Melbourne Drive

13 hours ago | abc.net.au | Syan Vallance

The friendship between Kingsley Dixon and Phil Vaughan was forged in fire. Dixon, a renowned botanist living in Western Australia, and Vaughan, a respected nurseryman in Victoria, had heard of each other, but didn't connect until their properties were destroyed by bushfires on opposite sides of the country, just weeks apart. Both men lost thousands of plants, including rare and endangered native species.

1 day ago | abc.net.au | Angus Verley

The effects of drought creep insidiously into every corner of the Edenhope community. It is like many towns throughout southern Australia suffering greatly at the whim of the weather. Farmers, local businesses and sports clubs — none are immune to a prolonged dry as bad as any can recall. Parched paddocks and dry dams mean farmers are spending tens of thousands of dollars buying feed, carting water and sinking bores, or selling off livestock they can not afford to feed.

1 day ago | abc.net.au | Matt Brann

It has been more than two months since Donald Trump's "liberation day" tariffs were announced, which included a 10 per cent tariff on imported Australian beef. But US demand for lean beef has far outweighed the tariff and exports have been surging. "In terms of volume, I don't think Trump's tariffs have had an impact at all," Rabobank analyst Angus Gidley-Baird said.

1 day ago | abc.net.au | Patricia Karvelas

It's rare to hear a Labor minister rail against red tape — traditionally the domain of the conservative side of politics — but Housing Minister Clare O'Neil feels the weight of the country's housing crisis on her shoulders. She knows that if Labor isn't able to deliver on its housing promises, a generation of Australians will not only feel let down, they will have a right to feel angry that the system is stacked against them.

1 day ago | abc.net.au | Suzanne Hill

How many times have you been in an argument with someone close to you that's gotten out of hand? We ask couples therapist and marriage counsellor David Fox why we get so defensive, why defensiveness the enemy of connection in our relationships, and what we can do about it. It might surprise you to know that space isn't scentless. Suzanne discovers the strange and stinky aromas drifting through the cosmos with space scientist and fragrance designer Marina Barcenilla.