Your Autumn plantings

Helen’s article for March is on autumn plantings. As she says in her introduction: “Two things happened in February 2016 to increase the number of veggies that can be planted now: milder than usual weather and lower levels of ‘cabbage white’ moths around to lay hungry leaf munching caterpillars. She then lists 26 veggies that can be planted now and discusses possible experiments with different colours and textures and with unusual veggies. Read the full article.

For those of you who don’t know, Helen Simpson is Montmorency’s equivalent of Jane Edmanson and is also the proprietor of The Mushroom Shed.

Rockmelons: smell their bottoms or watch them change colour?

As I fight with the rats for ownership over my rockmelons (current score: rats 2, me 1), I recently had cause to re-read a short article that I wrote a few years ago for Nillumbik’s Home Harvest Grower Newsletter on how to judge when rockmelons are ripe. Read the article.

Roma tomato fundraiser

Do you love it when sauce tomatoes come into season? This year you can order them by the box at a cheap price and help raise money for the Montmorency South Primary School (MSPS) at the same time. $30 per box of 16Kg vine-ripened Roma tomatoes ($10 from each box sold is for MSPS). Orders need to be received by lunchtime, 26th February at the latest. If interested, contact Jenna Farrington by phone (0406 738220) or email.

How to make a self-watering pot

Carolyn Leach-Paholski, a regular at the monthly Box Hill South Urban Harvest swap, has created a great illustration of how to make a self-watering pot. It comprises 8 simple steps, which are numbered on the illustration as 1-2i-2ii-3i-3ii-4i-4ii-4iii. In summary, cut a plastic soft drink bottle in half, punch a hole in the lid and thread a length of string to wick water up to the soil.
          

‘Meet me at Market’ book now available at half price (and free to some people!)

Jo Skuse, author and photographer of ‘Meet me at Market’, has told us that the book is now available for only $20. For those of you who don’t know, ‘Meet me at Market’ is a book of images and stories celebrating the people of St Andrews Market and the importance of connecting and community. It is a great book, with some wonderful photos in it. If interested, either email Jo or visit Nature’s Harvest Hurstbridge.

Furthermore, as a newsletter exclusive, if you funded Jo’s original Pozible project that made the printing of the book possible then, to show her support for your support, she will give you another copy of the book for free! Just email Jo.

An ode to the upcoming Harvest Feast at Edendale farm

The Harvest Feast has come around again.
Where gardeners share tales of joy and pain.
And eat the fruits of their collective labours.
And savour all those wonderous flavours.

There’ll be veggies, fruit and lots of eggs.
But nothing that ever got about on legs.

I’ll take along some peaches in bottles.
Glowing like sunshine on flowers of wattles.
This year the feast will be the best by far.
Especially with my gift of sunshine in a jar.

For those of you who don’t know, the author of this ode, Pam Jenkins, is Diamond Creek’s equivalent of Banjo Paterson.

2016 Australian Good Food & Travel Guide Readers Choice Awards

Congratulations to the following local eateries.

So, fame doesn’t beckon for you

Interestingly, only one(!) of you clicked the link to apply for The Great Australian Bake Off. Applications close today (24th February).

New events

Heide’s kitchen garden

What: Sunday Reed established the historic Heide I kitchen garden in 1936, placing an emphasis on the cultivation of fresh produce, a tradition that continues today. Join a volunteer guide for a tour of the Heide I and Heide II kitchen gardens, examining their history and development.
When: Wednesday, 2nd March, 11am-midday, and again on 23rd March, 31st March, 21st April and 25th May.
Where: Bulleen.
Cost: free.
Enquiries: Heide Museum of Modern Art by phone (9850 1500) or email.
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Heal your gut

What: Lee Holmes is a nutritionist, wholefoods chef, yoga teacher and author of a number of books about healthy eating including Heal your gut and Supercharged food. Heal your gut is a step-by-step protocol for restoring your inner gut health via a treatment program and detox regime, supported by over 90 anti-inflammatory recipes to heal and nourish. Join Lee as she discusses the four phases of gut healing and her everyday checklist for good gut health so that you can experience wellness from head to toe, gain more energy and feel healthy again. Free event, bookings essential.
When: Tuesday, 22nd March, 7-8pm.
Where: Kew.
Cost: free.
Enquiries/Bookings: Kew Library by phone (9278 4666).
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Under the Pickle Tree – talk and tasting

