This week it's International Mountain Day! 

Who knew there was such a thing but with mountains hosting about half of the world's biodiversity hotspots, 15% of the world's population, and providing 60 - 80 % of the world's fresh water, mountains matter, including our very own Geboor - Mt Macedon. 

On the top of the Macedon range there's around 100 hectares that has been clear felled of pine trees, and in 2023 it was handed back to the State Government.  A year later, in June 2024, the State government announced a grant of $1.1 million to fund the restoration process. 

It will take time, and money can't replace the care and attention of the people who live with the mountain, us. 

So as an end of year gathering, to celebrate International Mountain Day, and to continue to get to know these areas of the mountain, we are hosting a walk and a community BBQ. Wear sturdy shoes, bring a drink and we'll bring the rest. 

Free but please book for insurance and planning.

It's late spring and the wildflowers will be out beside the railway line and in the forest, in amongst the grasses, shining in their very own micro world. We probably won't see the stunning pink heath, but with sharp eyes and guide books in hand, we should spot milkmaids, pin cushions, billy buttons, chocolate lilies. And you never know maybe even an orchid or two. 

On this walk you will learn how to spot some of our common wildflowers and what you can do on your property to promote them.

We'll walk for a while and then have a cuppa and cake.  

Free but please book for insurance and planning.  

Mass planting along Riddells Creek - Macedon

The Anglican Parish - Church of the Resurrection on the corner of Honour Ave and Mt Macedon Rd, along with other landowners along Riddells Creek, are working with Melbourne Water to improve the Creek. 

The Church have 800 grasses, sedges and lilies to be mass planted within 4 metres of the Creek, along a stretch of about 70 metres, to protect the creek bank and water flow and quality. The area has already had extensive control of willows, blackberries and other woody weeds, to prepare the area for planting.

The Landcare Group has been invited to help with the planting as part of its commitment to waterways of the area. 

The Working Bee commences at 9:00 AM on Saturday October 12 until completion of the planting, or 12noon. Come and go as you are able.  

Morning tea will be available mid-morning. 

Access to the site is via the pedestrian gate on Mount Macedon Rd opposite Centennial Park. Parking is available at Centennial Park or in the church car park Honour Avenue. (Walking to the site through the church grounds is best avoided as the ground can be very wet, especially after rain.)

Free event but book for insurance and planning.

Wind, Rain, Cloud and Sun

Understanding the climate of the Mount Macedon region in a state and global context.

Wind and rain and cloud and sun, just four elements that have so much power over the Earth and our lives.  Wild weather, torrential downpours, oppressive heat, we get them all, and they’re increasing in number and extremity. 

Then there’s the tiny incremental changes in the story of the seasons we fleetingly notice but can’t quite put together to make a cohesive picture. 

Let’s bring the image into focus. 

Let’s improve our understanding of climate - how it is, how it's been and where it's heading. 

In this session with Dr Linden Ashcroft, a climate scientist and gifted science communicator from the University of Melbourne, we'll look at the broad picture of our weather - the climate trends and the character of the seasons, the patterns of the atmosphere and the increasing extremes. 

And we’ll look at the micro level - the way clouds congregate and wind moves around a mountain, the way storm cells build and ridges create lee sides. 

Dr Ashcroft is also keen to hear our observations of the local weather patterns and climate, and to have a wide ranging discussion about this thing we all have in common. 

Together we’ll develop a greater understanding of the weather, climate and microclimates of Mount Macedon and Macedon, including winds, rainfall, temperature, weather patterns, seasonal variations and the predictability, or not, of extreme events.

Book here.

About Linden Ashcroft:

Linden Ashcroft is a climate scientist and science communicator at the University of Melbourne. She has worked as a climatologist at the Bureau of Meteorology, and regularly gives presentations on climate science, science communication and historical climatology, as well as media interviews for national and international television and radio. 

She teaches undergraduate weather and climate science within the School of Geography, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, and postgraduate science communication with the Unimelb Science Communication program. 

Her current research explores past climates of Australia using historical documents and weather observations, so the past can help us prepare for the future.

She is a Science and Technology Australia Superstar of STEM, a program that aims to smash society's gender assumptions about scientists. Linden communicates science regularly on community radio, edits a peer-reviewed journal on scientific data, and her writing was selected for the 2019 Best Australian Science Writing Anthology.

Come along for a convivial evening of learning, conversation, supper and community.  Dean Platt from Melbourne Water's 'Liveable Communities, Liveable Waterways Program' will talk about the program, what's involved and where it's happening in our area. We'll also have a couple of local folk to talk about their experience of the program. There'll be time for questions and of course supper.

Free but please book here for insurance and planning. 

On the same night as Dean Platt is coming to speak we are also holding our Annual General Meeting, which we will time and hope to have done and dusted within 15 minutes. The agenda is:

• Short overview of what we've done in the last 18 months

• A statement of our financials

• The election of the committee

• A vote on incorporating. 

It being an AGM an all, we are of course keen to entice, encourage and otherwise embolden any folks out there who would like to join our committee.  If this is something you might, possibly, maybe be contemplating, one way to help you decide would be to come along to our next committee meeting and see how we roll. It is just before the AGM. If this interests you, email Andrew on mmm.landcare@gmail.com or if you want to have a chat about what's involved give Kate a call on 0402 090 445 

Proposal to Incorporate
Prompted by an incoming change to the tax regulations for charities, we have decided that we ought to incorporate. This will offer us some benefits to our current 'member of Landcare Victoria un-incorporated association' status such as: 

• Eligible of additional grants

• Insured in our own right, 

• To own, lease or rent land or other property,

• Enter into contracts. 

• Gives us protection from being held personally responsible for any of the group’s liabilities and debts.

• If there is any legal action against a group, it’s the group’s assets which are vulnerable, not anything belonging to the individual members. (Although it does not protect individual members against the consequences of their own negligence.)

So just to be a little formal about it:
Notice is hereby given that at a meeting to be held at 7.30pm on July 30, 2024, at the Macedon and Mount Macedon Community Centre, 47 Victoria Street, Macedon, it is proposed that a decision be made to incorporate the Macedon and Mount Macedon Landcare Group using the Model Rules, under the Incorporated Associations Act Vic. 

The proposed Statement of Purposes of Macedon and Mount Macedon Landcare Group Inc. is:

The Macedon and Mount Macedon landcare group is established to be a volunteer-led, community-based, not-for-profit, charitable organisation with a purpose of enhancing the natural environment of Australia by:

• Envisioning a Macedon Ranges teeming with healthy and diverse ecosystems, and an active, connected community, noticing, knowing and caring for the environment. 

• Inspiring people to care, repair and protect the flora, fauna and ecosystems of the Macedon and Mount Macedon district. 

• Being Earth and humanity focused - we tread lightly, mindful we are custodians of the future; we listen to and advocate for the natural environment.

• Striving to be neighbourly and non-judgemental - we are community focussed: sharing, connecting, including and respecting the groups and people in our communities. 

• Taking evidence based action and being innovative, informed by best practice and local, indigenous and scientific knowledge. 
  
  Free but please book here for insurance and planning.