Ann interviews Morgan Koegel, from 3000acres

If you have any involvement in any community garden in Melbourne then, more likely than not, you have directly or indirectly benefited from some actions by 3000acres in the past. If you haven’t heard of 3000acres, then you’re not really reading this newsletter properly – they have had a regular monthly column for the past year. And if you have come across 3000acres, then you’ve probably also come across its General Manager, Morgan Koegel. Ann Stanley has now interviewed Morgan about her background, the state of urban agriculture in Melbourne and about what’s living and growing in her backyard in Northcote. Her interview writeup is entitled “helping more people grow more food in more places“.

Here’s how Morgan introduces 3000acres: “We’re looking at creating healthy, more resilient, communities right across Melbourne in urban and peri-urban areas with different council areas for different clients. So that’s everything from starting a new community garden, through helping community groups get incorporated, to community composting, workshops and education. The projects are diverse but they all have the central mission of making urban agriculture and growing food in urban areas an ordinary part of everyday life.“

And here is the attitudinal shift that Morgan is pushing: from “I live here and farming happens over there” to “Maybe I should have some meaningful interactions with farming that informs the food that I buy and how much I pay for it“.

Read Ann’s full writeup.

Robin on shade cloth

Shade cloth structures, whether temporary or permanent, are likely to be ever more necessary for home gardeners as we experience more heat waves, and high temperature days, than ever before. Even a single day of scorching heat can do irreversible damage to our edible gardens.

Temporary shade cloth structures can be erected by hammering four star pickets into each corner of a garden bed, draping them with shade cloth (or even an old sheet), and securing the cloth with yellow star picket caps. In this case, what you use is not especially important.

However, if you are erecting a permanent structure, choosing the right type of shade cloth for your circumstances is important. There are four criteria to consider: knitted or woven; density; colour; and aesthetics.

In Robin Gale-Baker’s full version of this article, she then goes on to discuss each of these criteria and which options suit which circumstances. Read Robin’s full article.

A new local mushroom seller – Urban Farming Collective

The Urban Farming Collective, who are based in Preston, sell mushrooms that they grow in their backyard in their urban farm. The species include Swiss brown, white button and oyster mushrooms. They also sell mushroom kits. They also go foraging for highly prized wild mushrooms like pines and morels. You can buy their mushrooms at Alphington Farmers’ Market and the Vegan Market of Melbourne. Read their Local Food Directory page. Welcome, Simon and Miriam!

There are now 5 local mushroom growers in the Local Food Directory

Milk from farms where the male calves aren’t killed

A few weeks ago, I discussed how most male calves in dairy herds are deemed surplus to requirements and killed shortly after birth – around 500,000 calves per year in Australia.

There are several ways that dairy farms can avoid this slaughter.

One way, previously discussed, is the use of ‘sexed semen’ such that all the calves are female and can, in time, join the dairy herd. This is the approach of the How Now farm and you can read about their approach on their website.

Another way is simply to keep the male calves and let them live out their lives. This is the approach of the Mother Cow Dairy and you can read about their philosophy on their website. I spoke with the farmer at Mother Cow Dairy and he said that his philosophy comes from his Hinduism, in which cows are considered sacred. [Editor’s note: when I emigrated from the UK, I was really surprised that many of the Indian restaurants here serve beef, something that didn’t happen in the UK.]

You can buy the Mother Cow Dairy milk at: Apples And Sage Organic Wholefoods, Balwyn; Arora Spices, Brunswick East; Ashok’s Bombay Supermarket, Blackburn South; Bombay Music And Cafe, Box Hill South; Colonial Fruit Co, Forest Hill; Colonial Fresh Market, Doncaster; Foodworks, Fitzroy; Indian Spice And Organics, Balwyn North; Little Vegetable, Ivanhoe East; P & C Groceries, Epping; Shoppers India, Hawthorn; Shri Ram Groceries, Reservoir; Shri Ram Groceries, Thomastown; Shriji Grocery, Mill Park; Strawberry Point, Forest Hill; Wholefood Merchants, Greensborough; and Wild Things Food, Fitzroy North.

As previously reported, you can buy How Now’s milk at: Boccaccio SUPA IGA, Balwyn; Cannings Butchers, Hawthorn; Cannings Butchers, Kew; Ceres Fair Food, Preston; Eastfield Natural Foods, Croydon South; Fredricks Grocer, Richmond; Mt Evelyn IGA; Natures Harvest, Hurstbridge; Paul’s IGA Ringwood; Quinton’s SUPA IGA, Warrandyte; Rhubarb Rhubarb Organics, Preston; St Andrews General Store; SUPA IGA, Brunswick; and The Vegetable Connection, Fitzroy.

