Events
Seed Collection workshop with Seeding Victoria, in Castlemaine on Saturday 9 November 2024.
The day will involve;
- The nuts and bolts to seed collecting: You will learn species identification, what permits you need to obtain for collecting seed, OH&S, collection techniques, extraction and storage.
- Field Trip: We will have a look at the OH&S components of seed collecting, observing what’s flowering and what will be ready to collect in the coming months.
- There will be an opportunity to order seed-collecting equipment on the day.
- Learn about how the Natural Resources Conservation Trust Seed Bank Revolving Fund works and how to obtain a discount for seed-collecting equipment.
- Introduction to the BushBank Program: How to get involved in collecting seed for the $30M Government program and access funding to undertake biodiversity planting on your property.
When: Saturday 9 November 2024, 9.30am – 3.30pm
Where: Castlemaine Botanical Gardens Tea Rooms, Downes Rd. Castlemaine
Cost: $30
For more information and bookings – click here
This event is the first of a series of events that are part of Connecting Country’s Seeding Our Future project. For more information – click here
This event is made possible with generous support from the Natural Resources Conservation Trust, Cassinia Environmental through the Victorian Government’s BushBank program and by the North Central CMA, through the 2024 Victorian Landcare Grants.
Weed Identification & Control Workshop: Sunday 13 October 2024
Connecting Country is excited to announce our new ‘Partnerships Against Pests’ Project, focussed on working together to empower community with the skills to protect local flora and fauna from the threat of pests and weeds. To kick the project off we are holding a weed workshop for residents, Landcarers, land managers or interested community members.
Weed Identification and Control Workshop
Sunday 13 October from 10.00am – 1.00pm at Taradale hall.
Join experienced and knowledgeable natural resource management practitioners and local contractors for an informative workshop that will cover the fundamentals of local weed identification and control techniques.
This event is FREE but places are limited so please book your tickets HERE. Participants will receive a show bag of resources as well as free morning tea and lunch, and fantastic company. Come along and connect with your community!
The Weed Identification and Control Workshop is funded by the Victorian State Government Partnership Against Pests Program and the North Central Catchment Management Authority.
Connecting Country, Birdlife Castlemaine District and Barkers Creek Landcare and Wildlife Group are excited to present:
Join us for a series of events in celebration of woodland birds
September 2024 on Djaara Country
The Message of the Lyrebird Film Fundraiser
Thursday 5 September 7:30pm
Theatre Royal Castlemaine
The theatre will be open from 6pm if you would like to grab dinner before the show.
Film Tickets $25/$20 concession HERE
This is a special fundraising event also featuring live music by Joel Bloom and Hilary Blackshaw and a conversation with local Landcarers and ecologists.
All proceeds from ticket sales will go towards – Connecting Country’s Conservation Program and Balangara Films Education Distribution Program
Guided Birdwalk
Saturday 7 September 9am
Rise and Shine Nature Conservation Reserve, Newstead
Join expert bird watchers from Birdlife Castlemaine District on a free guided walk in one of the region’s bird watching hotspots, including a ‘how to identify birds’ session, followed by a delicious brunch in the outdoors with entertainment from the Chat Warblers. Kids welcome.
Reserve your spot HERE
Birds and Beers
Wednesday 11 September
Talk starts at 7pm (come down earlier for dinner)
Shedshaker, Castlemaine
Enjoy a beer and some delicious grub, and Join Tanya Loos, author of forthcoming book Living with Wildlife: a guide for our homes and backyards, while she delves into the delights of our local bird fauna. As well as describing commonly seen birds of the Castlemaine region, Tanya will provide practical tips on how to make sure our homes and backyards are havens for birds.
Practical advice will also include addressing some of the more maddening aspects of our feathery friends such as birds attacking windows and cockatoos destroying houses!
