Miss V's Fork to Fork.. Adventures in & Around the Vegetable Patch

Like a Child in a 'Secret Garden'... the not so Secret Northcote Community Garden

2011-08-16T18:46:00.000+10:00

There is definitely something to be said about the importance of connecting with other people to form and feel a sense of 'community'. Which I might ad, is a very real feeling, no fluffy let's pretend in my mind that I am part of something but a real feeling of being involved in something worthwhile, surrounded by like minded people for the greater good of all.

Honestly I felt like a child in a 'Secret Garden' when we went to visit the lovely people of Northcote in their Community Garden. They have about 15 plots and 20 or so members. Each plot uniquely different and an expression of the gardener tending them. Each has its own story to tell, wild, rambling, super organised others with little paths like a mini backyard... all beautiful.

Just over behind there, that fence.. there it is..

As I walked through the garden plots, looking eagerly at what everyone was growing I felt a real sense of 'care and connectedness' - somewhere to talk to people about all things vegetables and of course all things food, which for me was my original passion before being swept up into the world of bees. No online forums or web advice, no fixed ideas other than 'growing naturally, organically, just like it should be'. Just people, hands in the dirt... loved it.

After meeting the guys at Northcote, it really drove home to me how important it is to connect with others and feel part of something, even just for an individuals own mental health. Doing all you can by yourself is all very well but think what you could achieve if you felt that sense of connectedness with others. Anything is possible!

We met Alistair, Ros, Marijka, Rebecca and Elizabeth on Sunday. Alistair and his partner Christine got in contact with us to talk about Bees for their garden. Excited as anyone could imagine I would be combining bees and gardening - I was in, they wanted to get a hive and of course I wanted to give them one. So it is happening (when we get some more bees) a free hive will be placed in their gardens and I can't wait!

I took down some seeds to donate to the garden to sow in punnets to get ready for the bees - though whilst we were there lots of bees happily foraging in amongst the gardens.. heaven. Marijka kindly gave me some sunflower seeds too to take home to plant.

Rudbeckia Marmalade - A dazzling display of huge yellow daisies to provide loads of pollen for the bees throughout summer and autumn.

Hyssop - This herb makes a fantastic low growing hedge. The bright blue flowers are a magnet for bees and butterflies.

Sweet Mace - Fragrant leaves are reminiscent of a mix between tarragon and anise. Ideal for making herb vinegars or dry the leaves for a warming herbal brew. The long-lasting clusters of small yellow flowers are a magnet for bees. Also known as Mexican Tarragon.

At home though we have been extremely busy, I have managed to take some time clean up the green house to get some 60 seedlings going.

Some Hyssop, Sweet Mace and Capsicums coming up in the greenhouse.

The Vegetable patch has Garlic a plenty, lots of Broad Beans, Sorrel, Chervil, Parsley, Rocket, Snow Peas, Leeks, French Shallots, Red Onion, Broccoli and various Lettuces at the moment.

And some beautiful Crimson Broad Beans

Sorrel... all I want is Sorrel

2011-05-24T00:02:00.001+10:00

I've been pretty excited since I discovered the lovely Sorrel. I think I had heard of it but I certainly had never tasted it before. We went to visit some friends over Easter at Kyneton, I know Easter how long ago does it feel? Our Bee Project Melbourne City Rooftop Honey has been flat out, but I still manage to find the time to detach from all the craziness around me to find peace in the garden, hands in the dirt... good for the soul.

Anyways if you have ever tasted Sorrel, to me it tastes just like Spinach leaves which have have Lemon juice poured on to it. I love anything lemon so I instantly fell in love with it. Sorrel, is a perennial herb that is cultivated as a garden herb or leaf vegetable. Sorrel has been cultivated for centuries. The leaves may be puréed in soups and sauces or added to salads; Some say they have a flavour that is similar to kiwifruit or sour wild strawberries but I think lemon. The Greeks use it in Spanakopita - perfect with Spinach. So I took a bit of the roots and planted it quickly in the patch - one month later it is still alive. I hope it lasts the winter!

Sorrel - this is the plant I took some roots from to see how it takes

Just over the fence next door I have been admiring a lovely Olive Tree in fruit. I know the owners are not gardeners so I knocked on the door and asked if I could do something with them in return sharing them. Here is the recipe I used from the latest Diggers Club issue.

Olives in Green Brine
- 100gm of sea salt per litre of water
- 1 clove of garlic
- a slice of lemon

Place green olives in a jar, ass the garlic and top with a slice of lemon. Bring the water/salt mix to boiling point. Pour over the olives and ensure you have completely comvered them. Seal and allow to stand. Leave for 6 months before opening. (When you do open the jar, the brine will froth - this is normal).