So, you can now buy ethically produced milk if you live in any of the following suburbs: Balwyn, Balwyn North, Blackburn South, Box Hill South, Brunswick, Brunswick East, Croydon South, Doncaster, Epping, Fitzroy, Fitzroy North, Forest Hill, Greensborough, Hawthorn, Hurstbridge, Ivanhoe East, Kew, Mill Park, Mt Evelyn, Preston, Reservoir, Richmond, Ringwood, St Andrews, Thomastown and Warrandyte.

Thanks to Carrie Newbold for telling me about Mother Cow Dairy.

Yes, you did know!

Last week, we asked if anyone knew about any classes or workshops on maintaining goats.

Pauline Webb has responded that Sylvia Allen, wife of Pete the Permie, knows all about goats. I've spoken to Pete and he agrees with Pauline and says that people are more than welcome to ring Sylvia and himself to ask their questions. Phone number: 0418 665880.

Fay Loveland has responded to point out that PIP magazine has published a podcast interview with Maria Cameron about keeping goats in a shared backyard context. Maria is from Hibi Farm in Heidelberg West, where she shares some goats with some of her neighbours.

We also asked if there were any facilities for recycling corks? Lucinda Flynn has responded to say that, whilst they no longer get collected for the zoos, they are fine to put into the compost.

Thanks Pauline, Fay and Lucinda!

Do you know?

Marsha Merory asks if there is anyone who could install and manage a beehive for her in exchange for most of the honey. She lives in Ivanhoe East.

Susie Scoullar asks: how does one make black garlic and where can it be bought locally?

Ann Stanley asks:

1. Are micro-greens grown from special seeds or are they just densely planted and therefore stunted shoots of normal seeds?
2. Are micro-greens more nutritious than ‘macro’ greens and, if so, why?
3. Is anaerobic worm/compost/weed ‘tea’ good or bad for the soil? Some people go to a lot of trouble keeping it aerobic; some people say the foul smell of the anaerobic stuff is the nitrogen being lost to the air; others say it doesn’t matter whether it’s anaerobic or not; etc.

Email me with any answers and I’ll pass them on to the relevant questioner.

Another collector of bee swarms

Ben Wrigley, Eltham, 0418 212433.

Thanks for the heads up, Julie French!

That brings the total number of local bee swarm collectors listed on our website to 22.

What seeds to plant in December

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

Warm season veggies Beans Cucumber Gourd Pumpkin Sweetcorn

Leafy greens Lettuce Mustard greens Parsley Silverbeet

Roots Beetroot Carrot Potato Radish

Perennials Asparagus Chives

December is not a very good planting month: arguably too late for many summer veggies and, although you can plant leafy greens such as lettuce and mustard greens, they are likely to go to seed pretty quickly.

Carrot man

Newsletter reader Cath Jones met ‘carrot man‘ in Bourke Street a few weeks ago and took this picture. Apparently he is becoming something of a celebrity for being out there in public carrying an enormous carrot and making people smile. And he has been doing it for the past six years!

A video from Community Grocer

As part of The Environment Film Festival Australia, The Community Grocer recently published a short video (3 minutes) about what they do.

Which link was clicked most times in the last newsletter?

The picture of the cranky (or terrified?) capsicums.

Proverb of the month

Take the gilt off the gingerbread. Meaning: remove an item’s most attractive qualities. Gingerbread was originally a form of simple cake flavoured with ginger and treacle. Gilt means a thin covering of gold leaf (with gilded being the adjective). In festivals during the Middle Ages, gingerbread cakes were apparently sometimes gilded to make them seem more special (gold is harmless when eaten in small quantities). So, as a corollary, gingerbread without gilt can be viewed as a rather humble offering. Hence the phrase.

Read more proverbs.

Gardening quote of the month

“My garden is my most beautiful masterpiece.” by Claude Monet.

Read more quotes.

Joke of the week

Why did the potato cross the road? Because he saw a fork up ahead.

Read more jokes.

New events – not cooking

Beeswax food wraps: Wednesday, 4th December, 10.15-11.15am and again at 11.30am-12.30pm; Brunswick Library.

What: Ever wanted a reusable, sustainable alternative to clingwrap and plastic zip-lock bags? Beeswax wraps, made from fabric and beeswax, are an alternative to one-use plastics. Wrap sandwiches, snacks and other items, cover bowls and plates. You can even fold them over containers and use them again and again! Learn what fabrics to use, where to buy beeswax, and how to create your own reusable food wraps at home.
Cost: free.
Bookings: EventBrite.

