Scent from south of the border

Shrubs can add beauty to your garden in so many different ways, be it colourful foliage, attractive flowers or habit of growth, but one of the most welcoming ways is in filling the air with waves of delicious perfume.

It should be no surprise that many of the trees, shrubs and climbers having this particular attribute originated in South America, particularly Mexico.

There the climate is closest to ours, meaning that with the right treatment and conditions they should thrive in your gardens but will obviously need some protection from winter frosts and cold winds until they are fully established.

One needing minimum protection is aloysia citrodora – the lemon-scented verbena – a sturdy, easily grown, compact shrub of 2 to 3 metres. The leaves are pale green in colour and are long with deep crinkly serrations.

In spring the plant is covered with pale, mauve/grey flowers. It is evergreen and fast growing. The perfume is in the leaves, which when crushed or bruised, give off an attractive, strong, citrus-like smell. If the foliage is picked and dried, it will give a long-lasting aroma to your linen closet or wardrobes.

Aloysia is easily grown and will thrive in any warm exposed position in any well-drained soil. Cut the shrub back hard each spring after flowering to keep it compact and bushy.

Choisya ternata (Mexican mock orange) is another attractive, perfumed (and one of my favourites) shrub. It’s evergreen and will grow quickly to a height of one or two metres. The foliage is dark green and glossy, and in spring the whole plant is covered in blossom, emitting a subtle, orange blossom-like perfume.

Wet feet is the arch enemy of choisya, so should be planted in a well-drained spot in the garden (especially in winter), or into a large pot of fibrous soil.

Heliotropium arborescens (cherry pie) is a compact evergreen shrub growing to a metre high. The leaves are oval and dark green with a furry texture. In spring the branches are covered with deep purple, lantana-like, subtle but sweet flowers.

Provided the plant is pruned each year after flowering, heliotropium will make a neat, round shrub or can be used as a low bordering hedge. If planted in any exposed area in light soil or heavy loam they would appreciate protection from frost in the first winter.

Philadelphus virginalis (mock orange) is another attractive shrub bearing the same common name and originating in Mexico but this time it’s deciduous and quickly attains a height of 2 metres.

It flowers mainly on second-year wood so care should be taken to ensure that this wood is cut back hard after flowering to be sure of plenty of healthy young wood for the next season’s crop of large single fragrant blooms to pick and take indoors.

Plumeria rubra v. acutifolia (frangipani) is another but please note I include this one with a note of caution. Frangipani is a widely grown native of Mexico and would require a glass greenhouse, well-lit sunroom or a decidedly frost-free position in a large but moveable pot to succeed in our local climate.

They need to be grown in well-lit and warm positions in very well drained soil. Their greatest enemies are collar rot and wet feet which are brought about by excessive water especially during their dormant periods.

So if you keen enough to try, use a large tub and sandy loam so that the amount of water they receive can be strictly controlled and fingers crossed. Oh, by the way, it would be best to wait until the warmth of spring.

Above, our pittosporum teniufolium in the annual embrace of our fence-covering ornamental vine (vitis vinifera) before its annual “haircut” – this year it beat me to it by producing an early season festoon of beautifully coloured leaves.

Got a gardening query? Email glenzgarden@gmail.com

White wine with steak

It is not something I’d normally recommend, serving a white wine (chardonnay) with steak, but I had it the other night and it made a comparatively good match.

Normally, choosing what wine to have with a dish can be as simple as applying long-established rules such as white with fish and red with red meats.

However, there is so much more to consider; the cooking method, sauces and impact of vegetables, accompaniments and farinaceous sides can all change the impact on the taste of the wine and the main ingredient.

Working out the overall dish’s intensity and matching it with a similarly intense wine is a good starting point and ground rule. Light food with light wines etc. But wine can also be used as a palate cleanser, which is what happened in the steak vs chardonnay incident.

Understanding the style of wine and not just the grape variety is another consideration. The chardonnay I had was extremely light and cool climate in style with plenty of acidity. It would have been a different story if the wine had heavier buttery malolactic notes and toasty oak.