Green Olives in Brine - We'll see how they go, I hope they are yummy.

In the patch I have planted out a whole heap of Broad Beans, Peas, Garlic, Beets, Shallots, Leeks and salad leaves. To my amazment my Golden Zucchini is still throwing out little babies which are just so tasty. I can't believe it is still alive, thankfully it is protected from most of the frost but I just can't pull it out when it is being so fruitful.

Baby Golden Zucchini still fruiting

The Most Delicious Honey Ice-Cream

2011-03-15T18:03:00.005+11:00

We have been soo busy with our honey share project of late but we have still found..... well make time for some pleasures in life. Revolving around Honey of course we have set going some Honey and Apple Cider, Honey Ale, Mead as well as the most amazing Ice-Cream. All made at home, and all awesome!

Delicious Honey Ice-Cream

6 organic egg yolks
1 cup of Honey (light in flavour - pref our honey of course!)
600ml of organic full cream milk
300ml of double cream
Ice Cream Maker or you can hand churn if you like

Method:

Combine the eggs yolks and honey in a mixing bowl and whisk (2-3mins to combine well)
Heat the milk very slowly in a saucepan until it just starts to simmer (i.e. the edges will start to bubble – careful, do not boil the milk as it could separate or curdle)
Add the egg/honey mixture to the simmering milk and stir continuously until the mixture thickens and coats the back of your spoon – keeping the temperature @ simmer
Immediately remove from heat, strain and leave to cool
Once cool, mix in cream
Pour into Ice-Cream maker and churn for 35 minutes (or as per machine instructions)
Place into an container and put into the freezer

If using the hand method. Place into an ice-cream container, place in the freezer and aerate with a fork every half hour for 2 hours then allow to freeze

The first cut is the deepest... First time honey extracting

2011-02-07T22:07:00.002+11:00

I know I know... my blogging has been shall I say... a long time in between drinks. Lately though our life and energy has been invested into our Honey Share, Beekeeping Project which has taken off. It is amazing to see how wonderfully supportive the community has been. We now have a list of 45 businesses and individuals wanting to adopt a hive as well as lots of media attention. The Herald Sun, The Age, ABC News and Radio talk back shows have all been in contact with us wanting to do a story.

We've also received a wonderful $1000 grant from the Awesome Foundation which went straight towards purchasing our much needed honey extractor. See our pictures from our first extraction! So besides tending to our 18 hives around Melbourne our garden is still producing lots of wonderful fruit and vegetables. The weather as we all know has been a tad... topsy turby with one day 40 degrees then the next 20 - our poor tomatoes have taken a battering with all this heat and then rain. On the upside, I have never seen such big zucchini and cucumbers!

Corn in the making!

Yay my first Watermelon

Giant Zucchini

Lebanese Cucumbers

We have rock melons and water melons growing in the greenhouse which I am super chuffed, seeing that I have never grown one before in my life. I've also put in a second lot of corn which has been growing like crazy with all this heat and rain.

Our highlight though is of course associated with our Bees - our first honey extraction! Mat and I were so excited to un cap those first few frames to extract that delicious golden nectar we call honey. What a gift from our own backyard. See our pictures from our first extraction!

Oh Honey... ahhh Sugar Sugar

2010-12-28T23:28:00.000+11:00

Honey is here, we have taken our first frame of honey from our hive this week! Both of us have been living, breathing, working, tending, caring for Bees. We have collected swarms from Couches, Rooftops, Chester Draws as well as Compost Bins. Our project is growing rapidly and we can't seem to keep up with the number of bees that need re-homing. Last I wrote we were up to 6 hives, now we are steadily looking to well 12 hives!

Adrian Richardson - Mr Ready, Steady, Cook from La Luna Bistro in Carlton has jumped on board which is awesome - it is nice to have people participate, people who share a similar 'keep it local' philosophy we admire. We also placed a hive at a wonderful Organic Bakery in Fitzroy call Fatto A Mano - much to my delight they do a whole heap of Gluten Free Goodies, so our visits to tend to our bees will also involve a tasty baked treat for me! Thank you Universe for our paths crossing each other :)

Our first frame of almost 100% capped honey ready to go!

