LFC News September 7 2022

Sep 072022
 

Welcome to new joiners Alex, Campbell, Hilde, Jenni, Jessica, Kylie, Marcus, Margaret, Nadia, Nola, Penelope, Sarah and Sue.

Thanks to the people who have contributed to this week’s newsletter: Ann Stanley, Holly Gallagher, Jon Buttery, Pauline Webb and Teena Oudy.

Biochar for sale at Eltham Farmers’ Market (by Ann Stanley)

Chris Balaratnam is an Agricultural Engineer who has taught students in Nigeria and at Glenormiston Agriculture College, Terang, Victoria. He has also worked in OHS in the farming sector. Now retired, Chris, together with wife Selvie, runs a 140-acre mixed farm in Toolleen, near Heathcote. It’s where your Eltham Farmers’ Market Selba Farm olive oil and other olive products come from.

Chris has recently become interested in producing ‘biochar’, which is a form of charcoal used for soil improvement and which is made from heating woody material in an oxygen-poor environment. His interest came from reading about the Amazon, where seasonal fires have turned biomass into carbon, forming a rich layer of dark soil in which plants flourish. To mimic this process, Chris burns prunings from his olive trees, controlling the fire by limiting the exposure to oxygen so that what remains is biochar and not white ash. He then adds some worm juice, molasses and chicken manure.

If you would like to try Selba Farm’s biochar, you can buy it at $10 for a 2 litre bag from Chris and Selvie at Eltham Farmers’ Market on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Sundays of the month.

[Editor: Our website has a couple of articles that are relevant to biochar, namely Stuart Rodda’s article on terra preta, biochar and leonardite and Bev Middleton’s article on health soil]

A new, free weekly dinner in Fawkner

Every Thursday, 6-8pm at the Hope Cafe, St Mark’s Catholic Church, 9 Lee Street, Fawkner. As they say on their Facebook group, “We provide a safe, welcoming space where food is eaten and friendships are made.“

That brings the total number of regular, free, local meals listed on our website to 18. As you may remember from previous newsletters, many of the free meals stopped during the Covid pandemic and have not re-started so it is great to see that there are some exceptions.

A new local, chocolate maker – Loco for Cocoa

Loco for Cocoa, who are based in Preston, make a wide range of chocolate bars, all full of flavour and interesting textures. There are 22 different flavour combinations, including some vegan options. Other than the cacao beans, they try to only use locally sourced ingredients. They also sell rocky road, pretzel crunch biscuits and salted caramel fudges.

You can buy their chocolate online or at any of Eltham Farmers’ Market, Hurstbridge Market, Kingsbury Drive Community Market or Warrandyte Riverside Market.

After extensive testing, my recommendation is their pink salt and caramel toffee bars (which are called ‘salty feels’)!

Welcome Teena!

There are now 10 local chocolate makers in our Local Food Directory.

A new community garden – Wilum-nganjin in Reservoir

At Reservoir East Primary School, Genoa Avenue, Reservoir. Open to the public, but only 9-11am on Wednesday mornings. You can join their Facebook group. Also, read their page on our website.

This community garden is a space where students, parents and members of the local community can gather and grow fruit and vegetables. The aim is to share fresh, nutritious produce with the school and local community, while educating and advocating for growing food locally and promoting community well being. The hope is also to strengthen ties between the school and the local community. There are several wicking garden beds, a fruit orchard, a compost & recycling centre and hügelkultur beds.

Welcome Lisa, Tim and colleagues!

There are now 15 community gardens in Darebin in our Local Food Directory.

A video about Buttons Mira from The Mushroomery

ABC Australia recently published this 5 minute video about Buttons Mira from The Mushroomery, which is a mushroom farm in Alphington.

Some Certified Organic fungicides

Pauline Webb has written in to point out that an Australian company called Organic Crop Protectants sells a range of Certified Organic fungicides.

Which link was clicked most times in the last newsletter?

The most popular link in the last newsletter was the article entitled Is gardening elitist?.

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

Two chemists walk into a bar. The first chemist says, “I’ll have a glass of H2O.” The second chemist says, “I’ll have a glass of H2O too.” The second chemist dies.

