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Australia's Naughty Plants & The official gardening tips thread

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there are quite a few discussion on these forums where people made certain claims on the basis of austlii which I disputed - and was found to be right. A couple of classic ones with Thelema for example about sections of the customs act, where his cited sections haven't existed in the act for years. We are not talking small issues and delays here, but pretty fundamental ones.

The govvy websites are generally easy to navigate, but terribly poor to search (most of the search engines will only search the titles of the acts and regulations, but not the body!!!!!). So the biggest problem is finding all the acts and their respective regulations. As there are so many changes to the structure of the legislation at this point I find it very difficult to keep up on more than my state - NSW. Like, for example, piperazines were scheduled in Vic when I checked the law at the begining of the year. Then the other day I had another look at it - turns out the section has been deleted in the last few months and has been replaced with the federal version which makes piperazines illegal on Sept 1st. It's not often that the drug law opens new legalities even if they are only for a few weeks or months, but during these massive changes it certainly appears to be happening quite regularly. So austlii is quite useless in that regard, because you have no idea whether the law is current or old or very old.

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there are quite a few discussion on these forums where people made certain claims on the basis of austlii which I disputed - and was found to be right.

This is something law students are taught on (basically) day one. State legislation changes quickly, and the schedule can be altered easily and quickly by state bodies. Safest option is to have a quick look on Austlii for the relevant Act, then check the respective gov sites [in victoria go to hxxp://www.dms.dpc.vic.gov.au].

As a side note I've just blown a couple of precious hours searching for case law specifically relating to proving intent in relation to Scheduled species. I can't find any reported cases, but the standard would no doubt be the same as in other areas. I can do a write up on this if anyone is interested, but the subject matter's very, very, very, very, very dry... :scratchhead:

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that's rubbish Torsten. You having admitted previously that the discrepancy of opinion was due to the fact that it was YOU who were relying on an out-of-date publication of the Customs Act. At the time I had full access to an up-to-date law library on a day-to-day basis and I can guarantee that the austlii version of the schedules of the custom act are parallel to the most recent publication [at least at the time]. If you bothered to go and consult the most RECENT publication you'd see I'm right. Pity you STILL seem to be more interested in vindicating me than in getting your own story solid.

Maybe you can edify us; from which edition of the Customs act do you derive such?

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What the F@#k happened to this thread! and what the F#@K was this thread meant to be about? Good name for a thread, I would have thought we were talking naughty plants being the Australian plants that are naughty? (Mine is a simple mind don't expect too much)

And why was the term Act in effect not used, How the F@#K are we meant to rely on any ACT from any source when it could be changed the day it does affect us?

Since we are calling it 'Australia's naughty plants' can I ask what is Australia's naughtiest plant, I would have thought an Acacia would have been the naughtiest?

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What the F@#k happened to this thread! and what the F#@K was this thread meant to be about? Good name for a thread, I would have thought we were talking naughty plants being the Australian plants that are naughty? (Mine is a simple mind don't expect too much)

And why was the term Act in effect not used, How the F@#K are we meant to rely on any ACT from any source when it could be changed the day it does affect us?

Since we are calling it 'Australia's naughty plants' can I ask what is Australia's naughtiest plant, I would have thought an Acacia would have been the naughtiest?

i think you are right, this thread used to be quite good, and i was not aware till now, that some people deleted there original input....

so, i will unpin this thread now.

Edited by planthelper

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Conocybe spp?

They're really scraping the bottom of the barrel there.

And I wonder if anyone should tell them that Psilocybin is not a plant?

LOL. yeah i got a laugh from that myself.

Strange they included conocybes and Gyms but not Pans...

I reckon there is atleast two conocybes growing in every person's lawn in melb in may so i doubt Canberra would be too different.

'You do get formally charged. You receive a criminal conviction and thus are not allowed to go overseas into many countries, ever. As you have a drug conviction on your record.'

Well thats kinda true...

The 10 year waiver rule does not apply for the united states - you are required to apply for a visa if you have any criminal conviction from any time in the past - and technically a conviction or finding of guilt relating to the possession or cultivation of a prohibited item is a conviction relating to moral terpitude (spelling?) which means you will NOT be allowed into the United States. It is however, quite unclear what moral terpitude actually means. I remember reading about one guy that claimed that he did not believe past drug use was moral terpitude because he was using marijuana medicinally and was flying into LAX.