What: Local condiments producer Kelly Meredith started her business Under The Pickle Tree four years ago in order to live and work locally in Panton Hill. Find out how Kelly created her recipes, started her business and her plans for the future. There will be a product tasting session after her talk and her products will also be available for purchase on the night.
When: Friday, 8th April, 11am-midday.
Where: Watsonia.
Cost: free.
Enquiries: Watsonia Library by phone (9435 2397).
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Cool season vegetables

What: Gardener Katie Nettelbeck will talk about which vegetables to plant during the cooler months, including succession planting and inter-cropping. A recipe from Café Vue using fresh seasonal produce will be provided.
When: Thursday, 14th April, 11am-midday.
Where: Bulleen.
Cost: free.
Enquiries: Heide Museum of Modern Art by phone (9850 1500) or email.
Bookings: Eventbrite.
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Home harvest Manningham

What: A monthly home gardening seminar series on how to grow your own delicious fresh food at home. No bookings required.

• March 30: Unusual fruits to grow in Manningham.
• April 27: Rejuvenate your soils after a hot summer.
• May 25: Organic pest control.
• June 29: Winter in the veggie garden.
• July 27: Maintaining your fruit trees over winter.
• August 31: Let’s plant ourselves a pie.
• September 28: Starting a patch from scratch.
• October 29: Composting and worm farming.
• November 30: Getting ready for the summer harvest.

When: Last Wednesday in each month, 7-9pm.
Where: Doncaster.
Cost: free.
Enquiries: Nigel Philpot by phone (9840 9173) or email.
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Summary of upcoming events

Over the next week

• Italian savoury reserves: Wednesday, 24th February, 10am-1pm.
• Rubbish free lunch box ideas: Wednesday, 24th February, 7-9pm.
• Home grown food swap and kids’ lunch box garden activity: Friday, 26th February, 6.30-7.30pm.
• Wicking bed workshop: Saturday, 27th February, 9am-5pm.
• Italian cooking workshop: Saturday, 27th February, 10am-1pm.
• Setting up and maintaining a worm farm: Saturday, 27th February, 3-5pm.
• Edible gardening with a permaculture twist: Sunday, 28th February, 9am-5pm.
• Home Harvest Feast 2016: Sunday, 28th February, midday-4pm.
• Chocolatier: the joy of chocolate: Tuesday, 1st March, 6.30-7.30pm.
• Ryan Young on healthy soils: Tuesday, 1st March, 7.15-9.15pm.
• Heide’s kitchen garden: Wednesday, 2nd March, 11am-midday.
• Eat your way to a happier, healthier you: Wednesday, 2nd March, 7-9pm.

Over the next month

• Pesto making fun: Thursday, 3rd March, 9.30-10.30am.
• How to make sense of food labels: Thursday, 3rd March, 9.30-11am.
• Love your soil for a flourishing garden: Saturday, 5th March, 10.30am-1pm.
• Preparing your garden for the Winter bounty: Saturday, 5th March, 2-4.30pm.
• Passata day: the traditional way: Sunday, 6th March, 10am-1pm.
• The Great Tomato Taste Off: Sunday, 6th March, 10.30-11.30am.
• Heritage apple tasting: Sunday, 6th March, 5-7pm.
• Mooroolbark growers & weeders present: “plant swap, chat & make”: Tuesday, 8th March, 2-3pm.
• Decorating Easter treats – demonstration: Thursday, 17th March, 10.30-11.30am.
• The great Italian passata cooking class: Friday, 18th March, 1-3.30pm.
• The great Italian passata community picnic: Friday, 18th March, 6.30-7.30pm.
• Soil matters: Saturday, 19th March, 2-4.30pm.
• Backyard chooks for beginners: Monday, 21st March, 10am-midday.
• Vietnamese cooking and costume show: Monday, 21st March, 10.30-11.30am.
• Montrose gardeners present “plant swap, chat & make”: Monday, 21st March, 10.30-11.30am.
• Preserves and relishes: Monday, 21st March, 11am-midday.
• Just4kids Easter egg decorating: Monday, 21st March, 4-5pm.
• Heal your gut: Tuesday, 22nd March, 7-8pm.
• Heide’s kitchen garden: Wednesday, 23rd March, 11am-midday.
• Creating sumptuous raw food & juices: Wednesday, 23rd March, 6.30-7.30pm.

Click here for the complete calendar of upcoming events

Want some coffee grounds?

Two Darebin cafes are running a trial giving away coffee grounds to the public. The coffee grounds are available free from Tasties Cafe, 356 High Street, Preston (phone 9470 2260) and The Kiln Cafe, 85 Clyde Street, Thornbury (phone 0403 089408). Call to check first, then bring your own container and let staff know before helping yourself.

