Animals & Permaculture

Zoo Camp

Spending a week camping in Halls Gap was definitely the highlight of my year. Not only were we surrounded by nature, which we got to explore daily, we also got to learn about and help care for a large variety of animals at Halls Gap Zoo. 

This wasn’t my first time going on this camp. But every year it manages to get better. This year, we had the pleasure of working with the rhinos, wombats, cockatoos, monkeys, goats, tahr and otters. With the otters being a new addition in the past few years, we gave their pond a well needed deep clean, having multiple students knee deep in otter water. We even got to watch one of the rhinos, Kingston, get the zoomies, covering us with dust as he turned around. 

Due to our hard work all week, the lovely owner of Halls Gap Zoo, treated us to our very own animal encounters. A variety of students got to interact with the meerkats, dingo and red pandas. Our equally hard working teachers were rewarded with a giraffe encounter themselves. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity to get to spend time with all of these animals, even meeting the red pandas up close. For a bunch of young, impressionable teens, being around and learning from all the amazing zoo keepers had us buzzing. There are now many aspiring zoo keepers to be, thanks to these opportunities. 

Lastly, we can’t forget the hikes. Being able to go tech free and explore the Grampians with a close knit group of people only added to the magic of this camp. Each day we chose a slightly more challenging hike and completed them as a team. We worked together, helping everyone over the difficult climbs and listening to all the various bird noises. It was a nice finish to the end of the day. This camp really is a fun, informative week, teaching us about working in the animal industry.

By Ye Ling Ericson

Zoo camp was absolutely incredible! it was truly one of the best things I've done at TC. Starting on Monday once we arrived at the campsite and setup we walked to nearby ponds where we happily sat and explored before coming home for pesto pasta! Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays we woke up early and headed straight to the zoo where we met some keepers. Tuesday we cleaned out the rhino pen then went and mulched the wombat enclosure (with some help from the residents themselves) we had wombats climbing in our wheelbarrows while we worked, it was amazing. Wednesday we were all hands on deck weeding for the rock wallaby's, deer, kangaroos and Tahr. We also manage to feed the giraffe over the fence. Thursday was our last day at the zoo and it was HOT, so what better thing to do on a hot day than have a paddle? After quickly clearing and mulching a monkey enclosure we cleaned and washed the pool for the otters. We then got to have a meet and greet with some of our meerkats and dingo's. I personally did the Meerkats and it was the cutest thing ever! They were climbing on our heads and shoulders and eating from our hands! 

Now Friday was my absolute favourite day of all. even though we weren't at the zoo. Each day we had an afternoon hike which was always the highlight of my day. Tuesday we went to Chitaqua peak where we rock scrambled to the very top of the mountain, Wednesday we went to the Pinnacle which was our longest hike passing many cannons and caves and even a 'silent trail' which if you successfully made it all the way through without a sound you got a wish. Thursday we went to Mackenzie falls which was perfect for a hot day, we all waded in the ponds and sat on the rocks. Friday was the best of all, we went to Hollow mountain where we scrambled our way to the top then went CAVING!! It was absolutely incredible. In groups of 10 the teachers took us into the cave where we crawled under rocks and maneuverer ourselves through the cave, it was genuinely one of the coolest things ever! Driving home we were all happily exhausted (with still enough energy to belt out 'teenage dirt bag' at the top of our lungs driving into school). Zoo camp will forever be one of my favourite memory's at TC. From our stunning campground, to all the wildlife and the incredible people I would highly recommend it to every single student at TC. Thank you so much to Duncan, Kate and Rebecca for taking us and making this such an incredible experience, I am truly so grateful!

By Kate Dickenson

Fighting Extinction Schools Showcase

On the 15th of November Me and 9 other students and teachers went to the zoo’s schools fighting extinction excursion. 

At the start we had an introduction and morning tea with all the schools and volunteers to thank us for coming and sharing our program and experiences. We where led tonight our table and set up then. 

I talked about our program and how we care for our turtles. The rest talked about turtle camp and what we do. We find where turtles dig their nest, cover the nest with fence wire to protect it from feral animals like foxes keeping the eggs safe until they hatch one year later. One year later we dig up the hatchlings and release them directly into the local waterways. 

We let younger kids have a go at covering the nest with wire on some dirt, we taught them how a water test is and the different chemicals. 

We also got to learn a lot about how other schools help with fighting extinction. Some schools go on camp and others make sanctuaries. We also had a surprise seeing Clare our previous animal technician with her new school. 

Overall it was an amazing time and we all learnt a lot.

By Audrey Trubiano

Happy Birthday TC Permaculature Garden!

In Term Four we celebrated ten years since the first digger broke ground on the E-Wing hill, starting what is now the thriving green jewel of Templestowe College. 

We held a summer party to welcome back some old friends who played key roles in the cultivation of the garden and enjoyed sharing memories and passing knowledge between past and present students, staff and parents. 

Thank you to all that helped make this a special evening, especially to the Perm staff and students who worked hard to get the space and food ready for the event.

Bee Club

Bee Club has continued to grow in 2024 and we have tried to meet most Tuesdays in Recess 2 all year. 

We have two hives (one is a swarm we caught last Spring) and we have had some success harvesting honey and wax from them. 

Earlier in the term the Bee Club decided we should hold a whole day Working 'Bee' (excuse the pun) to upskill new members in how to do hive checks and process the wax so we can use it in projects, and make some things to sell at the TC Market. 

The Incursion turned out to be an interesting day as we found some little creatures in the first hive we checked that we could not identify. We ended up sending photos to the Apiary Pest and Disease Officer at Agriculture Victoria to see if they could ID it for us. Luckily it turned out to be a common 'springtail' and not a problem pest. It was a great experience looking at it under the microscope and trying to determine what type of insect it was. 

We also made candles, deodorant, food wraps and furniture polish, all of which sold really well at the TC Market a few days later, making us some profits we can use in projects next year. 

Thinking ahead, we would like to hold a school's Bee Keeping Conference next year - the first of its kind that we know about. 

Stay tuned Beeps!

Food Forest and Yarra Valley Chocolaterie Backyard Excursion

Backyard permaculture elective visited the Yarra Vallet for a tour of the food forest at Yarra Valley Estate and a workshop at the Chocolaterie and learnt about permaculture and sustainable agriculture in the region. It was an insightful visit to learn about the different sustainable practices the region is using but most of all it was a very tasty visit!

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