This house is a work in progress. It is an extremely energy inefficient 2 bedroom weatherboard house. Zero C architects were hired to do a sustainable renovation of the house. The designs have been drawn up, and work on the renovations should start in Oct 2011. Meanwhile the garden outside is an edible, sustainable ‘monster’ and spreading beyond the confines of the front garden. There are vegetable boxes on the nature strip, filled with lettuce, eggplants, kale and cabbage. The front garden is a No-Dig Food Forest, with fruit trees, herbs, exotic and indigenous. The back garden is again a work in progress, with raised beds an extensive chook house.
The owner is a qualified urban agroecologist who specialises in community food enterprises; she practices what she preached at home. There are many unusual plants in this garden. The garden uses recycled material where possible, and tries to minimise the amount of material brought into the garden.
The renovations should be completed before next year’s Sustainable House Day, so the public has a chance to see a before and after. Is a sustainable lifestyle achievable, come and see not the finished results but a work in progress.
(August 2011) (
