Sep 062023
 

Thanks to the people who have contributed to this week’s newsletter: Angelo Eliades, Bruce Plain, Fay Loveland, Jade Hence, Kathryn Brookes, Leila Alexandra, Liz Cronin, Nathacha Subero, Pam Jenkins, Pauline Webb , Richard Kottek, Richard Smith, Robin Gale-Baker, Tahlia Sleeman, Teagan Crouch and Virginia Solomon.

I (Guy) am now back from my holiday in Western Australia so the weekly newsletters will now resume. The fruit shops in northern Western Australia sell an interesting variety of tropical fruits that you rarely see for sale in Melbourne and cannot grow here. I was particularly taken with the black sapote (photo right) and custard apple.

Testing your seed for viability (by Robin Gale-Baker)

It can be disappointing to sow seed and none of it comes up. There is, however, an easy way to check whether your seed is viable and how viable it is. Now is the time to test any seed you might want to sow this spring.

Seeds have varied lifespans. Parsnip and angelica, for example, need to be sown fresh soon after they are harvested and certainly within a few months. The onion family (which includes chives, leeks and garlic) are the same. Sometimes these are referred to as ‘very sensitive seed’. Short life expectancy seed (2-3 years) includes carrot, celery and sweetcorn. Mid life expectancy (4-5 years) applies to beans, capsicum, lettuce, peas, radishes and silverbeet. Long life expectancy (5 years plus) applies to tomato and to many seeds that are best bought commercially because they cross-pollinate between varieties in home gardens – these include brassicas, pumpkins, melons and cucumbers.

To test for viability, you will need:

  • Kitchen paper.
  • Permanent pen.
  • Zip-lock bag.
  • Seed.

In summary, you will label the kitchen paper, wet it, spread the seed, roll it up and place it in a closed zip-lock bag for 7 days in a warm place. After 7 days, you will unwrap it and check whether the seed has germinated. If it has, this suggests that your seed is viable.

In more detail:

  • Tear off as many sheets of kitchen towel as you have seed packets to test.
  • Write the name of each seed type on the BOTTOM of the sheet in permanent pen.
  • Stack the sheets neatly on top of each other and dip them in water. Either press them down to expel as much water as possible or fold the bundle in half and do the same so that you end up with damp but not wet sheets. Don’t twist or scrunch the sheets as this makes them very difficult to separate.
  • Gently peel one labelled sheet off at a time and place on a bench – be careful as they will tear easily.
  • Sprinkle seed across the TOP of the sheet.
  • Roll the sheet up tightly from the TOP to the bottom. This ensures that, when you unroll, the label will be visible.
  • Fold the roll in half and place it in a zip-lock bag unless you have a very wide bag which will accommodate the width of the kitchen paper. Zip the bag closed. (You can put multiple rolls in one bag) .
  • Leave the bag in a warm place for 7 days.
  • Unroll each bundle and check whether the seeds have germinated.

To test for percentage of seeds that are viable:

  • Place exactly 10 seeds across the top of the sheet.
  • Count the number of seeds that have germinated and multiply by 10. This gives you your percentage e.g. If 7 seeds out of 10 germinate, you have 70% viability.

Note that it is easier working with medium to large seeds. It can be difficult to count out 10 very tiny seeds but you will get a rough idea even if you sprinkle a few extra).

Finally, don’t be discouraged if you get a low germination rate. Simply sow more seed to make up for this. If, for example, you want 50 seedlings and your germination rate is 25%, (i.e. 25 out of every 100 seeds will germinate) then sow 200 seeds to arrive at 50 seedlings.

A new community garden in Mooroolbark

There is a new community garden in Mooroolbark, at the corner of Station and Charles streets. They did some initial planting on Saturday (see photo). More information will follow in due course but in the meantime here is an article from the Mt Evelyn Star Mail.