I read a comment from Clare Burder, from Eminence Vineyard in the King Valley recently, about the time she was in Japan where a sake producer said to her ‘sake doesn’t fight with food’.

I think many of our wines ‘fight with food’. Our major grape varieties and warm to hot climate produce intense fruit flavours and high alcohol wines. Attributes that don’t marry with the savoury nature of food. Clare thinks that pinot blanc is the closest the wine world has to the matching ability of sake.

It has low aromatics and flavours, gentle structure and can sit in the background rather than dominating the flavour of food. Italian white grapes such as pinot grigio, garganega, fiano, vermentino, verdicchio can also be classified in the same basket.

Locally you can try an outstanding 2023 Pinot Blanc from Granite Hills and Mount Towrong Vineyard produce an attractive 2023 Vermentino and a saline, herbal, light-bodied 2023 Grillo, a white grape found in Sicily.

Red wines that don’t fight with food would be grape varieties like sangiovese, nebbiolo, some gamays and pinot noir. These are light to medium bodied wines that have good levels of acidity, useful in food matching as it acts like seasoning.

Looking over my recent notes, Mount Towrong Nebbiolo 2022, Best’s Pinot Noir 2022 or J.P Trijsburg Pinot Noir 2021and Vinea Marson Sangiovese 2018 fit the bill.

Clive Hartley is an award-winning wine writer, educator and consultant. His 305 page full colour book Australian Wine Guide (7th ed) is available for purchase from Paradise Books in Daylesford or via his website – www.australianwineguide.com.au

Ballarat Highway Patrol has been investigating the circumstances surrounding a fatal crash in Lamplough last Tuesday morning May 7.

It is believed a vehicle was travelling along Sunraysia Highway when it collided with a truck just before 8.15am.

The driver and sole occupant of the vehicle died at the scene while the driver and the sole occupant of the truck was uninjured.

The exact circumstances surrounding the crash had yet to be determined as at the most recently issued Victoria Police report on the incident, and investigations remained ongoing.

Anyone who witnessed the crash, with dashcam footage or information was urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or via the Crime Stoppers website online.

The Hepburn Pavilion and Kiosk, which has operated at the Hepburn Mineral Springs Reserve since 1908, is up for lease.

The request for proposal period will close at 5pm on Friday, May 31.

Renovation works are being planned which will include repairs to the historic octagonal Pavilion.

The Hepburn Pavilion and Kiosk lease is separate from the lease of the Hepburn Bathhouse & Spa Daylesford Mineral Spa, for which the Hepburn Shire Council leases operations to Belgravia Leisure.

Any new tenant for the pavilion and kiosk will be operating within the environs of the Reserve’s seven mineral springs, walking tracks and picnic facilities and adjacent to the Hepburn Bathhouse, which draws thousands of visitors each year. 

A culturally significant part of the shire, the operator’s plans and vision will be integral to the building’s revitalisation.  

Hepburn Shire Mayor, Cr Brian Hood, said the council is excited by the opportunity to develop a partnership with a café operator.  

“Council is undertaking a public Request for Proposal process seeking a tenant for the café at Hepburn Mineral Springs Reserve. It is a significant business opportunity located in an attractive and popular drawcard to the shire,” he said.

“We are looking at a five-year lease with two five-year options to renew.”

ARC Justice – a rights-based organisation incorporating the Loddon Campaspe Community Legal Centre and Housing Justice based in Bendigo – is set to receive $1 million over the next four years to help expand its work into climate justice.

ARC Justice chief executive officer Damian Stock says climate justice is a growing area of focus for the organisation.

Victorian Legal Services Board CEO and Commissioner Fiona McLeay said the funding would provide the “flexibility and certainty” that was needed to see long-term growth in access to justice

Arc Justice also incorporates the Goulburn Valley Community Legal Centre based in Shepparton.

The CFA’s Vegetation Management Team has recently partnered with a local council to create a garden design and plant selection advice for bushfire-prone areas with the result now available to visit and check out.

The Briars is a 230-hectare conservation park in Mount Martha, managed by Mornington Peninsula Shire Council.