Canada and the states share the same criminal records data base, but Australia does not share its records with any other country other than possibly New Zealand. if a person applied for a visa in advance - as a person with a criminal conviction is required to do before entering countries like the united states or possibly england - then i believe they can apply to review your criminal records through the australian records office or whatever its called now.

It would not be easy for the customs at any international airport to hold a person until they were able to verify their criminal record in their own country. If a person did not apply for a visa in advance and attempted to enter england or the united states on some kind of mutual entry agreemtn or visa waiver program unless the person was listed as a baddie on interpol's list its unlikely they would be flagged as having a record unless they do something to attract attention - and this is why they rely on the declarations that you fill out on entry where you should diligently declare all past misdemenours assuming you have any (even public urination - damn it??)

'There was a case in melbourne where a guy got nailed for getting opium from his poppies. I don't think he got done for man'

he was done only for possession and got 2 years jail. I remember the case well..

Edited by Zen Peddler BlueGreenie

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Ok I've been wanting to start this thread for ages.

As a prelude to the thread I've inserted this nice post by Mike ..I think it says a lot about what a lot of us want to do when we find this wonderful site..

Hey lades and gents.

I only stumbled across this place a little while ago, and was happy to have done so.

Several years ago in NZ i happened across a guy who gave me some Salvinorin cuttings. After a short period of use I found myself relieved of what was previously an untreatable case of chronic depression. So since then I have developed a great respect for natural medicine, although my experience with entheogens ended there.

Now I live in Melbourne and decided I would like to start a little garden. I got some seed packets for Morning Glory, Lactuca spp, Syrian Rue and potted them in a shade house in my backyard about 4 days ago. So far there is no sign of germination with any of them, and I wont be surprised if none of them grow at all.

My thumb is not exactly green, but its a hobby I would be keen to take on. So basically, I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on how I might deal with these plants best to keep them alive in Melbourne conditions.. Or alternatively, are there any interesting species that would be more suitable for this climate.

There is nothing in particular I want to grow, just anything exotic in appearance or that has some kind of significant historical/cultural use. I would continue with the Salvinorin since I have a connection with it already. But unfortunately it has been scheduled, as I'm sure you all know.

Peace

Mike.

So...what I want is for people to share their knowledge and secrets from experience with any kind of plants, mushrooms, ponds, paving, rockeries..anything to do with gardening.

Pictures and discussions welcome...but please don't go off tangent and start a tit for tat about something non relative to the thread.

I know there are some hard core great gardeners here so come on ...share your secrets and help others who may not have the experience but have the desire.

Firstly...and VERY IMPORTANT....KNOW THE LAWS IN YOUR STATE OR COUNTRY FOR THE GROWING OF THE PLANTS YOU WISH TO PLANT..IGNORANCE IS NO DEFENCE... I can't stress this enough...look up whats allowed via the appropriate web sites and make sure you allowed to grow and cultivate the plants of choice....!!!

if you are new to the forums, please read up a bit on excisting topics which might have answered your questions already.

the search button is on the top left corner, aswell you might want to read this thread:

http://www.shaman-australis.com/forum/inde...showtopic=21838

Okay now for the fun stuff and some tips...I'll start with some generic and basic ones.

#1, Mulch, compost and soil:

..I see so many pics here of plants in pots with no mulch..why..?

Its so easy and will help you save water and keep your plant healthy. If you get off your ass you can find good mulch just about anywhere for free. I get mine from Reverse garbage as its free and great quality. I re mulch every year and also whack a cover over the mulch of wet Coco Coir to help with moisture retention and help stop weeds.

#2, location, position:

Know your sun patterns and watch how it travels across the sky during the different seasons..this can help with placement of sun lovers and shade lovers. The winter sun travels lower in the sky...so put plants that might suffer in a cold winter in a place where they will still get sun even on a short low sun pattern..will help them get through the winter.

Okay come on you lot start filling up this thread with all your tips and get everyone a green thumb.

H.