A new food swap in Kew East

On the 2nd Saturday each month, 10-11am. At Willsmere Station Community Garden, corner Willsmere Road & Carnegie Avenue, Kew East, Victoria, 3102. Congratulations to newsletter reader Tahlia Sleeman and colleagues at the community garden for setting this up.

There are now 33 regular, active food swaps in North East Melbourne. See the map on our website.

Yes, you did know!

In the last (9th August) newsletter, Judith Cooke asked for advice about organic suggestions for dealing with black aphids on alliums. Here are the responses:

Angelo Eliades: Black aphids on onion family plants can be difficult to get rid of if pest controls aren’t used correctly. Aphids breed very quickly and can produce offspring every few days, so the schedule for spraying horticultural oil (such as Eco Oil) needs to be quite frequent to break their breeding cycle. For aphids, apply two sprays, 3-5 days apart, preferably 3 days apart in this case, and repeat up to 3 sprays over a 4-8 week period. The application rate of horticultural oil for aphids is approximately 5ml/litre of water. To increase the effectiveness of this controls, hose off the plants the next day after spraying using a moderate pressure jet of water that’s strong enough to blast the pests away while not damaging the plants. The combination of these controls used over a 9 day period should eliminate any aphid problem.

Pam Jenkins: I used white oil a couple of times with little success. I then added in drenching the plants in used washing up water daily for a few days between sprays. No sign of the aphids now.

Pauline Webb: I gave my garlic chives with black aphids a dose of Seasol last week to (surprisingly) find none a few days later. I had done similar a couple of months earlier to no avail. Good timing? Luck?

Richard Kottek: I have sadly found out over the years that, once a garden or site has been infected, that is the end of the story with growing alliums. The only thing I have found is to grow alternatives such as European wild garlic (an edible garlic flavoured herb), society garlic, asafoetida or (as an onion alternative) onion weed.

Do you want?

Richard Smith, who lives in Cheltenham East, has a dwarf Jonathan apple tree to give away. First come, first served. Contact Richard by phone (0432 085 271) or email (brookys_4@hotmail.com).

The Melbourne ‘Local Food Connections’ community radio show

This upcoming Sunday’s episode will feature Nick Rose on urban agriculture. Listen on 3CR (855 AM) on Sunday morning, 10-10.30am, by tuning into either the station (855 AM) or its livestream.

An audio recording of previous episodes is available on their website.

Bits and pieces

Warrandyte Food Swap’s 8th birthday!

Warrandyte Food Swap’s 8th birthday was last Saturday. They have written in to say that they “had a great swap with lots of fantastic local produce, a cake to share and a hamper that was raffled off to one lucky winner.” See the photo right.

Entries for the 2023 Eltham Wine Show are now open

The 2023 wine show will be on Sunday, 19th November. Entries are now open and will close on 20th October. Download the entry form as either a word document or in pdf format.

Mitcham Community Meal

Mitcham Community Meal provides a free community dinner every Sunday evening, where each meal is cooked by a different local community group. During August, the cooking teams were Karinya Counselling Centre & Syndal Community Care, The Blackburn Lions, The Mitcham Baptists and Tulsi’s Crew (see photo right). Look at some photos of these teams, plus those of previous teams.

An SGA lawn survey

Sustainable Gardening Australia are undertaking a very brief (1 minute) survey of what people use their lawns for and how many are pulling them out. They would appreciate any responses from newsletter readers. Complete the survey.

Some videos for you to watch

Yarra Valley ECOSS, who are based in Wesburn, has published a 2-minute video about one of their initiatives called Pollination Place.

Simone Boyd, from the online veggie seed shop, Heirloom Naturally, has published a 9-minute video on how to plant rhubarb crowns.