Two chemists walk into a bar. The first chemist says, “I’ll have a glass of H2O.” The second chemist says, “I’ll take a water too.” The first chemist gets angry. His assassination attempt failed.

Two chemists walk into a bar. The first chemist says, “I’ll have a glass of H2O.” The second chemist says, “I’ll have a glass of H2O too.” The bartender gives them both water because he is able to distinguish the boundary tones that dictate the grammatical function of homophones in coda position as well as pragmatic context.

Read more jokes.

 

Regular activities over the coming week

Farmers’ markets
Food swaps
Community gardens

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

Queensland fruit fly workshop; Wednesday, 14th September, 10.30am-midday; free; Reservoir.

Queensland Fruit Fly (QFF) is a serious pest that lays its eggs in fruit and fruiting vegetables – everything from lemons to tomatoes – causing them to rot from the inside. Unfortunately, QFF is now found in Melbourne. This workshop will teach you: how to identify it; how to deter or manage it in your garden; and how to dispose of it, if you do find it in your fruit or vegetables. Plus they will show you how to make a cheap and effective trap out of materials that are easy to come by. Presenter: Angelo Eliades. Organised by DIVRS in partnership with the East Preston Community Centre.

Wine & cheese festival; Sunday, 18th September, 10am-6pm; $20; Abbotsford.

This event will feature only plant-based cheeses and vegan wines. There will be unlimited, free tastings.

Darebin Sustainable Food Leaders Forum; Wednesday, 21st September, 6-8pm; free; Preston.

Local sustainable food advocates and practitioners are invited. You will get an opportunity to provide your ideas, suggestions and feedback to help shape the content and direction of the Climate Emergency Strategy. You will hear from two local food groups (Holly Gallagher from DIVRS Urban Food Program and Nick Rose from Sustain). It will also be an opportunity to network and form connections with other local gardens and food growers.

Growing oyster mushrooms at home; Sunday, 25th September, 2-5pm; $145 ($48 per hour); Fitzroy North.

This hands-on workshop will focus on a couple of easy ways to grow mushrooms – growing from cardboard and then growing from sugar cane mulch. You will be invited to try your hands at preparing your own mushroom grow using the materials provided, before discussing what you can do next in case you catch the fungi bug! Presenter: Caine.

Celebration of trees – planting and tour; Saturday, 8th October, 10am-midday; free; Heidelberg.

Learn how to plant a tree properly and then Join Ben Kenyon for a tour of the local trees. Organised by St Johns Riverside Community Garden.

Celebration of trees and gardens; Saturday, 8th October, 2-3.30pm; free; Heidelberg.

Celebrate the planting of trees and the development of the community garden. Organised by St Johns Riverside Community Garden.

DIY mushrooms; Sunday, 23rd October, 10am-4pm; $165 ($28 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.

Organic vegetable gardening; Saturday, 29th October, 10am-3pm; $115 ($23 per hour); CERES.

What you will learn: how to get the most from your garden and have an abundance of vegetables, fruits and herbs; insights into seasonal produce growing; and the skills and knowledge to create an abundant and productive garden. Presenter: Donna Livermore.

Growing and cooking with bushfoods; Saturday, 29th October, 10am-3pm; $115 ($23 per hour); CERES.

What you will learn: how to identify and harvest bush foods; how to grow and maintain bush foods in the home garden; and how to incorporate bush foods into everyday recipes. Presenter: Belinda Kennedy. Tour the CERES bush food gardens and gain knowledge of bush foods from further afar – tropical delights from the north, peppery spices form the south. During the workshop, you will learn how to incorporate bush foods into simple, tasty and nutritious meals, desserts and snacks. The group will make a bush food inspired lunch and afternoon tea – all food prepared on the day will be vegetarian and vegan friendly.

Keeping backyard chooks; Monday, 31st October, 2-3pm; free; Blackburn.

This workshop will cover chook health, nutrition, housing, and protection from predators & pests as well as the sustainability and circular economy benefits of keeping chooks. Ella will also talk about Council and local law considerations and guidelines.

