enjoying a dog walk in the green Darebin Parklands

This morning Penny set off with two of her humans to visit Darebin Parklands. Once we got there, the "pack" split up, Penny and one human to have fun walking and chasing balls, the other human to have a different kind of fun, planting baby grasses in the Hidden Valley.





Looking at the soft wet soil, it seems impossible to remember the burning heat of summer, and I'm optimistic that the baby grasses will grow successfully before everything dries out again.

The other day, we looked at the grasses we planted last year. They've done well.

dogs and planting in Darebin Parklands

Today Penny and I went to have a look at how the baby grasses are growing in Darebin Parklands.













It was the first time Penny had seen them, because she stayed home while her humans were planting poa grasses along the edge of the creek last Sunday.















It was enormously satisfying to work with others to plant hundreds of native plants and know that they will add to the variety of flora in this beautiful spot. Many of the people who worked that day walk with their dogs in the park, so they will enjoy seeing the plants grow. (Let's hope that the hot summer weather doesn't begin too early this year, so the plants can get a good start.)

Each little plant had a handful of water crystals beneath it, which should keep them going for a couple of months.


After they went into the lovely sandy soil, we mulched around them.
































For some of the volunteer 'gardeners', it was their first experience of planting in this wonderful park. I hope it will be the beginning of a long-term involvement. I've just been looking at a fascinating presentation about the history of the Darebin Parklands Association and I can only say how I admire the work that has been done so far.