Silverbeet seedlings wanted

Robyn Currie reports that the most popular vegetable from the planter box in Main Road, Eltham outside of healthAbility (aka Nillumbik Health) is silverbeet. The silverbeet is always picked, whilst the lettuce is often left to go to seed! Does anyone have any silverbeet seedlings that they could donate to the planter box so that a supply can be kept going? If so, you are welcome to plant them in the planter box yourself, or leave them at the reception desk, or call Robyn on 0431 037810 and she can collect them.

Warrandyte food swap in Weekend Notes

Click here for the full article. As you may see from the pictures, they are allowed to swap eggs because, contrary to what some people believe, Warrandyte is in Manningham rather than Nillumbik (Nillumbik Council forbids it).

Wonky veggies, here we come

Here is an interesting article about ‘wonky’ veggies in the UK. Here is an equally interesting article on the same subject in Australia. If you want to know more, just google ‘wonky veggies’.

On the subject of interesting articles, Sustainable Gardening Australia’s most popular Facebook link thus far this year was to this article about how to make seed pots from old newspapers.

Some features of the website calendar

Did you know that the website calendar is searchable by suburb? Hover your mouse over the word ‘Tags’ top left and then select one or more suburbs from the list of suburbs that pops up. If you then save the resulting url as a favourite/bookmark then this link will always show these suburbs. Pressing the cross next to the word ‘Tags’ clears the filter.

When filtering by suburb, you may want to look at the results as a list rather than the monthly calendar. To do so, click the word ‘Month’ top right and then select ‘Agenda’.

In similar ways, the calendar can be filtered by type of event (e.g. markets, food swaps, etc) by hovering over the word ‘Categories’ top left.

The calendar has a number of other nifty features. For example, you can add the calendar to your Gmail, Outlook or Apple calendar using the button bottom right labelled ‘Subscribe’; it will henceforth keep your copy of the calendar in sync with the website version. Or, if you are looking at a particular event, you can add that event to your Gmail, Outlook or Apple calendar using the button top right labelled ‘Add to Calendar’.

Random fact of the week: although the calendar software is used on websites throughout the world, one of the main technical support people actually lives in North East Melbourne. I found this out when I contacted them about some technical problems and he started telling me which of the events in our calendar he was planning to go to!

New events

Making your own organic sprays

What: Learn how to make effective organic insect and pest sprays for your veggie garden using ordinary household products, with Natasha Grogan from The Sage Garden. Phone bookings are essential.
When: Thursday, 11th February, 9.30-10.30am.
Where: Doncaster.
Cost: $10.
Enquiries/Bookings: Manningham City Council by phone (9840 9129).
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Creating sustainable communities using permaculture techniques

What: Come along to learn what is required to live in sustainable communities in Australia. There is no reason that we should not live in communities that work together towards a common goals. Part of the Sustainable Living Festival.
When: Saturday, 13th February, 2-6pm.
Where: Northcote.
Cost: free.
Enquiries: Bela Beke by phone (0438 049177) or email.
Bookings: Eventbrite.
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Seed harvesting and saving

What: Learn how to harvest and save seeds for future harvests with Maria Ciavarella from My Green Garden. Phone bookings are essential.
When: Thursday, 18th February, 9.30-10.30am.
Where: Doncaster.
Cost: $10.
Enquiries/Bookings: Manningham City Council by phone (9840 9129).
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Heritage apple tasting

What: Join one of the Heritage Fruits Society’s apple tasting evenings at Petty’s Orchard. Around 15 varieties will be available for tasting. Limited quantities will be available for purchase. An orchard tour is included. All funds received will go toward the maintenance and expansion of the collection.
When: Sunday, 21st February, 5-7pm.
Where: Templestowe.
Cost: $15.
Enquiries: Ross Pinniger by phone (9458 2603 or 0422 811441).
Bookings: Heritage Fruit Society website.
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Home grown food swap and kids’ lunch box garden activity

What: Join the home grown food and seed swap. Everyone is welcome to bring along some home grown food or seeds from their garden to share with the rest of the neighbourhood. During the swap, learn how easy it is to grow your own healthy lunch box snack garden with Natasha Grogan from The Sage Garden. This is a free event but bookings are essential.
When: Friday, 26th February, 6.30-7.30pm.
Where: Doncaster.
Cost: free.
Enquiries: Manningham City Council by phone (9840 9129).
Bookings: Eventbrite.
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Pesto making fun

