Innholdsfortegnelse for Issue#9.4 - 2018 i Good Organic Gardening

What a great time of year! Everything is growing fast, the silly season is upon us and, importantly, the chooks are back in full lay. Which is why, this issue, instead of featuring recipes starring different seasonal fruit and veg, we decided to go eggs all the way. So if you have a surplus of googies and you’re looking for new ways to use them, turn to our recipes, courtesy of Australian Eggs. Speaking of the silly season, we don’t get into the full commercial hysteria around Christmas and other significant days but, in a low-key nod to this time of year, Jennifer Stackhouse features mistletoe, along with lovage, in our Clever Crops. Did you know that mistletoe has edible parts? We also have two festive DIY projects: a centrepiece…

Lovage looks like a cross between parsley and celery with its tall, hollow stems topped with large, flat parsley-like leaves. It can reach 2m high and every part is edible. This herb is native to Europe and western Asia and has long been cultivated for its edible and medicinal properties. Its flavour is strong, especially when used fresh, and the taste recalls a pungent celery. Pick leaves and tender stems to chop as a fresh herb or garnish, or to add to cooked dishes for a celery flavour. The stems can also be candied. The fleshy, carrot-like roots can be used like a root vegetable and even the seeds can be ground and added to both sweet and savoury dishes. Lovage also has medicinal value and is valued by herbalists…

Sunflowers are often a symbol of happiness, and lovely plants to have in the garden. In the vegie patch, a bank of them on the western side can provide shade to heat-sensitive crops in the harsh afternoon sun of midsummer, and in the ornamental garden they make big splashes of bright colour. The edible parts of these plants, the seeds and particularly the tender young sprouts, are highly nutritious, providing good amounts of vitamins A, C, E and B group as well as minerals calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc, selenium, potassium and phosphorus, as well as chlorophyll and fibre. The sprouts are 20–25 per cent protein with all the essential amino acids, so are considered a complete protein-rich food — good for vegans. They are also high in enzymes, lecithin (good…

Many of the best gardeners start early. Mark Hoffmann was just three years old when he sowed his first carrot in his father’s big vegetable garden in the historic Geelong suburb of Belmont. Originally from Silesia — then in German Prussia, now part of Poland — the Hoffmann family has grown deep roots in Australia over the past one-and-a-half centuries. They came to Victoria via South Australia where the family once owned a winery. Mark is Geelong born and bred. He grew up on his father Martin’s 760m2 block in Belmont, three doors away from Mark’s grandfather Heinrich, a Lutheran minister. Martin grew flowers for three churches and vegetables for the congregations. He also raised fattened animals, especially lambs and breeding ducks, and Mark remembers dashing around with Indian Runners…

Pick, crush and sniffa lemon verbena leaf and you’ll want to savour it all day, so intoxicating is the lemony scent that gives it its species name, citriodora. It’s one of those invaluable plants that give you double the joy — in both garden and kitchen — with pretty lime-green leaves that can be used to make an invigorating tea, to flavour poultry and fish dishes or to jazz up a dessert. It tastes delicious combined with mint or ginger. The delicate, white-mauve flowers are also edible and make a fragrant addition to fresh salads as well as indoor posies. Lemon verbena is also used medicinally to reduce inflammation, boost the immune system, calm the stomach and relax the nerves. GROWING & CARING A perennial that stands 2–3 metres tall,…

True to their name, snake beans are long, thin and snakelike. These giants of the legume world are also known as yardlong beans as they can grow to a metre or more in length. Snake beans are native to parts of Asia (possibly originating in South China) so are much more tolerant of heat and humidity than beans normally grown in the backyard vegie patch such as French or runner beans. They are best grown in the tropics and subtropics as they are not frost tolerant. These vines also crop over a long period and can grow right through summer and into autumn. Although the beans can reach up to 1.2m in length, they become tough as they get larger so it’s best to harvest when they’re around 30–50cm long.…

COOL & TEMPERATE VEGIES Check the vegie garden once or twice a day as the weather warms up. Look for pests and weeds and crops that are ready to harvest. Take the hose or watering can with you. If a hot day is forecast, water plants early in the morning and in the afternoon or evening. Remember, though, that water in hoses and watering systems can run hot when they are first turned on. To avoid burning yourself and your plants, let the water run into a bucket until it’s cool. When heatwave conditions are forecast, cover new plantings and leafy crops with shadecloth (or netting) for heat protection. The cover can be removed at night. Also move containers into a sheltered position to reduce heat stress. Young and leafy…

