LFC News June 8 2022

Jun 092022
 

Thanks to the people who have contributed to this week’s newsletter: Hanh Truong, Megan Cassidy, Sally Warner, Sally Watson, Simone Boyd, Stuart Rodda, Tereza Ash and Therese Scales.

If you are Gmail user and didn’t successfully receive our newsletter last week, read this short guide on how to stop Google’s blocking of our future newsletters.

Formative pruning of bare-root fruit trees (by Therese Scales)

[Therese is a horticulturalist at Nillumbik Nursery in Diamond Creek. Thanks to both Therese and Sally Watson (the owner of Nillumbik Nursery) for this article. Nillumbik Nursery write a monthly newsletter with gardening tips which you can sign up for here.]

    

Why prune fruit trees? Shouldn’t we just let them grow to their natural form?

As simple as that sounds, it is not the way you get the best results from a fruit tree.

These rules generally apply to stone fruit, apples and pears:

  1. A strong framework of balanced branches needs to be developed to hold a good crop of fruit in years to come.
  2. Fewer branches hold larger fruit.
  3. A smaller tree makes it easy to pick fruit and to net the tree, as well as produce less excess fruit at risk of Queensland Fruit Fly.
  4. Opening the inside of the tree into a vase shape reduces the risk of pests and diseases developing.
  5. It allows sunshine in so fruit can ripen.
  6. Make sure your secateurs are clean and sharp. A clean cut will heal better than a tear. Remember to also clean your snips when you move between trees to prevent the spread of disease.
  7. Choose four higher outward growing branches (not crossing) to form the framework by which the fruit will produce fruiting spurs.
  8. Choose branches which are not directly opposite one another at the same point around the trunk to avoid splitting.
  9. Prune just above an outward facing bud to encourage outward growth. The cut needs to be angled away from the bud to protect it and allow water to run off. Be careful not to cut too close to the bud (to avoid damage) yet not too far from it (which may result in die back of the stem).
  10. The first prune should have about 60 percent of the growth removed. In subsequent years, you will not need to prune as severely. The formative pruning takes about four years. As well as removing branches which are crossing, diseased, dying or dead, the idea is to develop about eight branches around the trunk. So you want a lateral branch growing from each of the 4 branches you started with. In this time, remove any fruit before it gets too heavy for the small branches.
Do I really have to drop all fruit for 4 years?

In an ideal world … yes. It will encourage strong healthy branches and payoff in the long run.

If you just can’t wait… If you absolutely need to see some fruit from your labour… If you smile and nod when you’re told it all needs to go (only to get home and secretly enjoy your first fruit)… Significant fruit thinning is the bare minimum to allow for ongoing success.

Can you prune to contain the size?

Yes, but it isn’t a matter of doing it once and then you’re done. Rather, it will need to be done at least annually.

Food forests (by Megan Cassidy)

[Megan, from Greensborough, is active within Sustainable Greensborough, one of whose activities is a monthly book club where they read, watch and chat about issues of sustainability on our planet. Their meetings are on the 4th Tuesday of every month, 7.30-8.30pm, with their next meeting being on 28th June.]

A food forest is a way to pack a lot of diversity into a small space, mimicking the layers of a true forest, so that it all works together to create a functioning and largely self-supporting ecosystem.

As illustrated in the diagram right (from Permaculture a beginner’s guide by Graham Burnett), there are 7 layers that are generally expected in a food forest, namely:

  1. Canopy layer.
  2. Understory layer.
  3. Shrub layer.
  4. Herbaceous layer.
  5. Rhizosphere layer.
  6. Groundcover layer.
  7. Vertical layer.

Each of these layers take up a different part of the ‘space’ available, which maximises the potential yields you can harvest. This is what Bill Mollison referred to as stacking in space.

Stacking in time

When designing your food forest, you need to think about including some fruit trees that are ready to harvest in autumn/winter, so that you have a crop after the main season of spring/summer has passed. Bill Mollison called this stacking in time – when you use varieties of food plants that will fruit/produce early or later than others, to extend your growing season.

More on unusual pumpkins

Simone Boyd, from the online veggie seed shop, Heirloom Naturally, has produced two more videos about her unusual pumpkins:

Anna Swartz and Blue Ballet Buttercup

Sally Warner has also written in: “I began growing Ebisu pumpkins on the recommendation of the erstwhile owner of New Gippsland Seeds, Sue. It is a small-medium pumpkin which has a lovely rich pumpkin taste. I eat the skin, thus it is easy to prepare. I think it is the best tasting pumpkin. It doesn’t, however, keep as well as butternut or other pumpkins.“

Do you know?