It includes a conservation site with wildlife sanctuary, a heritage homestead registered with the National Trust, gardens, a visitor centre, the Shire nursery, the Community Forest and the Eco Living Display Centre.

The nursery has a native garden at the entrance which the council wanted to redesign. Over the past seven years, CFA staff (including Dan Idczak, Sharon Merritt, Andy Govanstone and Chris Vassos) worked with nursery staff and Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, to redesign and construct the garden based on CFA’s publication Landscaping for Bushfire.

The 750-square-metre garden highlights a design that includes local indigenous plants that make a good defendable space between a house and the bush, while also providing a habitat for wildlife and a beautiful, tranquil place.

Here are some of the key aspects of the garden.

Breaking up fuel continuity by creating:

• a dry creek bed that meanders through the garden separating the organic mulched area from the rock mulch and building
• paths with crushed rock and stone borders to provide separation and prevent fuel corridors
• seating area with crushed rock base

Less flammable materials near the building:

• using rock mulch and succulent plants
• using a natural water run-off area as a frog bog and water feature

Maintenance and selection of trees:

• existing stringy and ribbon bark trees were candled to reduce the bark hazard and ribbon bark raked up
• removal of shrubs near the building

Plants chosen:

• had a high moisture content
• can be managed for fire, such as Kangaroo Grass that can be burned to remove dead material and kept green over summer
• were low growing to keep flame height low and lessen travel into the canopy of trees

To encourage native wildlife:

• large logs were retained to provide habitat and protection
• water was a key feature with a bog area for frogs and small ponds to provide drinking water

There are signs giving information about each aspect of the garden and a reference to CFA’s Landscaping for Bushfire publication.

The garden is open Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and the first Saturday of each month.

To celebrate IDAHOBIT on Friday May 17, Swinburne University, alongside VicHealth and Vicsport, will present a report on one of the first Australian studies to document participation rates of LGBTIQA+ people in sport.

The report also delves into the prevalence of discrimination for rainbow people across sport and movement settings.

A panel discussion will then follow with Carlton AFLW player Darcy Vescio, South Melbourne Football Club’s Andy Brennan and Tennis Australia’s National Diversity & Inclusion coordinator Irena Farinacci sharing insights and personal experiences on how to engage and empower LGBTIQA+ young people in sport.

Further details can be found at www.vicsport.com.au online.

An Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea will once again be hosted by Carol Collins, far right, at the Daylesford Bowling Club on Monday, May 27 from 10.30am.

The cost to join in is $15 with plenty of raffle and door prizes and lots of great morning tea temptations – created by Carol and her friends. Every dollar raised through Australia’s Biggest Morning Tea helps fund Cancer Council’s life-saving research, prevention, support programs and information.

Every cuppa makes a difference. Just $150 provides two people recently diagnosed with cancer with one on-one support, connecting them to a trained Cancer Connect volunteer, $500 helps provide training to leaders of cancer support groups where people can meet and share their experiences in an emotionally supportive environment and $1000 pays for an analysis of two gene samples for a research project.

RSVPs not needed, just pop along to the Bowlo.

Words: Donna Kelly | File image: Kyle Barnes

Tesla motor cars, in my opinion, aren’t all that they are cracked up to be.

Here at TL HQ we have joined the electric car race and decided to trade the 2009 Toyota in on a Y series Tesla (T). Now, I have been searching around the new car market for a while as regular readers are aware, and it has been important to get an electric vehicle not a combustion engine.

The other side of the purchase argument is it had to be a long-term car as we don’t change our cars very often, so we decided on a new bouncing baby, red Tesla. It was a bit more expensive than other electric cars, however it is built from the ground up to be electric. Not just had its engine pulled out and replaced with an electric engine as some manufacturers are doing.

When parking the thing I am contending with all the sensor sounds and bonging of the proximity alerts, but I do have quite a few cameras looking around to help out this incompetent human. Oh, and then there is the wife who is constantly reminding me in a worried “lookout” voice about things I could bump into, so no more Braille parking for me. (And the worried voice beside me turns to a scream when the T offers me an auto park and I accept.)

