Food Forest Journey

Permaculture consultation › Far South Coast, Gippsland & Melbourne

Far South Coast, Gippsland & Melbourne · Leg 06 · Far South Coast → Melbourne

Permaculture consultation on the Far South Coast, in Gippsland and in Melbourne

Cool temperate: frost, deciduous fruit and slower, steadier succession. This leg runs from Eden and the Far South Coast, along the Gippsland coast through Lakes Entrance, into Melbourne, and it is where the journey began, in a family garden in Hurstbridge that is now an established food forest.

The Hurstbridge food forest north-east of Melbourne

A permaculture consultation is where every garden on the route begins: a paid walk over your land in Eden, the Far South Coast, Merimbula, Bega, Lakes Entrance, East Gippsland, Melbourne, Hurstbridge, Castlemaine and the Goldfields to read it, understand what you want from it, and agree on the first move. Nothing is designed, quoted or planted before it.

Permaculture consultation$250$50 deposit holds your date; $200 on the day.More on the main page →First plantingFrom $1,000Earthworks, soil, planting, mulching and the knowledge to tend it.More on the main page →Annual stewardshipFrom $500/yrA return visit and an in-depth site report each year.More on the main page →

I travel the east coast two to three times a year, so there are plenty of chances to book a consultation and begin a long-term relationship with Food Forest Journey.

Cool temperate: what this climate asks for

Cold, wet winters and warm, dry summers. Deciduous fruit wants the winter chill, and the garden has to be built around light: a tree that shades the vegetables in summer lets the sun through in winter.

On the coast, around Eden, Merimbula and Lakes Entrance, the sea softens the frost but brings the wind, so shelter belts and windbreaks come first. Inland and around Melbourne, a consultation looks at where cold air pools and at summer water. Growth is slower than up north, so the succession plan matters more: what goes in now, what fills the gaps while the trees grow, and what comes out later.

Plants that tend to belong here: Apples, pears, plums, cherries and quince; hazelnut and chestnut; feijoa and citrus in the warmer coastal spots; berries, rhubarb and asparagus underneath; flowering beds to carry pollinators through the season. The final list always comes from your site, not from a template.

How a consultation works

  1. Book the dateA $50 non-refundable card deposit holds your date and puts you on the regional route, so I know to be in your area.
  2. Walk the landSoil, sun, slope, water, access and what is already growing, and what you actually want to eat, and how much tending is realistic.
  3. Choose the first moveWe agree on the highest-leverage first phase and what your budget could realistically create. The remaining $200 is paid on the day, with no obligation to book a project.

More on what we look at and what you leave with: permaculture consultation on the east coast.

Gardens on the route nearby

  • Hurstbridge Food Forest: Hurstbridge, since 2021: where the whole thing started, now a food forest that feeds a household.
  • Campbell's Creek: New life in the old goldfields near Castlemaine: a new garden on the route.

Questions

Do you do permaculture consultations in Eden?

Yes. Far South Coast, Gippsland & Melbourne is part of the Food Forest Journey route (Leg 06 · Far South Coast → Melbourne). I come to your land for a site discovery: $250, a callout fee for travel, time on the ground and the reading of the site. A $50 card deposit holds your date; the remaining $200 is paid on the day.

What happens after the consultation?

If you want to go ahead, the first planting starts from $1,000 and the budget is split between materials and labour at $50 an hour. Annual stewardship, from $500 a year, brings me back each year with an in-depth site report. There is no obligation after the walk.

When will you be in my area?

I travel the east coast two to three times a year, so there are plenty of chances to book a consultation and begin a long-term relationship with Food Forest Journey. The southern runs are longer, so they're scheduled in blocks, taking in Eden and the Far South Coast, the Gippsland coast through Lakes Entrance, and Melbourne. Book ahead to be part of the next block.

Elsewhere on the route

Book a permaculture consultation

Send your location, a few photos, your goals and a rough budget. I'll tell you where your land sits on the route and when I can walk it.

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