Tereza Ash wants to grow tree collards. She has been told that they should be grown from cutting rather than seed. But she doesn’t know anyone who she can get a cutting from, not do any of her local nurseries sell them. Do you have a tree collard that she could potentially have a cutting from, or know someone who does, or know of a nursery who sells them? If so, email me.

I had never heard of tree collards before Tereza wrote to me so I have now done a little research of my own. They are a perennial brassica, producing blue-green or purple leaves which taste similar to kale. They grow up to 3 metres in height but can be kept much smaller. They are in the same Acephala group of Brassica oleracea as kale. Daleys sometimes sell them online but are currently out of stock. Read more on the Project Tree Collard website.

The key point is, of course, that tree collards are perennial (as opposed to biennial or annual). Other edible, perennial brassicas are apparently kosmic kale and jersey cabbage.

A newsletter reader’s veggie growing tip

From Sally Warner: “Like me, do you ever collect your old shoe laces and then wonder what to do with them? Problem solved, they are perfect for tying up climbing vegetables, such as peas or beans, to their frame. They can be re-used many times, plus they are easy to use and undo.“

It would be good to include more reader tips in future newsletters. Email me with your best tips.

Every newsletter deserves a good picture

This picture of a carrot has been submitted by Stuart Rodda.

Another new article from Angelo Eliades

Three useful herbs which can be used as natural compost activators and much more. Spoiler alert: the three herbs are comfrey, nettles and yarrow.

Read more of Angelo’s food growing articles.

Not food related but interesting

Pablo Naranjo, who is one of the most popular guitarists at Eltham Farmers Market, has released a new album entitled Ecos del Frio. Listen to the album here. He will be launching it at The Bergy Seltzer in Sydney Road, Brunswick, on Sunday, 12th June, starting at 8pm. He is playing at the Thornbury Local on Saturday, 6th August 6, starting at 8pm.

Which link was clicked most times in the last newsletter?

The most popular link in the last newsletter was Moreland Council’s vegetable and fruit storage charts (high resolution pdf).

b33e661f-c100-4ebe-9ffa-847952e0da4e.jpgJoke (or pun) of the week

What are the best things to put in a pie? Your teeth!

Read more jokes.

Regular activities over the coming week

Farmers’ markets

North East Region Permaculture will be having a stall at Eltham Farmers’ Market this coming Sunday (12th June). The theme is garden planning using the path of the sun and they will have an interactive model to help explain how to calculate the path of the sun through the year, plus they will hand out sun path diagrams for Melbourne.

Food swaps
Community gardens

Upcoming face-to-face events – introduction

You can view various calendars on our website by type of event: All once-off events, Cooking, Everything else and Free.

You can also view various calendars on our website by Council area: Banyule, Boroondara, City of Yarra, Darebin, Manningham, Maroondah, Moreland, Nillumbik, Whitehorse, Whittlesea and Yarra Ranges.

Upcoming face-to-face events – not cooking

Grapes and global warming wine masterclass; Thursday, 9th June, 7-8pm; $32 ($32 per hour); Northcote.

Explore the taste profile of 8 Ricca Terra wines, matching them to their taste profiles on the game board, whilst learning about the alternative grape varieties which are flourishing in Australia’s current climate.

Growing mushrooms at home; Saturday, 16th July, 10am-12.30pm; $95 ($38 per hour); Alphington.

Presenter: Julia Laidlaw from Sporadical City Mushrooms. This hands-on, beginners workshop will cover basic oyster mushroom growing. It is a skill sharing ‘tips and tricks’ lesson from an experienced commercial mushroom grower who started growing very basically at home in a small space with no technical equipment in the inner city. You will take home your own mushroom growing kit that you have prepared during the workshop, the materials and instructions needed to prepare a kit at home (re-purposed plastic bucket & lid, oyster mushroom grain spawn, enough straw for a grow kit, bag for pasteurising straw, small bottle of isopropyl alcohol for sterilisation).

Movie themed cocktail making class; Friday, 22nd July, 7-8.30pm; $95 ($64 per hour); Brunswick.