But I must admit the auto park leaves something to be desired as the other day I was well lined up for a reverse park and could have completed the manoeuvre in one fell swoop. But I gave into the T’s desire to have a crack.

It then had half a dozen goes at trying to get in and I stopped it, overrode it and with a flick of the wheel was home in my park. It was flicking the wheel from lock to lock, flying full speed back and forward and back again and by that stage we were both screaming. Is there such a thing as a dumb, smart car?

And then there is the auto pilot where we did more than scream. I thought we were dead. Now these things come with two stages of auto pilot – the first is adaptive cruise control which is like regular cruise control, but it also locks onto the car in front. It then adjusts to their speed so you don’t hit them or of course you can change lanes and the cruise will get back to your speed. I could drive with that all day long.

The second marvel of technology comes in the form of a real auto pilot. You know when you have achieved this mode as a rainbow road comes onto the screen. But this bit of tech proved dangerous for us as we found out on the Calder Freeway recently. I was doing an overtake at 110km with a car following us, not too close, perhaps about three car lengths behind.

Everything was going well when the T decided to instantly brake to 60km for some unknown reason. And please bear in mind two of the great things about the T are its take-off – and braking.

The car behind us didn’t stand a chance and if it hadn’t been because it was my first time in this mode and my hoof was hovering above the accelerator we would have been in all sorts.

This phenomenon is called “phantom braking”. It is where the vehicle picks up on something and according to Tesla “errs on the side of caution”. Tell that to a huge semi that’s just entered your tailgate.

So we have since decided that as the autopilot was simply a $5000 ‘over the air’ upgrade, that we wanted it taken off the car. Surely it falls under the rights of the ACCC for a refund if something major is not working?

However the good folks at Tesla are duckshoving from one department to another skipping the pub test completely. Stay tuned rant over…

The City of Ballarat is exploring ways to improve the safety and amenity of Macarthur Street between Creswick Road and Wendouree Parade for people using the connection to walk, scoot, push a pram and ride a bike.  

The project addresses a key missing link between Routes 3 and 4 of the Ballarat Bicycle Network and is one of the final sections to be constructed of a dedicated walking and cycling link between Ballarat and Wendouree Stations.  

The area has a generous road cross-section and is a dominant walking and riding access route to Lake Wendouree, however Macarthur Street has a lack of dedicated safe crossing points for pedestrians, as well as separated bike lanes.  

It can be a busy section of road, and residents have told the City of Ballarat it is used regularly as a connection for people getting to and from work, school and home.  

It also has a relatively low tree canopy coverage compared to adjacent streets.  

The proposed draft concept plans address known local issues raised by community and implement a range of adopted masterplans and strategies for Lake Wendouree, including the Cycling, Urban Forest and Active Ballarat strategies.

The community is now being asked for their thoughts on the draft concept plans, with further detail on the connections found on the City of Ballarat’s MySay page.  

The project is being delivered with support from the Federal Government’s Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program.  

Member for Ballarat Catherine King said the LRCI Program supports councils with projects that make our communities safer and better connected.

“This project will deliver more accessible and fit for purpose path along Macarthur Street and will make the area much safer for pedestrians and cyclists, she said.”

The draft concept plans show raised shared user crossings at Burnbank Street and Wendouree Parade to improve pedestrian safety. 

Proposed mid-section crossing points will be constructed along Macarthur Street for pedestrian refuge.  

Between Wendouree Parade and Burnbank Streets an on-road protected bike path is proposed and between Burnbank Street and Creswick Road a shared path along the cemetery is proposed.

City of Ballarat Mayor Cr Des Hudson it is great to see so many projects supporting the vision of Ballarat as a great walking and cycling city.

“It is important that Ballarat has safe, predominantly off road or quieter routes which are suitable for pedestrians and families and encourages people to commute actively,” he said.  

“While a number of people already choose to ride a bike, either to commute to work, for sport or for pleasure, there is room for improvement, and this Macarthur Street link is one of them.”  

Following a summer that saw a number of significant bushfires in the west of the state, the end of Victoria’s fire season has officially drawn to a close with the final fire restrictions lifted earlier this month.