Summer fruit tree pruning workshop: Saturday, 7th December, 9.30am-12.30pm; Richmond.

What: Led by Chris England. Using the demonstration fruit trees in the orchard of the Burnley Gardens, you will learn how to summer prune fruit trees to get maximum fruit and also how to get fruit on espalier fruit trees. This is a small group workshop, where you will ‘have a go’ under an expert’s watchful eye.
Cost: $65.
Bookings: TryBooking.

Myo produce bags with Lisa Moore: Saturday, 7th December, 1-4pm; Heidelberg West.

What: Lisa Moore will teach you how to make your own produce bags.
Cost: $17.
Bookings: EventBrite.

Note that most organisations are not yet advertising any of their 2020 events. Those that are known to us can be found on our website non-cooking calendar.

New events – cooking

Note that most organisations are not yet advertising any of their 2020 events. Those that are known to us can be found on our website cooking calendar.

Summary of upcoming events – not cooking

Over the next week

Over the next month

Summary of upcoming events – cooking

Over the next week

Over the next month

View the complete calendar of upcoming events.

A veggie growing tip from Robin – harvesting garlic

From the latest Sustainable Macleod newsletter: “Garlic will be ready to harvest late November – mid December but we need two dry weeks so that the bulbs are not damp when pulled. If they are, dry them in front of a blow heater. Don’t knock the bulbs together to remove soil as this bruises them and they deteriorate quickly.

“Garlic is ready for harvest when the bottom 4 leaves have withered and there are 4-6 green leaves remaining. This is roughly half brown, half green. The green leaves extend down into the bulb forming the skins. The more ‘skins’ you have, the longer the shelf life. Note that, as the lower leaves wither, they can be hard to see as they shrivel to almost nothing which can lead to harvesting too late in the mistaken belief that this process has not begun.”

More on tomato growing

In reaction to last week’s discussion, Lyn Richards has written in: “I select to find a good balance between flavour and resilience to pests & neglect. What my mother called Darwinian gardening! This year, I’ve planted Sweetie (bugs ignore it), Kotlas (for early cropping – new experiment) and Amish Paste (for passata).”

Lyn also adds: “To all grandparents of baby yoghurt eaters: never throw away those tiny tubs! Two holes in the bottom and they are perfect for growing tomatoes from seed: the round base curls roots so they don’t tangle, and the seedling slips easily from the pot. Wash, store out of direct sunlight and they last at least 6 years.”

Queensland Fruit Fly in Victoria

Penny Grose, who is from Rosanna and co-convenor of Transition Warringal, has written an article about Queensland Fruit Fly in Victoria on our website. As Penny says: “Every home grower of fruit trees (as well as susceptible veggie fruits like tomatoes) should watch out for Queensland Fruit Fly, use monitoring traps and be ready to manage it with traps, baiting and exclusion (netting).” She then goes on to discuss other precautions and also provides a list of available resources on the internet. Read the full article.

Corrections and clarifications

The Drawing and watercolour workshop in an edible garden at Murundaka in Heidelberg Heights, is on Saturday, 23rd November, 10.30am-12.30pm, not Sunday, 23rd November as previously stated. Sorry Mikoto, Maria and Felicity.

Home Harvest Picnic 2020

The annual Home Harvest Picnic at Edendale will be on Sunday, 1st March, 2020, 3.30-7pm. This joint Nillumbik and Banyule Council event is a celebration of home grown produce and local food. Home growers are invited to supply some home grown produce which will be turned into a picnic by trained cooks to be shared at a community afternoon at Edendale Farm. Register now as a grower, spend the summer growing and then supplying some of your produce, and you will receive a prepared basket at the picnic for you and up to three guests. Local Food Connect is a partner in this event.

Community gardening news

Links Community Garden Lalor has installed a ‘tree of love’ sculpture.

A new collector of bee swarms

Justin Brasier, 0407 515 482, based in Heidelberg.

That brings the total number of local bee swarm collectors listed on our website to 19.

Want some cheap herbs?

On Sunday, 23rd November, all herbs will be 30% off at Nillumbik Nursery. There will also be a jumping castle.

Listen to some podcasts

Paul West, from River Cottage Australia and, until recently, a resident of Thornbury, has been interviewed by PIP magazine. Listen to the podcast.