- ‘Revegetation Success in a Changing Climate’ event: Tuesday 1 August 2023
Connecting Country is excited to announce our next upcoming event, ‘Revegetation Success in a Changing Climate’, on the evening of Tuesday 1 August 2023, at the Anglican Church Hall, Castlemaine VIC. The event will address how we plan revegetation in a changing climate and will enable our community, land managers and Landcarers to have greater success in restoring our natural landscapes.
The event will feature presentations from Sasha Jellinek (University of Melbourne), Djaara and the North Central Catchment Management Authority (NCCMA), and a Q and A session at the end.
Please join us for this special free evening event on for event formalities, yummy supper and our special guest presenter. Please register your attendance for the event – click here
- Connecting Country AGM and Caring for Large Old Trees Event – 2.00 pm on Saturday 19 November 2022
Connecting Country is delighted to announce our Annual General Meeting (AGM) for 2022. After two years of online AGMs, we finally meet at the magnificent Campbells Creek Community Centre in person. Horray!
Our theme is ‘Caring for large old trees in our landscape’, and will feature a special presentation:
- Large old trees: Caring and sharing their future
Chris Pocknee (Ecologist – Biolinks Alliance)
Join Chris to learn about how to care for old trees in our landscape and how vital they are to a host of wildlife and bird species.
Everyone is welcome! Please register your attendance for the meeting – click here
- ‘Birdwalk for Beginners’ launch – 6 April 2022
Come and help us celebrate the launch of our new brochure and bird walk, ‘Birdwalk for Beginners’, an easy walk along Leanaganook Track and Forest Creek, Moonlight Flat VIC. The event and bird walk brochure aims to attract new birdwatchers, as well as celebrate the excellent restoration work that volunteers have completed over the past few decades along forest creek. Bird walks are a great way to get people out enjoying and exploring the natural assets we are blessed with in central Victoria.
Join us for a short, guided bird walk for all ages and abilities, and explore our new ‘bird walk for beginners’ brochure, featuring QR codes for bird and habitat information. The brochure launch event will feature a walk with local experts from BirdLife Castlemaine, Castlemaine Landcare Group and the Castlemaine Field Naturalists Club, and will highlight the excellent volunteer work along this section of Forest Creek and Leanganook Track.
The walk is approximately 1.5kms and is a flat, easy grade.
Click here to book.
- Woodland birds of Wildflower Drive with DJAARA – 4 December 2021
Our second event is titled ‘Woodland Birds of Wildflower Drive with DJAARA‘ and is a collaboration between Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation, BirdLife Castlemaine and Connecting Country. The event will feature a bird talk and walk with local bird gurus, Damian Kelly and Jane Rusden of BirdLife Castlemaine, and an exploration of cultural and landscape awareness with Harley Douglas of DJAARA. It will be held at the lovely Wildflower Drive, which is part of the Greater Bendigo National Park, VIC.
This event is the second of four events in the coming months funded through Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation. Two further events in March 2022 will focus on nest boxes and providing habitat for marsupials.
- Woodland Birds of Kalimna Park with Djaara – 27 November 2021 10am
Connecting Country is thrilled to announce tickets are now available for our first of four free events in partnership with Djaara.
Our first event is titled ‘Woodland Birds of Kalimna Park with Djaara‘ and is a collaboration between Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation, BirdLife Castlemaine and Connecting Country. The event will feature a bird talk and walk with local bird gurus, Damian Kelly and Jane Rusden of BirdLife Castlemaine, and an exploration of cultural and landscape awareness with Harley Douglas of Djaara. It will be held at the lovely Kalimna Park in Castlemaine, VIC.
This event is the first of four events in the coming months funded through Dja Dja Wurrung Clans Aboriginal Corporation. A second Woodland Birds event is scheduled for Saturday 4 December 2021 at Wildflower Drive, Strathsfieldsaye, near Bendigo.
Click here for more information and to book
- Connecting Country AGM – 2.00 pm on Saturday 13 November 2021
Connecting Country wishes to announce we’ve scheduled our 2021 Annual General Meeting (AGM) for 2.00 pm on Saturday 13 November 2021. This year’s AGM will again be online via Zoom, please book. Our online event will include two very special presentations.