Edited by planthelper

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#1, mulch, compost and soil:

mulch, yep it can be found everywhere and for free, and makes all the difference.

i would include composts and soil build up and structure here aswell into this catagory.

hardly anything can beat the feeling of having a lot of good mulch when gardening in oz, or the rest of the world.

one needs to have space though to produce your own mulch or compost.

cardboard boxes and wood chips (2 years old, get additional N nitrogen in form of urine)

on top, is my favorite around plantings.

kitchen waste get's composted with the help of compost worms or without.

another important thing is how friable your soil or pottingmix is and how much nutrients are available for the roots.

always use the best pottingmix avaiable.

most plants like high drainage mixes.

if you repot a plant, use only a slightly bigger pot, as using big pot's for small plants asks for trouble in many cases

#2, location, position:

having an idea how the sun moves in your garden or around your windows, during the day and during the year, helps aswell a great deal in our aim to grow healthy plants! :wub:

so, yes nummber two deals with light levels prefered and climatic preferences.

#4, watering, fertilizing:

it's about how often do you water and apply fertilizers and cultural, and cultivative aspects.

and how you harverest and use the fruits of your labor.

Edited by planthelper

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great thread.

#3, for seed:

i like to leave 3 plants for seed, if possible, at least 1 anyway, but that way you will continue your own supply of plants and not have to spend money on plants.

plus you can trade seed with other member of your community thus building up yoru collection, share with neighbours and friends.

Edited by planthelper

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#14, spartan gardening sayings:

One for the mouse and one for the crow, one to rot and one to grow.

Gardening is such a false economy,like any hobby it can take over.

I was speaking with a work colleague who's father turns out to have four allotments and four wheelbarrows,i had foolishly suggested a trowel for Christmas.

His father was originally from Jamaica and is apparently so old school that he prefers to be digging with a fork rather than use one of the new fangled rotivators.

He says that in his youth the pair of them would repair to the Garden shed to break out the weed.

When sampling a friend of another colleagues home grown 'erb i m informed he pitied the youth of today.

I'm guessing it was an unhappy smoke.

So beware of new and improved.

Edited by planthelper

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ok, #3, is for the seeds or cuttings, cheers velvet.

garbage, i think you are refering to two things...

#3, seeds, cuttings, grafting:

first make sure your seeds are non hybreed, so that growing your own seeds is possible and secondly, that the cannabis seeds these days are differrent from the good old days, in a sence that they produce less of an uplifting euphoric high.

i think this is because till 24 years ago heavy indica strains virtually did not excist in most countries.

the sativas of the old days produced a more cerebral and creative stone.

another thing is that, these days all growers are obsessed with trichomes and lot's of visible resin, and to produce that, plants get rather haverested late, which again produces a rather "wanna do nothing" stone, than a creative "he suddenly felt like doing all sort of things" stone, which is rather produced if one harverst early, with most or all hairs still white!!

seeds are generaly burried two and a halve times there thickness into the soil.

most seeds prefere to be placed with the eye pointing up and the sharp pointy end of the seed down.

most seeds germinate between 3 and 14 days, but some take much longer. some seeds (acacias and hard shelled seeds like mimosas and vines) benefit from stratification, meaning you either treat them with hot water or fire, or freezing, or physicly scraping or cutting the seed coat.

cuttings are an easy way to clone plants and cacti.

one can use, soft wood, semi hard wood, and hard wood cuttings. some plants generaly strike better if one uses any of those particular grades of maturety of the wood, another thing is to use for the same plant for example leafless hardwood, if attempting to strike over winter into spring, or to use semi soft wood with leaves in spring or summer.

anyway, just take a grwing tip 3 nodes long, and cut it of the motherplant shortly beneath a node. why we cut close to the node is because this area naturaly posesses the properties of frming new roots. than you remove 1/2 to 2/3 of all the leaves, and either put the cutting in a glass of water, or better into some friable pottingmix or rockwool cubes, or whatever, and place it into a humidety chamber. a pet bottle, cut open makes a perfect minni glasshouse.

many people like to use hormons, but one can get good strike rates aswell without it.

than, water in lightly, and place the cutting in a warm spot without any direct sun (early morning sun, though is often ok).

don't disturbe the thing! :slap: after 3 or more weeks new roots will form and the plant can be hardent out, by first removing the top of the pet bottle, and gradualy giving the new plant less and less humid conditions.

after that you get her used to more and more light, naturaly depending on her natural requirements.

