Anyone for an air shower?

The clever folk at CSIRO have come up with a way to save water in the shower – just add air. CSIRO researchers claim you can use a third less water by adding air.

I wonder if I will be a third less clean after my shower? Apparently not according to Dr Dilip Manuel, Business Development Manager, CSIRO Manufacturing and Materials Technology.

Sadly, the air shower is not yet commercially available. But, you can join me on the air shower waiting list by emailing Dr Dilip Manuel. A suitable manufacturer, who will also distribute the air shower globally, is currently being sort.

When water won’t wet

Friends always ask the secret to gardening success.  My response – organic matter and mulch. I am going to have it engraved on my headstone.

But can you have too much of a good thing ???

High levels of organic matter can result in soil becoming “non-wetting”.  I am no soil scientist but I did recently record one! Dr Phil Ward from CSIRO gave a presentation on non-wetting soils at the South Australian No-Till Farmers Association conference. Phil had me reminiscing about Soil 101and he gives a great explanation of soil types and what causes non-wetting soils.

Non-wetting soils are a problem not only for farmers but also for home gardeners, especially those who have sandy soils. If you have been adding organic matter to your garden but find water just won’t soak in, and you’re wondering what’s going on, have a listen to Phil.

“By now we should have learned that praying for rain is no substitute for good planning”

I was saddened to learn of the passing of Professor Peter Cullen, who I had the privilege of recording for the 2007 Schultz Oration. I spoke briefly to Peter after the event and felt that with his help and leadership Australia could find some real solutions to our water management problems. In his Eulogy it was said “Peter would have to be the best communicator of water science that we have yet to see”. In the brief moment I shared with Peter, I couldn’t agree more, and know there are some big shoes that have been left that need to be filled.

How waterwise is your diet?

Recently I recorded a podcast of the 2007 Birdsall-Dreiss Lecturer, Dr Bridget Scanlon, presenting an address on the “Impacts of Changing Land Use on Subsurface Water Resources in Semi-arid Regions”.

Bridget has been hosted on her Australian tour by The International Centre of Excellence in Water Resources Management (ICE WaRM).

Bridget asked the audience how much water they thought they used per day.

The audience responded with a wide variety of answers.

Bridget revealed that, including water embedded in products that we use, the average vegetarian consumes 2600 litres of water per day, whilst a non vegetarian uses double that. Her challenge to the audience was “if someone said you could save a couple of thousand litres of water per day by changing your lifestyle would you do it?”

I wonder if the creative talents at PETA can turn vegetarian v’s non vegetarian water consumption into a sexy advertising campaign?

Who is the driest of them all???

It seems I have misrepresented South Australia’s claim to be the driest State in the driest continent. This has been pointed out to me in a podcast by Mike Young, Professor of Water Economics and Management at the University of Adelaide. He clarifies my mistake in this speech delivered as part of Research Tuesdays – a series of public lectures presented by the University. Mike states that we Australians like to stake claim to being the driest continent- but we are wrong. The Antarctica wins the award of being the driest continent. We can take consolation in being the driest inhabitated continent.

Whilst Mike elegantly corrected my faux pas I took delight in Don Burke’s take on Australia’s claim to be the driest continent on Earth. Don delivered the keynote speech at Sydney’s 2007 Landscape Australia Expo. Not one to beat around the bush Don claimed “We all know that Australia is the driest continent on Earth, right? No! That’s bull—t. Australia is a Donut.” Excuse me? What the?????? Don went on to say “The centre is very dry but Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane have higher rainfalls than almost any other capital city anywhere in the world and Hobart is as wet as hell.”

Waterwise in the Garden with Greenwells

Brian Measday is the South Australia inventor of the Greenwell. This week I visited Brian’s backyard to chat about the Greenwell. 

 

All over the world Gardeners are concerned about water shortages. In Australia various water restrictions have been in place for a number of years. I have been experimenting with ways to maximise the use of limited water I have for my garden. One product I have been having great success with is called Greenwell.

I have been using Greenwells for over 3 years and have seen some amazing results. Recently I installed some new Greenwells in my garden.

 Greenwells are being widely used to establish street trees. Local councils in Australia have discovered how easy it is to water street trees with Greenwells installed.

You can get more information about Greenwells from their website.

The Waterwise Lifestyle

I live in the driest state, on the driest continent, and I love gardening. I want to know how, with a water shortage, I can keep doing what I love. I want to know what others are doing. What works? I want to explore how others are living a waterwise lifestyle.