Photo: Supplied.
CONTRIBUTED BY ADELIA BERRIDGE
Green spaces significantly drive Australian home values and buyer demand, with recent research indicating they can add a premium of over 17% to house prices and help properties sell faster. This trend is driven by buyers seeking lifestyle value, quality, and liveability benefits.
These were the key findings in recent reports, such as the October 2025 Plant Value Report by Domain, and Greener Spaces Better Places, highlighting specific metrics on how greenery impacts the Australian property market.
Redlands Organic Growers Inc (ROGI) scooped a winner at their last meeting with ABC presenter from Gardening Australia, Jerry Coleby-Williams. Jerry travelled from his Wynnum home to Redlands to present to a packed room, explaining why backyard veggie gardens are now in demand and how anyone can live sustainably on an 800-square-metre block. His own 815m2 block with a lowset house was the example of ‘the power of small’ and proof that you don’t need acreage to feed a family all year round. In fact, 100m2 of good soil is sufficient.
Jerry’s food growing area is 310m2, and the rest is companion planting and fruit, nut, berry bushes and trees, and he recently sold enough marmalade to pay six weeks’ mortgage payments. Basil seeds provide a good predator border, as do the spider plant and amaranth leaf, noting bugs are attracted away from food plants to the companion plants.
No words were wasted getting the message across that pesticides are the gardener’s enemy.
“Over the long term, pesticides can cause soil degradation by harming beneficial microorganisms, which reduces soil fertility and its ability to retain water and nutrients. This can lead to a loss of biodiversity, soil contamination, and the persistence of harmful chemical byproducts in the soil. Long-term pesticide use can also lead to pesticide-resistant pests, creating an ecological imbalance”.
Wasps, while not his favourite species, do a tremendous job in removing caterpillars, flies, and aphids, so are treated with great respect.
Jerry is no stranger to Redlands, and he adds his voice to protect flora and fauna. Jerry’s message in 2020 emphasised that koalas need their native food trees and shade for resting periods, as their diet is highly specialised and they cannot survive on alternative foods like bananas.
The take-home message – train the kids early with nutritious sprouts, because every meal they help grow is a daily vote for an edible system.