Looking back over the season that was, the first day of Catastrophic fire danger (Tuesday, 13 February) -since the new Australian Fire Danger Rating System was introduced – kicked off a turbulent few weeks for CFA volunteers.

Three main fires took off in Briagalong, Rawson and Loch Sport in late September and made for an early start to the season for firefighters, burning over 16,000 hectares.

More recently throughout February and March, thousands of firefighters came from across Victoria to fight the devastating bushfires that hit the Grampians, Staffordshire, Bayindeen and Dereel which burnt more than 30,500 hectares.

During this time, work was also undertaken by our volunteers to help clean up the impact of the devasting storms that went through South West Gippsland in Mirboo North.

CFA volunteers also worked tirelessly to support VICSES in flood recovery efforts in January across the North East and around 40 CFA members and staff were deployed to Helensvale in Queensland to support local emergency services with flood and storm response.

CFA Deputy Chief Officer Garry Cook thanked every CFA member, volunteer, and staff, for their incredible response over the last few months whether that was near or far from home.

“I want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who was in involved in our deployments both across Victoria and interstate, but also to those who remained close to home to continue protecting our local communities,” Garry said.

“Each day, we continue to demonstrate that we are flexible, agile, committed and well-equipped to assist those in need at any given time, and it is admirable and appreciated.

“The prolonged response showcased the commitment of CFA brigades across the region, with many working multiple days in challenging circumstances.”

While bushfire intensity heightened this summer, as did the amount of incidents CFA volunteers responded to, with more than 14,600 across December to March, up from 10,200 last year.

Our volunteers assisted other agencies a further 426 times compared to 2022-23 and while vegetation fires saw a decline, structure fires and fires involving electrical equipment both rose by 108 respectively.

The areas within Bass Coast, South Gippsland, Greater Dandenong, Mornington Peninsula, Baw Baw, Latrobe and surrounding regions were the final municipalities in Victoria to end the Fire Danger Period at 1.00am this morning.

Landowners now have the opportunity to burn-off again, however it is important that residents check that local conditions are safe before undertaking these activities.

“Residents must still register their burn-offs, check weather conditions and follow local council laws and regulation,” Garry said.

“Registering your burn-off ensures that if smoke or fire is reported, the incident is cross-checked with our register, which prevents firefighters from unnecessarily responding.”

Christ Church Concerts presents Lost Gems from the Golden Age of Hollywood with Australian-born virtuoso violinist and film composer Patrick Savage, and acclaimed pianist Konrad Olszewski.

Touring Victoria and Tasmania the concert will feature music from Patrick’s recently released CD The Golden Age of Hollywood: Concert Works for Violin and Piano.

Patrick, pictured above, a leading virtuoso in Britain along with the brilliant pianist Konrad will present obscure works from Hollywood’s Golden Age with film music by some of the most acclaimed film music composers at Christ Church, Daylesford on May 25.

Researched and compiled through Covid lockdowns the album was recently named BBC’s album of the week and has already received rave reviews from many including from The Strad.

Patrick brings to the stage a formidable career including (former) Principal First Violin for the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and first violin in the Tippett Quartet.

Now a freelance concertmaster, soloist, studio session player and West End musician, Patrick is also a film music composer with scores including the cult horror

The Human Centipede and forthcoming puppet horror, Abruptio. Patrick has also composed for theatre and video games.

All concerts in this series commence at 2.30pm. Link: https://www.trybooking.com/eventlist/christchurchconcerts

By Donna Kelly

I have been wondering how this year’s council elections will go with no ward boundaries.

The decision to remove them was made this year by the Victorian Electoral Commission, with input from councils and ratepayers.

Thirty councils will change to a single-member ward structure and four councils will change to a multi-member ward structure – Buloke Shire Council, Northern Grampians Shire Council, Surf Coast Shire Council and Yarriambiack Shire Council.

The final five councils will change to an unsubdivided structure – Campaspe Shire Council, Gannawarra Shire Council, Moorabool Shire Council, Strathbogie Shire Council – and Hepburn Shire Council.