Edited by planthelper

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#2, location, position:

If like me you love to plant out in the ground and don't really like pot plants..I find that if I germinate seeds indoors..usually in a cup of water for a few days..I then take them straight outside and plant them in the ground. Problem is though when its hot they can easily die from the heat. What I do and it helps harden them quickly is place seeds in the ground where I want the plant to live forever and once it has shown its first leaves..get a plastic empty plant pot and place it upside down over the seedling for the whole time the sun is on it during the day. As soon as the sun passes past the point of shining on it...off comes the pot and the seedling can harden off with some nice air flow and warmth. Saves ever having to fuck with its roots or messy transplants from seedling pots to other pots etc..

H.

Edited by planthelper

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Great thread!

#2, location, position:

Not only should one take note of plant's sun liking in sun intake [therefore placing it accordingly] but also where [or in how big a pot] to plant in your garden/setting... Well some plants really love big pots. Many can survive in medium sized ones, but they thrive in the ground. So, don't push it all the way with a plant if you don't have the potential for a it - maybe give it away to someone who will love it and can give it a nice home. Don't repot all the time unessasarily. It pays to have done the calculations before. Of course mistakes pay a lot too and we learn most from them...

So pick plants not only according to your taste and needs, but also to your setting. If you have plently of ground, you can do many stuff, especially in a moderate climate. If you have a balcony or a garden with limited place for trees and big plants , or say you can afford a big barrel, then you might want to think a lot with what you're gonna fill it with. This goes a lot about vines. It's better to plant a big perennial vine in the location it's gonna stay, rather than moving, pruning and repotting lot.

========

planthelper I always enjoy reading your posts. you're great! you seem to anwer to lots of my questions even if don't ask them at all!!! :)

Edited by planthelper

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#3, seeds, cuttings:

which seeds or plants make a good starter pack for first timers?

my top :drool2: 5 choices :rolleyes: would be:

echinopsis pachanoi or bridgesii, :wub:

banisteriopsis caapi, :wub:

psychotria viridis, :wub:

catha edulis, :wub:

argyreia nervosa, :wub:

i kindly ask you members, got any tips of which plants would make your top 5 or ten?

and what else should be included in this thread?

the following plants are illegal in australia.

australia's naughty plants, made illegal by law makers :slap: because projecting danger onto them.

papaver somniferum, :BANGHEAD2:

erythroxylum spp; :BANGHEAD2:

mitragyna speciosa, :BANGHEAD2:

salvia divinorum, :BANGHEAD2:

cannabis spp; :BANGHEAD2:

some plants are allowed to grow, but the indigestion of them is against the law.

some plants are allowed in some staats but not in others.

use the search engine to find out about the legalety of a plant, substance or herb, in any particular state!

Edited by planthelper

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#2, location, position:

Perfectly picked plants for perfectly picked locations need almost no spraying or chemical assistance,

not just ethno species either,

Eg; Malus species (apples and the like) when planted in too much shade will always be attacked by wooly aphids, so many people will persist in spraying year after year for wooly aphid on their apple tree , when all they needed to do is move it into more sun or just put more of a shade loving plant in that position,

Got a sick plant? plant lacking vigor? it may be trying to tell you its not happy!! , read about its requirements first then secondly, look at where you have got it and your climate,

It could be a matter of just moving the plant a few feet to get that afternoon sun or protecting it from hot wind or making sure your pot has drainage holes or whatever

Chemical sprays and hardware store garden section remedies are an absolute last option for a sick plant, never used them at home myself!!!

EDIT

#3, seeds, cuttings:

- my top 5 ethno type plants for easy growing in south east aus type climate ( mediteranian type climate)

1- Papaver sefigerum - sunny location - sow in Autum- 'lovely colour to a winter garden'

2-Trichocereus bridgesii- sunny location -strike cuts in spring, sow seeds in spring- this truly is a quick growing columnar Trich, that enjoys our climate!!

3- Lomandra longifolia - sunny or shady location - plant from tube stock is best any time!! - grass for foliage, READ- ( When i look for psilocybe mushroom species in victoria i look for this grass first!!)

definantly a real candidate for those moist shady spots underneath large native trees!!

4- Xanthorea australis - sunny location or under open Eucalytus canopy- seeds in spring or ethically sourced plants- Grass tree!! what more needs to be said, 101 uses type plant and important for native bee and insect populations

5- Ipomea violacea - sunny loaction - seeds in spring

climber that wont get out of control if not planted north of sydney hehehehe - maybe!!

I just love that colorful flower though.

-WARNING FOR NOOBS-

Wear sun screen and a hat and shirt when gardening too, its easy to become absorbed in what your doing, 1 hour in good miday sun can leave you really burnt!!