What seeds to plant in September

Here is a list (see the planting guide for more detail):

Cucurbits

Cucumber
Gourd
Pumpkin
Rockmelon
Watermelon
Zucchini

Other warm season veggies

Basil
Beans
Capsicum
Chilli
Eggplant
Sweetcorn
Tomato

Leafy greens

Lettuce
Mizuna
Mustard greens
Parsley
Rocket
Silverbeet

Roots

Beetroot
Carrot
Jerusalem artichoke
Parsnip
Potato
Radish

Other veggies

Asparagus
Celery
Chives
Coriander
Globe artichoke
Leeks
Rhubarb
Spring onions

 
It’s Spring time! Time to get planting! I try and plant all my warm season veggie seeds in September – that way, if they fail to germinate, I can try again in October.

Read Helen Simpson’s articles on our website about growing basil, chillies, cucurbits, tomatoes and Spring veggie garden preparation more generally.

Read Robin Gale-Baker’s articles on our website about growing eggplants & capsicums and tomatoes.

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

People who say that their wedding day was the best day ever have obviously never had two Kit Kats fall out of a vending machine.

Read more jokes.

 

Regular activities over the coming week

Farmers’ and other food markets

North East Region Permaculture (NERP) will be at Eltham Farmers’ Market, where their topic of the month will be Queensland Fruit Fly, with a talk and trap-making demonstration 10-11am.

Food swaps
Community gardens

Not food-related but interesting

Insects – their importance and value in your garden; Tuesday, 12th September, 6.30-7.30pm; $28 ($28 per hour); online

Denis Crawford will show you how to avoid plant damage without killing all the insects and thus how to manage insects to create improved garden health and biodiversity. This session is being organised by Sustainable Gardening Australia, who organise regular online sessions on gardening matters.

The everlasting gardener; Saturday, 23rd September, 10am-3pm; $125 ($25 per hour); Edendale

This workshop will introduce you to some simple ways of reminding your body to move easily and safely in your garden. Explore the movements involved in gardening tasks like; weeding, shovelling, pruning, lifting, digging, pushing a wheelbarrow or mower and relieving residual stress. Discover the ‘less pain, more gain’ approach. Presenter and Feldenkrais practitioner: Jenni Evans.

Upcoming face-to-face events – not cooking

Introduction to permaculture (2 sessions); on Saturdays 9th and 16th September, both 10am-3pm; $150 ($15 per hour); Coburg.

Learn permaculture fundamentals in this hands-on course, combining concepts and practices of sustainability, gardening, horticulture, ecology, community development and design thinking. Participants can expect a combination of permaculture concepts and practical applications. and they will be encouraged to apply their learning to their own lives (household, community, neighbourhood, etc).

Community meal sharing; Thursday, 21st September, 11.30am-12.30pm; free; Balwyn.

Kylie Ryan from Boroondara Cooks will discuss the ins and outs of their community meal sharing program. Learn how this service is helping feed the community.

Irrigation and water management (2 sessions); on Saturday, 23rd September, 10am-2pm and Sunday, 24th September, 10am-3pm; $359 ($40 per hour); Bundoora and Bellfield.

Geoff Connellan will deep dive into identifying limitations, opportunities and considerations when it comes to water management and growing crops. Organised by Farmer Incubator.

Watering your garden workshop; Saturday, 23rd September, 2.30-4.30pm; $47 ($24 per hour); Bundoora.

Geoff Connellan will discuss: how to best set up your at-home irrigation system; how to access your water quality; at what time of the day it is best to water; and how much water to give your plants. Organised by Farmer Incubator.

Women’s health – how nutrition can improve hormone health; Tuesday, 26th September, 7-8pm; free; Richmond.

Nina Trinquet and Jenny Cameron will discuss the role of nutrition in balancing hormones, particularly as it relates to women’s common health conditions such as PCOS, heavy painful periods, endometriosis and menopause. Organised by Green Karma.

Buzzing around; Thursday, 28th September, 11am-midday; free; Edendale.

For children aged 3-8. The child will need to be accompanied by a supervising adult. Through dance, art, observation and play, the children will discover how the honey bees live their busy lives. They will play with props to understand how bees collect nectar, make wax and honey and look after their babies. They will learn the bees’ famous waggle dance and find out how well the bees work together.