Did you know that a third of public green space in Melbourne is apparently nature strips? And that, whilst nature strips are public land, their upkeep is the responsibility of private citizens (e.g. the people who live next to the strip)? Listen to someone called Adrian Marshall debate whether nature strips should all be turned into gardens.

National Recycling Week

City of Yarra Council has published a zero waste map, which is an online directory of places around City of Yarra relevant to “reducing, reusing, repairing and recycling“. Thanks for the heads up, Fay Loveland!

A number of lists entitled something like remember your R’s are currently doing the rounds. For example:

1. Refuse.
2. Reduce.
3. Reuse.
4. Repair.
5. Repurpose.
6. Regift.
7. Recycle.
8. Recover.

Rather a useful list, I think.

Idly musing about the list whilst I was weeding the other day, it struck me that there was something a bit odd about it. In some cases (reuse, repurpose, regift, recycle), the word means to do something again, where the ‘re’ prefix means ‘again’ (e.g. reuse = re-use = to use again). But that is not true of all of them (e.g. how can one ‘duce’ again?). So, I’ve looked up the etymology of each of the 8 words. In the other 4 cases (refuse, reduce, repair, recover), the original Latin was indeed re-something, meaning to do something again, but the something never made it into the English language. So, for example, ‘refuse’ comes from the Latin ‘refundere’, which means ‘to pour back’, and which in turn came from the concatenation in Latin of ‘re’ (meaning ‘again’) and ‘fundere’ (meaning ‘to pour’).

Australian Pollinator Week

As you might guess reading the list of upcoming events later in this newsletter, 10th-17th November is Australian Pollinator Week. As part of this, you’re invited to watch a flowering plant for 10 minutes and submit your observations of insect visitors to the Wild Pollinator Count website.

National Cheese Omelette Day

In a few weeks’ time, National Cheese Omelette Day will be on 1st December. As always, there will be a complete lack of events or activities to mark the occasion. Newsletter readers are encouraged to have their own private celebrations at lunchtime on the day.

Our website has a calendar of international food days – 24 in total.

Invite of the week

I’ve just been invited to participate in a conference in Romania on “Changes in quality and microbial succession of lightly salted and sugar-salted blunt snout bream (megalobrama amblycephala) fillets when stored at 4 degree Celsius.” To the right person, this could be a dream come true. Anyone like to take my place?

Which link was clicked most times in the last newsletter?

Victoria’s ban on lightweight plastic bags explained.

Joke of the week

Why did the pie go to a dentist? Because he needed a filling!

Read more jokes.

New events – not cooking

Buzz in workshop: Saturday, 16th November, 10.30am-12.30pm; Brunswick Neighbourhood House.

What: This workshop will demonstrate methods for pollination and planning for bee habitat, including bee-attracting plants and how to encourage urban diversity. You will learn about the co-evolution of bees and native plants, what common bees look like and native bee nesting. You will also get to make a bee hotel using natural materials to take home.
Cost: $20.
Bookings: by phone (9386 9418).

Make your own composting system: Saturday, 16th November, 11am-12.30pm; Brunswick East.

What: Using found/upcycled materials and some Brunswick Tool Library tools, you will create a composting system tailored to you and your living circumstances.
Cost: $12 (free for members of Brunswick Tool Library).
Bookings: EventBrite.

Environmentally friendly beeswax wraps: Saturday, 16th November, 12.30-3.30pm; Mitcham Community House.

What: Learn how to make beeswax wraps. All equipment and materials will be supplied by the tutor.
Cost: $40.
Bookings: by phone (9873 4587).

Bee Shed launch party: Sunday, 17th November, 10am-1pm; Melbourne Innovation Centre, Alphington.

What: This is the launch of the Bee Shed and Bee School project funded through the Pick My Project program. Celebrate the open of this new community space where you can learn about bees, pollinators and backyard beekeeping. Apiary tours and demonstrations. Face painting and games. Scones and honey.
Cost: free.
Bookings: just turn up.

Build DIY food waste solutions: Wednesday, 20th November, 6-7.30pm; Brunswick East.

What: Go build your own food waste solution using upcycled materials. Also learn about composting.
Cost: $12 (free for members of Brunswick Tool Library).
Bookings: EventBrite.

Tea anyone? Christmas craft and easy edible gifts with Carol: Thursday, 21st November, 10.30am-midday; Lilydale Library.

What: Make a Christmas teabag wreath to admire all season. Carol from Kazzy’s Kitchen will show you how to make a tea bag wreath and some homemade tasty Christmas surprises. Tastings and refreshments provided.
Cost: free.
Bookings: their website.