ORGANIGROW — ON FREE RANGE Misleading “free range” claims have led to a deep feeling of mistrust by consumers. Government standards have now set an upper limit of 10,000 birds per hectare, but this is meaningless as there’s no definition of what that means: a producer can have half a million birds in a dozen sheds, all cheek by jowl in the corner of a 50ha property. The best way to avoid bad practices is to look for certification by Humane Choice. Organic certification is also useful but beware the larger producers: they also can be misleading on their stocking densities and ranging. You can look via Google Earth at the farm producing the eggs you buy, including mine. I only run around 600 chooks per hectare. If you can’t…

TRADITIONAL ECOLOGICAL KNOWLEDGE Traditional Ecological Knowledge, or TEK, is an invaluable aspect of an interdisciplinary approach to Earth stewardship. TEK is a system of understanding the environment, built over generations, as people depend on the land and sea for their food, materials and culture. TEK is based on observations and experience, evaluated in light of what one has learnt from elders. Many scientists around the world are now recognising the value of TEK. Efforts are underway to gather and use traditional wisdom to gain a better and deeper understanding of the planet, especially now as we live in such perilous times with climate change and species extinction. Scientists working alongside traditional communities gathering TEK are gaining profound insights into the interconnectedness of species in specific environments. For instance, TEK of…

Mistletoe is one of those odd-bod plants. Mistletoes are found around the world and there are many different plants known as mistletoe. All are parasitic plants that can only grow on another species. In Australia, the most commonly seen mistletoe grows on gum trees, its leaves resembling those of its host tree, but there are also mistletoe species found on wattles, kurrajong, bottlebrush and other trees and shrubs. This curious plant attracted attention long ago and has featured in myths and legends over many centuries. One reason for its popularity is that it stands out in winter as it is evergreen when its host trees in the northern hemisphere are bare and leafless. Boughs of mistletoe (Viscum album), which grows right across Europe to Japan and has green leaves and…

“IF YOU KILL ALL THE CATERPILLARS YOU WON’T HAVE ANY BUTTERFLIES. IT’S ALL ABOUT BALANCE IN YOUR GARDEN ECOLOGY.” Two acres in idyllic, subtropical Tallebudgera in the Gold Coast hinterland: sounds like paradise, doesn’t it? Especially when you consider the Panozzo family’s block comprises a 600m2 orchard, five large edible garden beds and a mix of native and exotic plant species. As Stacey Panozzo says, “Biodiversity is the key to a successful, productive garden.” Sometimes, a hobby becomes both a lifestyle and a living. Not only is gardening Stacey’s favourite pastime, it’s her job as well. Even before she became event manager for the very successful Botanical Bazaar Gold Coast Garden Festival, she ran a successful air plant business. Her interest in gardening was first sparked back in 2007 with…

MATURE MELONS CAN WEIGH UP TO 5KG BUT MAY BE A LOT SMALLER. HARVEST JAM MELONS WHEN THEY ARE HEAVY AND SOUND “DRUMMY” WHEN TAPPED. My friend Liz Gower, aka The Jam Lady, who makes lots of jams and preserves to sell at local markets, found she was being asked frequently for melon jam. It seems that melon jam, which is made from a watermelon relative called jam melon, has sentimental appeal to many older Australians. It was popular in the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s at a time when it and other easy-to-grow crops such as choko and Jerusalem artichoke were often found in backyard vegie patches. Keen to keep the customers happy, Liz tried to source locally produced jam melons without luck. This summer it won’t be a problem…

As garden plants, nasturtiums often fall into the love-or-hate category. Where they become wildly weedy, they are a real nuisance. In other places, these fast-growing annuals are a welcome addition to the garden with lush, rounded leaves and cheery summer and autumn flowers. The blooms come in all the sunset shades: red, orange and yellow. There are even variegated forms with splashes of white on the leaves as well as single- and double-flowered forms. Bushy types look beautiful whether planted en masse to create a weed-suppressing carpet or used to bring a vibrant splash of colour to the vegie patch, cottage garden or flower border. The trailing types look gorgeous cascading from hanging baskets and window boxes. As a bonus, the leaves, flowers and seedpods are edible, so they add…

In season NOVEMBER FRUITS Apples (Lady Williams), avocados, bananas, blueberries, cherries, grapefruit, loquats, lychees, mangoes, melons, mulberries, nectarines, oranges (Valencia), papaya, passionfruit, pawpaw, peaches, pineapples, starfruit (carambola), strawberries, youngberries VEGIES Artichoke, Asian greens, asparagus, beans, cucumbers, chillies, lettuce, onions, peas, potatoes, silverbeet, snowpeas, spinach, spring onions, sugar snap peas, sweet corn, tomatoes, watercress, zucchini, zucchini flowers In season DECEMBER FRUITS Apples (Lady Williams), apricots, avocados, banana, blackberries, blueberries, cherries, currants, grapes, lemons, lychees, mangoes, melons, nectarines, oranges (Valencia), papaya, passionfruit, pawpaw, peaches, pineapple, rambutans, raspberries, starfruit (carambola), strawberries VEGIES Asparagus, beans, capsicum, celery, cucumbers, eggplant, lettuce, mushrooms, onions, peas, radish, snowpeas, sweet corn, spinach, spring onions, sugar snap peas, tomatoes, watercress, zucchini SEASONAL TIP Showcase your homegrown heirloom tomatoes in a simple but delicious summer side salad of sliced tomatoes,…

