A world expert on weed control for food crops without chemicals will be speaking at the Sustainability Festival this Saturday.
Head of the BHU Future Farming Centre — which is hosted by Lincoln University — Charles (Merf) Merfield, will talk about sustainable horticulture and new approaches to weeds.
Dr Merfield is expected to cover organic and regenerative crop growing, the declining effectiveness of herbicides, breeding crops to be more competitive with weeds, mechanical weeding, and useful techniques to use at the garden scale.
It is one of 12 sessions to be held at the festival. Others include two children’s craft activities to DIY bicycle maintenance, and a guided nature-walk along Saltwater Creek assisted by smartphone apps.
The sessions can be booked in advance online or in cash on the day where not full, with prices varying between $5 and $20.
On Saturday evening a quiz invites team participation, for prizes.
On Sunday the festival continues with a fair, including live music and Junk to Funk recycled fashion, plus the regular monthly Repair Cafe.
Details of the programme are online at scecocentre.org.nz