So we keep the same number of councillors but we all vote for anyone from any ward. Well, the wards don’t exist after this election, so we vote for anyone from any town, hamlet, farm…

But I just don’t know how that will work. For example, in our little town of Glenlyon, which used to be in Holcombe Ward, we voted for people we knew cared about the region – hopefully because they lived there.

And because all the Holcombe Ward people were voting for someone in Holcombe Ward, someone in Holcombe Ward ended up on the council – hopefully pushing for the rights of our little ward.

But now there is no requirement for a certain amount of councillors to be voted for any area. So, for example, with the majority of the Hepburn Shire ratepayers living in Daylesford and Creswick, I would imagine the majority of those elected will be from Daylesford and Creswick, that just makes sense.

But who will put their hand up to help with a battle in Glenlyon, or Little Hampton, or Hepburn? I know, the councillors will be asked to represent all of their constituents but human nature being what it is, wouldn’t you help your neighbour first?

And surely this no-ward structure means the only people being voted in are those with the highest profile already – like Mayor Cr Brian Hood who is oft quoted in media reports.

Not sure who else – but you know, Alla Wolf-Tasker, who I am sure would never want the role, would have a good chance, or one of the local former AFL footballers could be in like Flynn.

Sadly old John Smith, who lives down the road at nowhere’s-ville, despite being a great bloke, really keen on transparency, knows all about due diligence and finance and has plenty of time on his hands to make a communnity contribution, doesn’t have a snow flake’s chance in hell.

Money is the other thing that could come into play. If you are watching free-to-air television at the moment, you would have seen myriad commercials about some convention Clive Palmer is holding throughout Australia – with some American guy coming out because our two countries are so similar with the same great values. Hmmm. Yeah, nah.

Anyway, love him, or like me, loathe him, Palmer has money – although his Queensland workers were left wondering where it was – and has tried before to buy an election with campaign dough.

So, if a local resident wanted hard enough to get voted onto the Hepburn Shire Council, they could up their profile if they had enough cash to spend a bit on advertising themselves. And that just seems a bit unfair to me.

Cash may be king, but we should be living in a republic by now. Please note, under commerical law, The Local must accept advertising from anyone. We can start your campaign any time you are ready…

Anyway, it will be an interesting election and I am keen to see who is going to put their hand up. I did once you know. Way back in 2016 I guess. Not sure what I was thinking but I failed miserably.

It was the day of the election and the counting was under way. I was still a bit hopeful and a bit “oh no, what have I done” when a woman wearing a hat covered in fake birds stopped me outside Coles in Daylesford.

“You came last in the count,” she announced, quite loudly. I laughed. Thought she was joking and replied: “Oh, no, they are just doing the count now…” “Yes, I was there,” she said. “You polled last.”

So a nice comedown, from a woman in a hat covered in birds, although I did get enough votes to get my registration money back. And to be truthful, while I was a bit miffed, I did think later I had dodged a bullet.

Mind you it was before Covid so there were plenty of long drives to council meetings in Clunes and Creswick, in the dead of winter, through sleet and snow. Now, it’s all on Zoom out of the Daylesford Town Hall.

If you decide to run, I would love to hear from you. You know, just for the scoop. And do I have a campaign package just right for you. Just sayin’…

The Mount Players’ second production for 2024 opened yesterday May 10 and runs until May 26.

Based on a real event, Looped, a comedy by Matthew Lombardo, takes place in the summer of 1965 in the editing studio where an inebriated Tallulah Bankhead needed eight hours to redub or “loop”, one line of dialogue for her last movie.

Though Bankhead’s outsized personality dominates the play, the sub-story involves her battle of wills with a film editor named Danny Miller, who has been selected to work that particular sound editing session.

The playwright uses a great deal of theatrical licence, offering us a hilarious yet sympathetic guesstimation as to what may have happened in that room on that day. Fun, funny and seductive this play is sure to appeal to many.

This is director Peter Newling’s first gig with The Mount Players. Peter is held in high regard throughout the community theatre scene across Melbourne. Vicki Smith (pictured above) takes on the role of Tallulah with utter professionalism and presence and Darren Gregor grasps the role of the highly frustrated film editor with ease.