In September
In October
Regular events

Upcoming face-to-face events – cooking

Hot chocolate workshop; Tuesday, 4th October, 7-9pm; $10; Blackburn North.

Learn to customise your own mixes, explore new flavour combinations, and relax with fellow hot chocolate enthusiasts. Tastings and biscuits provided. Organised by Koonung Cottage Community House.

Sourdough bread workshop; Saturday, 22nd October, 9-11.30am; $185 ($74 per hour); Brunswick East.

What you will learn: ways to create and look after your own sourdough starter culture; the flour to use for the best nutrition and results; ways to knead sticky high hydration dough for a more authentic sourdough loaf; the equipment needed to produce a great looking and tasting sourdough tin loaf at home; and ways to bake sourdough bread using a bread tin in a home oven. Presenter: Rick Lavender of The Life We Want.

Sourdough bread making; Saturday, 22nd October, 10am-12.30pm; $64 ($26 per hour); Lower Templestowe.

Learn all the steps to make your own sourdough at home with this simple recipe. You will take home a sourdough starter and some home dough to bake. Take a 2 litre container with a lid and an apron.

Kraut, kefir, kimchi & kvass; Saturday, 22nd October, 1.30-5.30pm; $365 ($91 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 course; a jar of kimchi, sauerkraut, milk kefir with SCOBY and a jar of kvass – including jars and airlocks for fermenting at home.

A class to make you fall in love with tofu too!; Sunday, 23rd October, 10am-2.30pm; $160 ($36 per hour); Panton Hill.

Presenter: Kelly Meredith from Under The Pickle Tree. You will learn to braise, deep fry and stir fry tofu and marinate it so that it soaks up the most umami Asian flavours. You will use firm tofu, silken tofu and beancurd skins.

Food for mind and gut; Sunday, 23rd October, 10am-3pm; $115 ($23 per hour); CERES.

What you will learn: foods which make your brain brighter; how to incorporate brain powering foods easily into your daily diet; and foods that can build and protect your gut microbiome and clear brain fog. Presenter: Melanie Leeson, from Mettle + Grace. Learn how to create healthier versions of your old favourites. The dishes will be packed with nutritionally dense vegetables and all will be gluten and dairy free. The menu includes: vegan cream cheese; oat + mesquite crackers; beet sauerkraut; chickpea salad with orange tahini; coconut + turmeric pie; and miso puffed balls.

Sri Lankan cooking class; Wednesday, 26th October, 6-9pm; $90 ($30 per hour); Surrey Hills.

Experience the tastes, smells and sounds of Sri Lankan cooking. You will make two different curries, coconut sambal and a side dish. Afterwards, you’ll sit down and enjoy a Sri Lankan feast.

Vegan Mediterranean cooking; Friday, 28th October, 6.30-8.30pm; $65 ($33 per hour); Balwyn North.

Arzu Yilmaz is from the Aegean side of Turkey, which means that her diet is Mediterranean. She will share her knowledge on how to use ingredients such as olive oil, garlic and fresh herb by demonstrating how to make three vegan dishes.

Milk kefir love; Friday, 28th October, 6.30-8.30pm; $110 ($55 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.

Pasta making workshop; Saturday, 29th October, 10am-midday; $55 ($28 per hour); Park Orchards.

Learn how to make a basic egg pasta dough which you will then turn into many different forms of pasta, including linguine, fettucine and pappardelle. Learn how to use a hand pasta machine and the types of pasta you can make with such a machine. Organised by Park Orchards Community House.

Nasturtium deep dive: Super Bloom x The Fermentary; Sunday, 30th October, 10am-midday; $150 ($75 per hour); Fitzroy North.

Get your hands dirty learning to sow and grow nasturtiums seeds with Jac of Super Bloom before exploring the culinary uses of nasturtiums with Sharon of The Fermentary. You will go home with a copy of ‘Super Bloom: a field guide of flowers for every gardener’, a jar of nasturtiums, sown nasturtium seeds and a nasturtium in a terracotta pot.

In September
In October
Regular classes

 Leave a Reply

(required)

(required)