The historic Hunter Valley town of Dungog takes its name from a word in the local Gringrai language meaning “place of thinly wooded hills”. Drive a short distance through flat dairy country and into the rolling foothills to the southeast and you reach Marshdale. On a gentle rise overlooking a winding country road perches Four Acre Farm, a 100-year-old farmhouse fronted by a cottage garden and surrounded by not-sothinly wooded hills. It’s home to Dominique Northam and Tom Christie, Evelyn, 2, and baby Jude plus an excitable dog or two. Oh, and a small flock of Muscovy ducks. It’s business out the back at Four Acre Farm, where row upon row of blueishgreen garlic spears wave in the breeze. In little more than five years on the property, Dom and…

NOVEMBER 2018 Technically it’s still spring but in most parts of Australia it’s definitely very warm, which means it’s time for staggered planting to extend the summer harvest. DECEMBER 2018 Summer has officially arrived and there’s still time for more staggered plantings of all those light salad vegies like cucumbers and capsicums, which love the heat. When the moon is waxing from new moon to full moon, it is increasing light and drawing sap flow upwards. During the waning from full moon back to new moon, light decreases and sap is drawn downwards. This movement of sap flow has an influence on how well new plants will grow. There are four phases, each lasting seven to eight days. Sowing, planting and taking cuttings should not be done in the 12…

ALTHOUGH THE FLOWERS ARE PRETTY, CUTTING THEM OFF AS THE FLOWER BUD FORMS ENCOURAGES LARGER TUBERS AND MAKES THE PLANT A LITTLE STURDIER. All right, let’s get the artichoke jokes out of the way. Mention these tubers even in polite company and you’re sure to hear a sniggered reference to “farty chokes”, as this particular edible is renowned for causing flatulence. If serving up Jerusalem artichokes to boys (of any age), you should definitely call them fartichokes. They’ll love it. For more discerning diners, mention that artichokes are all the rage on seasonal restaurant menus. Despite their gassy reputation, there’s good reason to eat artichokes. They are high in the hard-to-digest carbohydrate inulin and are low in calories, which means they are suitable for diabetics. They also contain moderate levels…

When winter rolls around you can never have too many pumpkins — so get planting now to make the most of this delicious, easygoing crop. Pumpkin vines grow readily from seed but the large, spreading plants take many months to produce a pumpkin that’s ready to harvest and roast, mash, turn into soup or add to scones or pies. Pumpkins are grown from seed sown as soils warm in late spring to early summer. They are grown year round in tropical and subtropical zones that are frost-free. Direct-sow seeds into the vegetable garden or, if the soil is still cold or there is any likelihood of frost, start them in punnets. As vines reach several metres across, they need to be planted where there’s lots of room for the vine…

COOL & TEMPERATE VEGIES Pumpkin vines cause lots of stress for gardeners about now. They appear to be covered in large yellow male flowers without a pumpkin-producing female bloom to be seen. Like all plants in the cucurbit family, pumpkins produce both male and female flowers and both are needed for fruit. If there are only male flowers, tip prune the long stems to encourage side shoots. Follow up with fertiliser and daily watering. Female flowers, which are the ones that form the fruit, will appear on the side shoots as summer progresses. In warmer zones early plantings of tomatoes may be flowering and forming fruit for a Christmas harvest. In cooler zones, if all threat of frost has passed, it’s safe to plant out summer crops such as tomato,…

Bourghal Wheat Salad with Poached Egg Serves 4 INGREDIENTS • ½ cauliflower, cut into florets• 2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil• ½ tsp ground cumin• ½ tsp ground coriander• Salt and pepper, to taste• 1 cup bourghal wheat (cracked wheat)• Juice 1 lemon• 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil• ½ red onion, finely diced• ½ bunch kale, sliced• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped• 1 tbsp Souk spice (if you don’t have this you can substitute with ground cumin and coriander)• ⅓ cup slivered almonds, toasted• 2 tbsp pepitas, toasted• 2 tbsp sunflower seeds, toasted• 3 tbsp finely chopped parsley• 3 tbsp finely chopped coriander• 2 medjool dates, finely chopped• 1 pomegranate, deseeded• 4 eggs, poached METHOD 1 Preheat oven to 180°C. Place cauliflower florets on lined oven tray and drizzle with olive…