What: Learn how to make your own basil pesto with Maria Ciavarella from My Green Garden. There will be some basil provided on the day, but also feel free to bring along your own to make your own pesto. Phone bookings are essential.
When: Thursday, 3rd March, 9.30-10.30am.
Where: Doncaster.
Cost: $10.
Enquiries/Bookings: Manningham City Council by phone (9840 9129).
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

How to make sense of food labels

What: Tour a supermarket and learn how to read and make sense of food labels so that it is easier to make healthy choices. The tours are led by healthAbility’s qualified dietitian, and open to anyone interested in healthy eating. Bookings essential as places are limited.
When: Thursday, 3rd March, 9.30-11am then again on 4th April, 5th May and 6th June.
Where: Eltham.
Cost: $15 (includes a healthy shopping guide booklet).
Enquiries/Bookings: healthAbility by phone (9430 9100).
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

The great Italian passata cooking class

What: Learn how to make your own passata pasta sauce with Maria Ciavarella from My Green Garden. At the end of the day, take home a bottle of the freshly made passata. This cooking class will be followed by a free community picnic in the evening. Phone bookings are essential.
When: Friday, 18th March, 1-3.30pm.
Where: Doncaster.
Cost: $10.
Enquiries/Bookings: Manningham City Council by phone (9840 9129).
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

The great Italian passata community picnic

What: Come along and enjoy a small plate of pasta made with freshly cooked homemade passata pasta sauce from seasonally grown tomatoes and herbs. Bring along a home grown salad made with some ingredients from your own garden to share with the rest of the neighbourhood. Don’t forget to bring your own picnic rug, plates and utensils. The MC² Community Garden is a waste-free zone. This is a free event but bookings are essential. Places are limited to 80 people.
When: Friday, 18th March, 6.30-7.30pm.
Where: Doncaster.
Cost: free.
Enquiries: Manningham City Council by phone (9840 9129).
Bookings: Eventbrite.
Further information: LFC calendar entry.

Summary of upcoming events

Over the next week

• Cheese-making demonstration: Wednesday, 10th February, 11am-midday.
• West African cooking with Desiree: Wednesday, 10th February, 2-3pm.
• Making your own organic sprays: Thursday, 11th February, 9.30-10.30am.
• Compost concoctions: Thursday, 11th February, 11am-midday.
• Soil matters: Saturday, 13th February, 2-4.30pm.
• Creating sustainable communities using permaculture techniques: Saturday, 13th February, 2-6pm.
• Seed dating permablitz (Surrey Hills): Sunday, 14th February, 1-5pm.
• Let’s cook, the Chinese way: Monday, 15th February, 1-2.30pm.
• Jane Edmanson – preparing for winter planting: Tuesday, 16th February, 11.30am-12.30pm.
• Summer preserving basics: Wednesday, 17th February, 10am-1pm.

Over the next month

• Seed harvesting and saving: Thursday, 18th February, 9.30-10.30am.
• You say tomato – I say let’s preserve: Saturday, 20th February, 10am-1pm.
• The Melbourne Tomato Festival 2016: Sunday, 21st February, 10am-4pm.
• Foraging workshop: Sunday, 21st February, 3.30-6.30pm.
• Heritage apple tasting: Sunday, 21st February, 5-7pm.
• Italian savoury reserves: Wednesday, 24th February, 10am-1pm.
• Rubbish free lunch box ideas: Wednesday, 24th February, 7-9pm.
• Home grown food swap and kids’ lunch box garden activity: Friday, 26th February, 6.30-7.30pm.
• Wicking bed workshop: Saturday, 27th February, 9am-5pm.
• Setting up and maintaining a worm farm: Saturday, 27th February, 3-5pm.
• Edible gardening with a permaculture twist: Sunday, 28th February, 9am-5pm.
• Home Harvest Feast 2016: Sunday, 28th February, midday-4pm.
• Ryan Young on healthy soils: Tuesday, 1st March, 7.15-9.15pm.
• Eat your way to a happier, healthier you: Wednesday, 2nd March, 7-9pm.
• Pesto making fun: Thursday, 3rd March, 9.30-10.30am.
• How to make sense of food labels: Thursday, 3rd March, 9.30-11am.
• Love your soil for a flourishing garden: Saturday, 5th March, 10.30am-1pm.
• Preparing your garden for the Winter bounty: Saturday, 5th March, 2-4.30pm.
• Passata day: the traditional way: Sunday, 6th March, 10am-1pm.
• The Great Tomato Taste Off: Sunday, 6th March, 10.30-11.30am.
• Heritage apple tasting: Sunday, 6th March, 5-7pm.

Click here for the complete calendar of upcoming events