Taking Neville Bonney on tour

More than 120 people from across the SA Arid Lands were able to hear from widely respected Australian bush food specialist Neville Bonney when he visited the region during a roadshow in April and May.

The roadshow visited Marree, Copley, Hawker, Yunta, Coober Pedy, Andamooka and Iron Knob. School of the Air students were able to learn from and chat with Neville during their school lessons.

An ethnobiologist (someone who shares an interest in exploring human-biological relationships from the very distant past to the present) and author of several publications, Neville shared his knowledge on a range of topics that included:

• Seed collection, pollinators, dispersal and propagating techniques for arid zone plants
• Local plant identification for homesteads, shelterbelts and windbreaks
• Water efficient homestead gardening and landscapes
• Using plants to attract birds, bees, butterflies and small insects; and
• Aboriginal uses and knowledge of native plants.

Those who attended were lucky enough to sample bush food treats made from such ingredients as sandalwood, native lime, wattleseed and quandong.