Geoff Caine/Dona Cayetana (DELWP-Climate Sciences) on ‘Climate scenarios and planning considerations for central Victoria’ and Bonnie Humphreys (Connecting Country) on ‘Future-proof our forests’.
Click here for more information and to book.
- Caring for old trees – Saturday 24 April 2021
The event will be held on Saturday 24 April 2021 from 10 am-12 pm in North Harcourt, VIC. It’s sure to be popular and tickets are limited. To book please- click here
Connecting Country is excited to announce that tickets are now available for the second event of our 2021 autumn workshop series. ‘Caring for old trees‘ will be hosted by two local leading naturalists and ecological experts, Jarrod Coote and Tanya Loos, also coincidently both former employees at Connecting Country. The event will be in-person and face-to-face at the stunning Hillside Acres farm, in North Harcourt, Victoria. The event is part of our ‘Healthy Landscapes’ project, funded through the Australian Government’s Smart Farms program.
- Healthy dams for habitat – Thursday 18 March 2021
We have booked our first event for 2021 and it is sure to be a big one, hosted by local leading naturalist and wetland expert, Damien Cook. The online event will feature a presentation by Damien on how to create and improve dams to supply clean water and habitat for a variety of native plants and animals. The event is part of our ‘Healthy Landscapes’ project, funded through the Australian Government’s Smart Farms program.
Our project is about helping our local farmers and other landholders to manage their land sustainably for the benefit of wildlife, themselves and the broader landscape. We will also develop a Healthy Landscapes guide book, especially targeted to the Mount Alexander region of central Victoria, and deliver a series of educational workshops for landholders on sustainable land management.
The online event will be held on 18 March 2021 at 7 pm, with online booking available in the coming weeks. It’s sure to be very popular.
Click here to book for this event
- Bird Watching for Beginners – Saturday 17 October 2020
The beginner’s event will take part over two sessions: an online presentation with Damian Kelly from 11 am to 12 pm, followed by a practical session in person in the afternoon, from 1.30 pm to 4 pm. The practical session will involve a team of 4-5 beginners teaming up with an experienced local birdwatcher to conduct some field bird surveys on public land across our region. This is an excellent opportunity to visit some great bird watching sites, with an experienced mentor to guide you through the afternoon. Participants will have a chance to ask questions and learn directly from mentors.
Theory session with Damian Kelly: 11:00 am to 12.00 pm
- Online event, all welcome, limited tickets
- Targeted to adults but suitable for all ages and abilities
- To register, click here, a meeting link will be sent to you on the day of the event.
- For more information click here.
Practical session with mentor: 1.30 pm to 4.00 pm**
**Practical session with mentor sold out** To join the waitlist please register your interest by email to ivan@connectingcountry.org.au.
- Connecting Country AGM – 2.00 pm on Saturday 26 September 2020
Connecting Country wishes to announce we’ve scheduled our 2020 Annual General Meeting (AGM) for 2.00 pm on Saturday 26 September 2020. This year’s AGM will be a little different: for the first time ever we are planning an online event via Zoom. But as usual, it will be much more than an AGM! Our online event will include two very special presentations.
Two excellent and engaging speakers: Jess Lawton (Connecting Country) on ‘Connecting Country’s ten years of ecological monitoring‘ and Jacinta Humphrey (La Trobe University) on ‘The impact of urbanisation on birds’.
Click here for more information.
- Tricky birds with Geoff Park and Chris Tzaros – 7pm on Monday 24 August 2020
Hold onto your hats! Connecting Country is excited to host an all-star lineup for a workshop on identifying tricky bird species of the central Victoria. Two highly-regarded birdwatchers and ecologists, Geoff Park and Chris Tzaros, will present at our online workshop on identifying tricky birds on Monday 24 August 2020 at 7 pm. Geoff will be speaking on identifying raptors and Chris on identifying thornbills, followed by an interactive panel discussion and a chance to ask the experts your bird watching questions.
Click here for more information.