Edited by planthelper

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#6. Every garden needs a vege patch. (or vege pots if you're in a unit or rental).

Many here i'm sure know this one:

http://www.diggers.com.au/ for vege seeds and fruit/nut trees. Organic heirloom strains that grow and taste superior to supermarket produce. You wont look back.

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#7, tools, diy:

Take care of you gardening tools. They'll last longer, be easier to use, and safer.

Oil metal tools after use. Sterilise snips if pruning sick plants. Keep edges nice and sharp.

And to remove sap from tools, buy some citric acid powder from the supermarket, sprinkle it on the tool, as use a scourer or similar to wipe off sap. Better done sooner rather than later as its easier to get off when fresh.

Edited by planthelper

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#1, mulch, compost, soil:

Compost heaps will not work without oxygen.

Keep this in mind when designing/constructing a compost heap.

I remember reading an article recently - a landfill was dug up after 40 years, and due to the anoxic environment (because they were buried so deep), little if any decomposition occurred. Newspapers from the 60's were uncovered in excellent condition and were able to be read.

Oxygen is essential.

Edited by planthelper

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Sticky?

cheers

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#4, watering, fertilizing:

In summer when its really hot and the days are long..try to water your plants and garden at night time. I usually give everything a good drink at sunset and again before bed at midnight. The sun during the day evaps a lot of surface water off the top so watering during the day is pretty useless, not mention it will burn your plants leaves if they are wet, and the sun bakes them all day. If you have to water during the day..water around the base of the plant and try not to get the foliage wet. Watering at night gives the plants a chance to have a nice drink as the water sinks down through the soil as opposed to being sucked up into the atmosphere during the heat of the day.

In winter its obvious that watering is very sparse but still needed as you can get some pretty dry spells in winter...especially here is Oz.

H.

Edited by planthelper

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#4, watering, fertilizing:

Better to water deeply and infrequently rather than lightly every day. This way you encourage a deeper root system that is more drought tolerant. Of course, many tropicals etc require daily watering, especially if they have a naturally shallow root system and are growing away from their usual climate. In this case, mulching can be of great benefit.

Edited by planthelper

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#14, spartan gardening sayings, general tips:

When growing new unfamiliar plants draw a crude map. Your tags will get lost.

Dont have a pocket knife for gardening. Have two! One to keep razor sharp and one old one that can be used to hack at little stems, pry things out the ground, cut wire ties, etc.

Soda cans can be cut into good tags, write firmly on the silver side with a dead ballpoint pen on top of a phone book, makes a nice lasting indented text.

Buy proper new small zip bags to store your seeds and proper sticky labels to use with them. Mechanical pencils will be useful for the labels.

If you grow Opuntia and get stuck by glochids metal calipers can be better than tweezers for the hard to get ones if you happen to have a pair.

Get a calender just for garden stuff and keep them, you may need the data months or years later. I like the little book style two year calenders but I can write tiny.

Save seed from your best plants, not the substandard ones.

Avoid putting loads of chemicals on the rest of your lawn, not only will overspray hit your garden but in a few years that lawn may be turned into garden!

Dead car batteries dont belong sitting around decomposing, I mean what the hell :slap:

Eat veggies. It'll make you live longer so you can enjoy gardening longer.

Edited by planthelper
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peacfun son, i will make it sticky, once this thread has some grunt to it. but i will delete your post so to keep the thread without much off topic remarks.

i will delete this very post aswell after a while.

if you have some addtitional ideas about a thing you have already mentioned, please rather go and edit your old post than strting a new one.

think of how the thread should look like if a beginner looks for info without wanting to have to read off topic comments,

thank you very much.

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#7, tools:

auxins post inspired me to say, that a lot of everyday items can come handy as gardening paraphenalia.

for example, one doesn't need to buy plastic mini green houses or similar, the pet softdrink bottle mini glasshose is more rewarding. or simply a foam box with a sheet of glass or clear plastic on top, can be used to strike cuttings or to germinate seeds.

be creative, recycle and improvise!

#14, spartan gardening sayings, general tips:

another simple tip is to use any of the internet search engines frequently as a beginner,

like this instead of asking, what does it mean to "harden out" one can quickly become an expert oneselfe and than even bring information to the group instead of waisting somebodies time, or worse beeing fed up because nobody seems to want to answere your question.

Edited by planthelper

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