APRIL 2, 2019 \ STARWEEKLY.COM.AU
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Season to see Macedon
(Marco De Luca)
There’s nothing quite like a garden in autumn – and the Duneira Garden is no exception. Located in the picturesque Duneira Estate in Mount Macedon, the garden is an array of radiant reds and outstanding oranges. The 6.5-hectare garden will open for one weekend to show off its luminous autumn colours as part of Open Gardens Victoria. Property manager Pip Shannon (pictured) said autumn was one of the best times to see the garden in full bloom. “The garden is opening because of the spectacular autumn display,” she said. Duneira Garden was established in 1872 and is situated on the historic Mount Macedon Hill Station – a now heritage-listed site. “It’s classified by Heritage Victoria and we’ve got significant trees listed with them, so that’s a big deal,” Ms Shannon said. The garden will open on April 13 and 14 between 10am-4.30pm both days at Officer Lane, Mount Macedon. Details: bit.ly/2V1kVnA Jessica Micallef
Pet controls get the nod By Jessica Micallef Strict new guidelines for pet owners will be introduced in the Macedon Ranges next year. As from January 1, 2020 all dogs must be leashed in public places except in designated off-leash areas. From July 1, all cats will have to be indoors between sunset and sunrise. At its meeting last week Macedon Ranges council approved a report aimed at responsible pet ownership. Council officer Anne-Louise Linder said the recommendations were the result of extensive community feedback since November last year.
“Officers have carefully considered the needs of all residents, those who own pets and those that don’t,” she said. “We are satisfied that the recommendations balance the needs of everyone.” Recommendations included all dogs to be under effective control of their owner or handler in public places and for dogs to be leashed in all public places except in designated off-leash areas. Dogs will also be prohibited from entering designated places for environmental reasons and the council will consider building a dog park. The dog control orders will be effective from January 1, 2020.
The report also outlined a sunset to sunrise cat curfew, prohibiting cats from entering designated public places for environmental reasons and introducing complementary cat management strategies including a low cost de-sexing and micro chipping scheme to coincide with the new curfew. Councillors agreed to defer the cat control orders to July 1, 2020 to give people the opportunity to adjust to the new requirements. There is currently no cat curfew in place in the region and dogs are not required to be on a lead in a public place, unless an area is signed. Presently, “dangerous” dogs are required to be on a lead at all times in a public place. The report stated that separate surveys
conducted in 2014 and 2017 showed support from residents to implement dog on and off-leash areas and cat curfews. More than 60 per cent of residents said yes to council designating on and off-leash areas for dogs in public places. Nearly 50 per cent of residents said yes to council introducing a cat curfew. Cr Jennifer Anderson said she was looking forward to having more happy pet owners. “And more happy residents that are bugged less by the straying cats and dogs … [we] encourage them to have pets but to have responsible pet ownership,” she said. All councillors approved all recommendations in the report.