Bonbeach Primary School - Bushfood Garden Opening

Didgeridoo at the opening ceremony Bonbeach Primary School Photo credit Row Your Boat Projects

Adam Magennis (left) and Jarrin Watson (right) playing the Yitiki for the school community.

Inspiring to see the next generation participating in the smoking ceremony carried out by Adam Magennis, a Bunurong man and Jarrin Watson, a Gunditjamirring man.

It was wonderful to be in the late autumn sunshine at the opening of the Bonbeach Primary School Bushfood Garden in May, and see plants and signs we supplied for this project.

The garden includes native pepper, yam daisy, pigface, sea celery, native juniper, flax lily, bulbine lily, midyim berry, warrigal greens, beach banana, ruby saltbush, curry myrtle and native oregano, with our colourful educational signs helping students learn about and connect to these plants.

This garden is part of the school’s commitment to engaging with local indigenous culture and part of the student’s learning journey. Bonbeach Primary School has some amazing landscaping and a fantastic kitchen garden (see pictures at end of blog), and the bushfood garden is a great new addition to the outdoor educational opportunities here.

Karen Sutherland planting at the Bonbeach Primary School Bushfood Garden 2023

Damper and soft drinks flavoured with native Australian ingredients CREDIT RowYourBoat sign damper bonbeach

Grade 6 students, Leo, Ella and Maeve spoke to the group:

During our unit of inquiry students in Grade 5 & 6 are investigating how Bunurong people have successfully adapted to live a sustainable lifestyle within the local environment for the past 60,000 years. Our learnings include methods, ways and means of sourcing and using plants as food, medicine and resources in order for their survival. The students will also compare and contrast the food and shelter aspects of their own lifestyle and reflect how their lifestyle and food choices differ from those of the Bunurong ancestors.

We attended Shoreham Foreshore Reserve last week, for Cultural Landcare exercises, to understand how to manage Country with controlled fire and how it is seen to be essential for life and wellbeing of everything in and On Country. Students were also introduced to Stone Knapping which is a specialist industry that allowed Bunurong people to produce tools and equipment in order to adapt to varied environments across Bunurong Country. Playing the Yitiki was also demonstrated to us.

We will now continue to investigate, build and plant our own Bunurong resource garden. The produce from this garden will be used to enhance the school’s existing garden produce for cooking classes.

Respect.Care.Share.

Please welcome Adam from Kaptify to officially open our new Cultural Produce Gardens

Bonbeach Primary school Native Pepper plants and educational identification sign

How wonderful, a new season highlight for spring, this frog was snapped at Bonbeach’s Bushfood Garden, congratulations Bonbeach on a fantastic habitat friendly garden. Our little froggy visitor seems to be checking out the habitat friendly ‘lizard icon’ on the Creeping Saltbush sign.

It may be a Common Froglet or maybe a Pobblebonk? Read more about frogs and how to help them here
Frogs can be identified by their distinctive calls. Join the the citizen science project ‘Frog Census‘ and get your local frog identified!