minute they handed in their resignation, they would become persona non grata, no longer welcome inside the walls of the organisation.

pick up better development or opportunities somewhere else, that’s okay,” says Brighton-Hall.

That point of view is now broadly recognised as somewhat ignorant. After all, in a competitive business environment, who would dare cut ties with individuals who boast experience, and knowledge of the business and its culture, and are talented enough to attract the attention of others?

The second major change in thinking, says Brighton-Hall, is in the way people think about companies.

“Most thoughtful, contemporary companies have changed their thinking in two ways,” says Rhonda Brighton-Hall, founder and director of MWAH (Making Work Absolutely Human) and chair of AHRI’s Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Panel. “One is the fact that you don’t keep an employee forever. You expect staff members will enjoy their time in the business and do great work, and then, if it isn’t working out or they can

“If they come back, they’ll come back even more skilful. That alumni network suddenly becomes incredibly important.”

Instead of perceiving a business as being hidden behind walls, they now think of it as an inclusive community. Individuals don’t have to be engaged in a 40-hour week, every week, to be part of that community. “And so, boomerang employees play a very important role in an organisation’s community,” she says. “They can be your biggest ambassadors. There are some very successful companies that have alumni who are strong promoters and massive advocates in the market and who recommend the employer to other talented people.”

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Brighton-Hall believes it is essential to keep channels of communication open once the individual has left. Many leading businesses, she says, create closed Facebook groups, or something similar, for their alumni. This ensures the opportunity for two-way communication even years after the individual has departed. It also means the business can keep alumni updated around new developments and opportunities. It keeps the business relevant in the minds of its alumni. The value of continuing the employer experience during and after the separation of an individual from the business is far greater than the sum of its parts. For example, it offers those who remain within the business greater confidence that they too are highly valued. As businesses bring back boomerang staff, both the business and the individual will likely be different. The individual might be more experienced, with greater capabilities and a more senior outlook. The organisation might be more advanced in its operations and processes, and might have a different focus, product or service offering. As a result, the boomerang employee must be onboarded as with any other new hire, to set them up for success. “It’s likely the next version of the individual will be even better for the business,” says Brighton-Hall. “People offer so many opportunities to their employers as they move between jobs. That’s why it’s so important to stay connected, or you miss out on that opportunity.” A version of this article first appeared in the November 2020 edition of HRM magazine. GROUNDSWELL FEBRUARY 2021

RETAIL STATE OF PLAY Welcome to a new year There’s no doubt we will all be delighted to see the end of 2020, so make sure you celebrate with your staff and customers to show your appreciation. Holidays mean relaxation, entertaining and parties so be sure you are set up to cater for all three. We all know that plants and gardens help us relax so you are right there, but you will need to think about how you grab some of the available leisure dollars from the other areas. Plants are perfect gifts and decorations so that’s a great start but it’s how you display them that will separate you from the masses.

Garden Releaf dates announced Independent garden centres across Australia will once again be supporting the Garden Releaf on Sunday 21 March 2021. The event focuses on the benefits of plants and gardens to enrich our lives. Participating garden centres will be exploding with colour, fun activities and informative events. The aim is to encourage people to get into their garden and get planting – or take someone to a garden to just enjoy.

Groundswell | February 2021

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