Spoil to soil; Monday, 9th October, 9.30am-12.30pm; free; Brunswick.

Harness the power of your kitchen and garden spoils by turning it into free, nutrient-rich fertiliser for your plants. Learn about small and large space composting options, plus how to build a DIY worm farm. Presenter: Melissa Houselander. Organised by Brunswick Neighbourhood House.

Rosés from around the world; Tuesday, 10th October, 6-8pm; $65 ($33 per hour); Abbotsford.

Jenny Polack will take you on a tour around the world by trying rosés from Austria, Australia (Victoria), Croatia, France (Provence) Lebanon and Slovenia.

Urban food gardening (10 sessions); on consecutive Fridays, starting 13th October, 9.30am-1.30pm; $50 ($1 per hour); Brunswick.

The course will cover such topics as: growing in pots, raised beds, wicking beds and no-dig gardens; site analysis and design considerations; re-generating soil health and fertility; seasonal planning and crop rotation; companion planting and beneficial insects; upcycling waste through composting and worm farms; propagating plants from seed and cuttings; saving seed; and natural pest and weed management. Presenter: Melissa Houselander. Organised by Brunswick Neighbourhood House.

Your happy vegetable garden memory turned to art; Sunday, 15th October, 1.30-3.30pm; free; Reservoir.

Go and share your stories of your happiest vegetable garden memory. Bring a photo of your memory if you have one to show. They will then use your stories to make some art facilitated by Kitty Harrison from The Curved House. Paint your own pot and plant some herbs to take home.

Awara open garden; Sunday, 22nd October, 10-11.30am; $20 ($14 per hour); Pascoe Vale South.

Join Leila Alexandra, from Barefoot Food Gardens, on a tour of her 840m2 rental property. Leila will discuss how the lawn was transformed into a productive paradise, and the philosophy of forage gardening and how it translates in practice. Enjoy a chat and garden tea post tour.

DIY mushrooms; Sunday, 22nd October, 10am-4pm; $175 ($29 per hour); CERES.

Presenter: Buttons Mira from The Mushroomery. You will be shown the secrets to successfully growing mushrooms at home. You will learn the growing methods for oyster and shitake mushrooms, including inoculation and sterilisation, and be introduced to basic mycology. You will undertake practical sessions and learn how to start master cultures.

Watch it grow; Tuesday, 24th October, 4-5pm; free; Edendale.

For children accompanied by a parent or guardian. Your child will learn all about: what a seed needs to grow; the environmental benefits of growing some of your own food; and why worms are such amazing creatures when it comes to recycling food waste and creating quality soil. Visit the Edendale veggie gardens, worm farms and compost areas. The children will also get to plant a seed in a biodegradable pot that they can take home with them.

In September
In October
Regular events

Upcoming face-to-face events – cooking

Bliss ball treats with Liana; Wednesday, 13th September, 10-11.30am; free; Montrose.

Liana will show you how to make bliss balls.

Milk kefir magic; Thursday, 14th September, 6.30-8.30pm; $145 ($73 per hour); Fitzroy North.

They will show you how to easily incorporate this little SCOBY into your daily routine. You will make some milk kefir and then move onto flavouring, making butter, labneh, catching the whey and then making a naturally fizzy and gut-loving soda. You’ll go home with: a milk kefir SCOBY in a jar and ready to feed when you get home; a whey soda flavoured with fresh fruit of your choice to finish fermenting at home; milk kefir cultured butter; and an illustrated recipe card.

Cooking with bean curd; Friday, 15th September, 6-8pm; $25 ($13 per hour); Forest Hill.

Explore a wide range of soybean curd products, including tofu and fermented soybeans. Hui will guide you through the world of vegetarian cooking, sharing insights on how to embrace a plant-based diet while ensuring you get all the essential nutrients you need.

Cookie decorating; Wednesday, 20th September, 3-5pm; free; Coburg.

For 12-17 year olds. Join Lori and Vanessa in some fun cookie decoration.