Composting workshop: Saturday, 23rd November, 10-11am; St Johns Riverside Community Garden, Heidelberg.

What: Learn all the tips and tricks to making great compost. Find out about different composting containers, worm farming and Bokashi buckets. Click here to read about the garden.
Cost: free.
Bookings: by phone (9490 4222).

Medicinal gardening (two day): Saturday, 23rd November and Sunday, 24th November, both 10am-3.30pm; Joe’s Market Garden, Coburg.

What: Learn to design and plant a medicinal garden with Western medicinal herbs. The course will cover herbal germination, cultivation, harvest and medicine making. It will also cover growing conditions of individual plants, creating fertile soil, and basic botany & plant identification. Facilitated by Taj Scicluna (The Perma Pixie) and Willow (Herb-Nerd).
Cost: $220.
Bookings: TryBooking.

Demonstrating effective blackberry control techniques: Saturday, 30th November, 10-midday; Smiths Gully.

What: Nillumbik Council and the Victorian Blackberry Taskforce invite you to a demonstration of effective blackberry control techniques including mechanical, chemical and drone demonstrations, planning and resources. The event will be followed at midday by a free lunch.
Cost: free.
Bookings: EventBrite.

Tomatoes and more – tomatoes in your edible garden: Saturday, 7th December, 2-3.30pm; Bee Sustainable, Brunswick East.

What: What you will learn: how to sow grow heirloom tomatoes; how to breed your own heirloom tomatoes; and some of the possibilities to prepare and share your tomatoes. Karen Sutherland will lead you through growing organic heirloom tomatoes from seed to the final tomato. Issues of feeding, pruning and training will be discussed. Karen will share some stories of passionate growers and how they have overcome problems.
Cost: $10.
Bookings: WeTeachMe.

Garlic braiding with Farmer Incubator: Saturday, 14th December, 10am-midday; Yarrambat.

What: Farmer Incubator will be visiting SEEDs Communal Garden to braid some of their recently harvested garlic. Go along and learn this skill for yourself. Bulbs of organically-grown Farmer Incubator garlic will also be available to purchase on the day.
Cost: free.
Bookings: just turn up.

Bee hive tour: Saturday, 14th December, 10.30am-12.30pm; Yarrambat.

What: Your tour, led by Nathan Stewart, a professional Doreen-based beekeeper from Maya ‘Xala Honey, will include suiting up in protective gear, lighting a bee smoker, and spending two hours as real life beekeeper. Initially, Nathan will give you some tips on what to look for inside a hive including how to spot the Queen and where to look to potentially witness the birth of a new worker bee. Then, together you will lift the lid of a busy hive, watch bees at work creating honey, pull out a frame of honey ready for extraction, and get up close with more than 100,000 bees! After the lid is closed, you will sample some of the honey direct from the hives while enjoying a refreshing honey tonic.
Cost: $75 (plus various packages for families).
Bookings: their website.

New events – cooking

Chinese vegetarian cooking demo: Sunday, 17th November, 11.30am-1pm; Macleod Organic Community Garden.

What: Helen Chen and her friends will be demonstrating some vegetarian home-cooked Chinese food (which is very different from Chinese restaurant food), namely spring rolls and salad. Click here to read about the garden.
Cost: $15 (free for members of Sustainable Macleod).
Bookings: just turn up.

Cook Indian by the creek: Friday, 29th November, 6.30-8.30pm; Diamond Creek.

What: Menu: chicken tikka / paneer tikka; chicken kebab / veg kebab; chick peas salad. Cook Indian by the creek came into existence with the idea of breaking the myth that Indian cooking is complex and difficult to nail. In each session, they will share their traditional recipes and go through the step by step cooking process. The classes are held in a private kitchen.
Cost: $79.
Bookings: by email.

Sourdough bread and pumpkin damper making: Saturday, 30th November, 1.30-2.30pm; Macleod Organic Community Garden.

What: Terry Wesselink will demonstrate how to manage your sourdough starter and make bread using the pizza oven. Bring along a sterile jar, as for jam making, with a hole in the lid to take home some starter. In the same session, Patty Boxhall will make a moist pumpkin and herb damper for all to sample. Click here to read about the garden.
Cost: $15 (free for members of Sustainable Macleod).
Bookings: just turn up.

Summary of upcoming events – not cooking

Over the next week

Over the next month

Summary of upcoming events – cooking

Over the next week

Over the next month

View the complete calendar of upcoming events.