A special Mother’s Day matinee on Sunday, May 12 offers complimentary bubbles for all the mums and delicious treats at interval.

Tickets are via www.themountplayers.com or call 5426 1892 for more information.

Words & Images: Eve Lamb

When bodily stresses intervened, artist and designer David Dawson went from making a living as a builder to creating Blampied’s unique Overwrought Garden Art workshop, gallery and display garden. In so doing he and his partner Karen McAloon have created a thriving enterprise that now employs nine staff and has become a much-loved attraction for the region. It’s a prime example of marrying art and functionality to create enterprise and bring joy into the lives of many.

Eve: Hi David. How long have you been here now?

David: We’ve been here (Overwrought Garden Art at Blampied) for about eight years but we’ve been in the area, living at Mount Franklin for 20 years, from Melbourne originally.

Eve: How did you get into this line of creative work?

David: Well even when I was a kid I always loved working with my hands – Lego and plasticine. I used to work with wood and I ended up working as a builder. But it got too hard on my body so I had to look at another means of making an income.

I started out making some wrought iron gates. I took them to the Seymour farmers’ expo and they sold. I got orders and I thought … ‘that worked!’ But I didn’t just want to make wrought iron though. I wanted to make really unique organic designs with trees and leaves and birds, and so I looked into different ways of making different shapes and came up with laser cutting.

Initially I got this done in Ballarat and had it couriered back here, and I then shaped and welded it here. I did that for a couple of years. But then I realised I could do my own cutting and I started out with a CNC plasma cutter before I bought my first laser cutter about seven years ago. Then we got a second one during Covid. I’ve come up with all my own manufacturing techniques and I make all my own jigs.

Eve: What items do you make?

David: (laughs) If it’s metal we make it. Garden art, sculpture, wall art, garden furniture, gates, privacy screens, bird baths, fire pits… But we don’t do structural engineering jobs. I’m not a structural engineer.

Eve: How do you come up with the designs?

David: People always ask me that and I don’t really know how to answer… I see things in nature and I imagine how they’d be in steel. Sometimes I start with a photo and I edit and adapt the design.

I love a challenge and some of the best designs come from people saying ‘can you make this?’ For example a tawny frogmouth project.

Eve: Can you tell me a bit more about your journey of establishing this site here at Blampied? It’s transformed a fair bit since you started out here.

David: Yes. This (gallery and retail space) was a fallen-down hayshed with a dirt floor when we started out here about eight years ago. The workshop was an open shed with no floor. I and another guy rebuilt the entire place and I landscaped the garden. I designed and built the garden here from scratch and I am really happy with the way the garden has come together.

Eve: How many people do you employ here now?

David: We’ve got nine employees, not counting myself. We are very proud to be able to support local people and we try to buy all of our materials locally.

Eve: What would you rate among your more memorable projects to date David?

David: Probably the biggest one was a set of gates for Burnley Gardens. They were a 150^th anniversary for Burnley Gardens and the design featured espaliered fruit trees.

Eve: I hear that you and Karen are just back from a pretty interesting trip to Vietnam. What came out of that trip?

David: We’ve always tried through this business to support local and other artists and while we were in Vietnam we did some arts workshops, and we met some artists making interesting pieces and we have now brought some of those pieces back to exhibit and sell here.

We went to a place called The Hope Centre in Hue. It works with people who have disabilities and gives them vocational training. We have brought back some of these pieces to sell here and we want to continue to support them.

I want to go back and spend more time there, meet more artists and build more contacts.

Eve: With your own work, what materials do you work with?

David: Mild steel and we use hydrochloric acid to rust the surface. I also use stainless steel for backing, or acrylic sheet, and also galvanised iron for backing. I can also work in coreten which is designed to rust and then stop rusting.

Eve: What do you find most fulfilling about your work David?

David: I love seeing the joy it brings to people. Some of the work I try to make is a bit quirky. It makes people smile and I love that. Everything I make I get a kick out of making.