All day art day – feeling fruity fantastic; Friday, 22nd September, 9.30am-3.15pm; $89 ($15 per hour); Forest Hill.

For children aged 6–12. The children will whip up apple dumplings in the cooking session, create a fantastic fruity collage and a fruit themed recycled paper pencil holder. Take a snack lunch, hat, sunscreen and smock/apron.

Junior chefs – main course; Monday, 25th September, midday-3pm; $5; Hawthorn.

For young people in High school. Gnocchi is on the menu and chefs are welcome to take home any leftovers.

Junior chefs – desserts; Wednesday, 27th September, midday-3pm; $5; Hawthorn.

For young people in High school. Cookies are on the dessert menu and chefs are welcome to take home any leftovers.

The basics of pickling (2 sessions); on Sundays 1st and 8th October, each 11am-2pm; $74 ($12 per hour); Forest Hill.

Learn the art of pickling, both non-fermented (quick-pickle) and fermented. Learn about the history, significance, and health benefits of pickling. Experiment with fresh vegetables, fruits, herbs, and spices, and create unique fermented pickle recipes.

Jaclyn Crupi – pasta love; Wednesday, 4th October, 6.30-8pm; free; Fitzroy North.

Jaclyn Crupi’s book Pasta Love is a celebration of pasta and the people who make it. Unlock the secrets of starchy salty pasta cooking water, hear stories of the Italian grandmothers that Jaclyn has made pasta with, and learn their pasta-making ways. Jaclyn will demonstrate how to make a semola rimacinata flour and water pasta dough and then shape it into cavatelli, orecchiette, fusilli al ferretto, lorighittas and more.

More than a loaf of bread; Saturday, 7th October, 10am-12.30pm; $51 ($20 per hour); Brunswick.

Interested in learning how to bake grissini, English muffins and pita (pocket) bread? Michael and Therese Slee will discuss the versatility of basic bread dough. You will be provided with the dough, which will have risen overnight, ready for shaping and baking. The session will end with a taste test, where participants will sample their creations accompanied with butter, dips, cheeses and vegemite. Take a container for your fresh baked goods. Organised by Brunswick Neighbourhood House.

Herbal tea workshop with Monique; Saturday, 7th October, 10.30-11.45am; $59 ($47 per hour); Northcote.

The workshop will include: a discussion of the benefits and indications of different herbs to help you understand more about plant medicine and its effects; you choosing from this range of organic herbs to create a blend that’s suited to your tastes; and brewing your teas to enjoy together. You will receive: an amber jar to take your tea home in; the chance to taste different tea blends; and 20% off a Naturopathic Consultation with Monique (valid for 3 months).

Cooking with your grandkids; Tuesday, 10th October, 11am-12.30pm; $10; Hurstbridge.

For a grandparent and their grandchild/ren. There will be a dietitian-led cooking lesson where you learn about the nutritional value of what you are cooking. Then eat what you have cooked together.

Cooking from the pantry (9 sessions); on 9 consecutive Tuesdays from 10th October, 9.30am-midday; $50 ($2 per hour); Lower Templestowe.

This is a cooking course that will develop your basic skills and confidence around the preparation of food. Taste test your creations and share a meal at the end of each class. Organised by Living And Learning @ Ajani.

Sourdough basics; Thursday, 12th October, 6.30-8.30pm; $120 ($60 per hour); Collingwood.

The Fermented Mumma will discuss ingredient selection, starter care, and the processes of sourdough fermentation and baking. At the end, you will take your fermenting dough home to bake in the morning.

Sourdough bread making; Sunday, 15th October, 10am-1pm; $55 ($18 per hour); Panton Hill.

Learn how to make sourdough bread. You will make a pizza base to enjoy together and you will make a bread dough ready to bake the following day at home. You will also be given a starter so you can continue to make bread at home. Take an apron, tea towel, sealable container and jar with a screw top lid. Tutor: John.