James will demonstrate how to make two classic cocktails: The Martini from James Bond; and The Singapore Sling from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Then it will be your turn to roll up your sleeves, as you will be shown how to make: The Cosmopolitan from Sex and the City; The French 75 from Casablanca; and The Manhattan from Some Like it Hot.

The fungus amongst us; Saturday, 23rd July, 10am-12.30pm; $55 ($22 per hour); Alphington.

Explore the Darebin park lands through a fungal lens. Participants will be guided to see and get close to the local world of fungi. The park adventure will be led by local ecologist Dr Sapphire McMullan-Fisher. Founder of Sporadical City Mushrooms, Julia Laidlaw, will then share the world of zero waste mushroom farming at her farm on the edge of the park land.

Beekeeping – how to get started; Sunday, 31st July, 9.30-10.45am; $20 (reimbursable at the nursery); Diamond Creek.

Mike Hall will tell you about how to get started with bee keeping, why keep bees, sourcing your bees, registering them, equipment, disease control and feeding. Organised by Nillumbik Nursery.

Introduction to growing microgreens; Sunday, 31st July, 10am-midday; $60 ($30 per hour); Preston.

What you will learn: how CERES produces certified organic microgreens; how to grow pea shoots, radish, and sunflower sprouts at home; and how to plan for a continuous supply of these (enough for all your salad needs. Presenter: Daniel O’Farrell. Organised by CERES.

Home brewing; Sunday, 31st July, 10am-3pm; $80 ($18 per hour); CERES.

What you will learn: make your own beer; all about full grain brewing; and the fermentation process. Presenter: Paul Rigby. The workshop will be a practical demonstration of full grain brewing covering ingredients (including malt, hops, yeast and water), equipment, brewing theory, and (most importantly) the brewing process (including mashing, lautering, boiling, sanitation, fermentation and packaging). Samples will be available for tasting.

Fruit tree pruning with Kaye Roberts-Palmer; Tuesday, 2nd August, 11am-12.30pm; free; Doncaster.

Learn about pruning, fertilising, pests to watch out for and how to get the most out of your backyard fruit trees. Organised by Doncaster Library.

In June
In July
In August
Regular events

Upcoming face-to-face events – cooking

A Palestinian banquet by chef Aheda; Thursday, 9th June, 6-8pm; $63 ($16 per hour); Coburg.

Aheda will serve classic Palestinian dishes using recipes handed down from her grandmother and her grandmother before that, going back over 1,000 years. Throughout the night, Aheda will speak about the significance of her food, culture and resistance. All funds will go to Aheda’s goal of launching a Palestinian food truck.

Rice paper rolls workshop; Friday, 17th June, at 4.30-5.30pm and then again at 6-7pm; $20 ($20 per hour); Eltham

Designed for beginners, PoppySmack will show you how to make perfect rice paper rolls. At the end of the session, you will get to enjoy your finished products with a selection of PoppySmack’s sauces.

Sourdough bread workshop; Saturday, 25th June, 9-11.30am; $185 ($74 per hour); Brunswick East.

Nadine will demonstrate the technique of sourdough bread making and baking. Take a container to take home your dough to bake at home. This class is best suited to those who have some experience with bread making, however it is not essential. Organised by Park Orchards Community House.

An artisan chocolate baking class; Sunday, 10th July, 10am-1pm; $154 ($51 per hour); Alphington.

Nidhi, from Cocoa & Chili, will show you how to make ganache, hand rolled truffles, chocolate brownies and caramel sauce.

Beginners cheese making class; Sunday, 17th July, 10am-3pm; $200 ($40 per hour); Thomastown.

What you will learn: how to make hand-stretched fresh mozzarella and create bocconcini; how to make primo sale; and how to make fresh ricotta. What you will get: Italian style lunch; and primo sale and freshly made mozzarella to take home. Organised by That’s Amore Cheese.

Cup cake bouquet workshop; Friday, 29th July, 6.30-8.30pm; $70 ($35 per hour); Park Orchards.

Decorate cupcakes using buttercream icing and then arrange into a bouquet. Topics to be covered will include: how to make Italian buttercream frosting; different butter cream frosting; how to add different colour frosting in a piping bag; how to pipe six different types of flowers; how to pipe leaves; how to do two tone colour effects; and how to make a bouquet to hold the six cupcakes. Organised by Park Orchards Community House.

In June
In July
Regular classes

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