FFS … ferment four staples; Sunday, 15th October, 11.30am-4.30pm; $425 ($85 per hour); Fitzroy North.

This is a fermenting ‘101’ class, where you will learn about salt, different preserving techniques, two of the most popular cabbage recipes (kraut and kimchi), a drink (kvass) and all about SCOBYs, with a focus on milk kefir. You will take home everything you make during the class: kimchi, sauerkraut, milk kefir butter, milk kefir with SCOBY, whey soda and kvass.

Cooking with your grandkids; Tuesday, 17th October, 11am-12.30pm; $10; Box Hill.

For a grandparent and their grandchild/ren. There will be a dietitian-led cooking lesson where you learn about the nutritional value of what you are cooking. Then eat what you have cooked together.

Kombucha / Jun M.O.B.; Thursday, 19th October, 6.30-8.30pm; $150 ($75 per hour); Fitzroy North.

They will demonstrate how to feed your mother/SCOBY (choose between kombucha or jun). You will then flavour your own batch ready for second phase fermentation using fruits, herbs and spices. Take home your selected SCOBY and your personally flavoured bottle of kombucha/jun. M.O.B. stands for ‘mingling over bacteria’.

Croquembouche workshop; Saturday, 21st October, 1.30-5.30pm; $134 ($34 per hour); Lower Templestowe.

Tish will teach you the art of making croquembouche, starting with how to make the choux pastry and the creme patisserie and then how to cook toffee and build the croquembouche. Take an apron, a container to put extra profiteroles in and something to carry the croquembouche (base of a container at least 20cm). Organised by Living And Learning @ Ajani.

Vegan chocolate making; Sunday, 22nd October, 10-11.30am; $80 ($53 per hour); Collingwood.

Start by unravelling the story of cocoa butter. Then delve into the intricacies of chocolate making, from melting and mixing the perfect blend of ingredients to mastering the art of setting. Presenter: Tina Gelberidis.

Three ways with red curry paste; Sunday, 22nd October, 10.30am-3pm; $190 ($42 per hour); Panton Hill.

You will make your own red curry paste from scratch, then use it to cook three very distinct dishes: as a stir fry to make a dry Choo Chee fish curry (pumpkin for vegetarian substitution); without dry spices to make a sour orange curry using fresh fish, bamboo, snake beans and tomatoes; and with dry spices, coconut cream and ground cashews to make the creamy Gaeng Paenang curry made with your choice of chicken or traditional pork. Skills learned will include how to use a traditional mortar and pestle, the use of stock for deglazing, how to dry roast and grind your own spices and how to use a wok. At the end, team your lunch with a fresh Asian salad and rice, a local wine and beer and enjoy a shared feast. Go home with your own curry paste. Presenter: Kelly Meredith from Under The Pickle Tree.

Pizza masterclass with Antonio; Sunday, 22nd October, 11am-2pm; $86 ($29 per hour); Eltham.

You will learn: how to make dough by hand; stretching techniques; how to use a pizza paddle; and pizza classico (classic style pizza in the oven) & pizze fritte (fried pizza). You will make both savoury and sweet pizzas, and you will get to cook and eat the pizzas. Organised by Platform 3095.

Finger foods to make at home; Tuesday, 24th October, 6-8.30pm; $65 ($26 per hour); Hawthorn.

Learn to make a set of small, tasty treats and share them with a glass of wine at the conclusion of class. While waiting for the blinis, tartlets and dumplings to cook, run through an extensive list of easy things to wow your guests. Take home whatever doesn’t get gobbled up throughout the class! Organised by Hawthorn Community House.

Cooking for one; Tuesday, 24th October, 7-8.30pm; free; Eltham.

Learn some delicious and healthy recipes for one from Julia from Green Karma. Do you find yourself accumulating leftovers in your fridge that end up in the trash before they can get used? Are you wasting food that could be re-purposed into another meal? Julia will show you some economical and sustainable recipes which are perfect for one, like sushi, veggie pancakes and curry.

In September
In October
Regular classes

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