Close up of honey comb - this is uncapped honey

A real buzz around town

2010-12-10T15:10:00.000+11:00

I must admit, we have been quite busy over the last month since we came home from Indonesia. Our Honey Share Project has taken off and there has been some wonderful support so far in the community. Our vision of bring bees back into the city seems to be working. So far we have 6 sites and a list which is growing. Most of our time has been spent building boxes, working on our website, visiting our new babies and replying to inquiries. This week we have had a mention in The Australian, The Age Epicure as well as Melbourne Broadsheet which is amazing!. We hope to keep the momentum going!

Mat checking one of the hives @ North Melbourne

Back to the patch and it is harvest time, thankfully my patience has paid off and we have had a wonderful haul of Garlic. Approx 40 bulbs have been dug up and are hanging to dry out as we speak. I did a lovely version of plats you see at the market, I just hope that mine doesn't fall apart :)

Garlic a plenty, let's see how long they last!

Beautiful Leek flowers which I am saving for seed

Potato bags are being slowly harvested as we speak (one bag at a time) I must admit I was a little disappointed with the amount we got from each bag. I don't know what I was expecting but I think it was more! Though from two bags, we have managed to have 4 meals after separating them into 'Tiny', 'Mediums' and 'Large' So I can't complain too much.

One bag of delightful Potatoes

One meal of 'Tiny' Potato Salad

Termia Kasih Indonesia

2010-11-25T00:10:00.002+11:00

We've just come back last week from a lovely holiday in Indonesia. I must admit I did miss my plants but I was certainly distracted by the wonderful variety of plants that grow in tropical climates. I really loved seeing the abundant crops of rice. We even had the opportunity to walk along a rice paddy field to a waterfall @ Gunung Kawi which was just beautiful.

I also noticed that the Indonesians seemed to live a much more sustainable life than us. Maybe as a developing country they need to, perhaps it is just what they will always do so, I hope so. There were loads of Pisang (Banana) plants, Nanas (Pineapple), Kelapa (Coconut), Rice, Beans, Manggis (Mangosteen), Cassava and more I didn't know English names for.. basically though any piece of vacant land or road side will do.

Pisang (Banana) on the side of the road

Kelapa (Coconut)

Rice Paddy North of Ubud

@ Gunung Kawi North of Ubud

Walking along the rice paddies @ Gunung Kawi

We also visited an amazing Orchid garden. I have never seen such beautiful flowers, even in the road side drains beautiful lillies and the most amazing tropical flowering plants I have ever seen.

One of many of the most amazing orchids

These remind me of Firecrackers!

Back at home, when we returned there was work to be done! The Borage I planted for our bees had grown like crazy. The Broad Beans plants had died off, and the pods I was waiting on for my winter soups were ready for picking and drying. Leeks are going to flower - great for seed saving. Our 20+ garlic bulbs were ready for harvest and the greenhouse plants have gone wild. Baby Watermelons have appeared and delightful red Raspberries ready for picking.

Leeks going to flower

Melons taking off in the greenhouse

Baby Watermelon!

Our first Raspberries

Our Garlic some Australian and NZ Munro

Thank you to my cousin Clive for taking some great roadside travel shots xxx

Bitter Broad Beans which are indeed Tasty Pods....

2010-10-24T21:56:00.000+11:00

The patch is officially out of control. My girlfriend Sandy helped me this afternoon fill a whole wheelie green bin of green waste. Grateful I was for the help as the rain over the last week has made the garden boom.. to the honest though afterwards it didn't look like we had spent 2 hours harvesting, weeding, replanting and clipping.

There are Carrots fighting with the Celery, fat Leeks almost in flower because I can't seem use them fast enough, (though each time I need a onion I head for the Leeks), Beets are going to seed (we must of pulled out about a dozen of heirloom - red, yellow and white), and some hidden Cauliflower, Broccoli amongst the leaves of Broad Bean plants which I have now picked 3 baskets full of so far with more still to come. Borage too is a plenty with the Bees happily gathering but it is way out of control... I had to take to it with some snippers as it was overrunning everything, so I saved the flowers I did chop for a tea blend I am going to make up.

As I mentioned the Borage is growing crazy, so I decided to pick some flowers. I have read that the Romans feed the flowers to their soldiers because it was said to bring courage. These days it is used in the UK in summer drinks, salads and is also used in teas. Those pretty blue and pink flowers you see in tea... usually Borage.

Pretty Borage Flowers I am going to blend with tea

I did have to note something interesting I found out this week. After picking the Broad Beans a couple weeks ago just as they started to fatten up, I shelled them... cooked them (pan fried in some olive oil with some onion and garlic)... they were bitter.. and disappointingly I had planted a dozen and I still didn't really like them. Blah blah the whole.. 'when you grow them yourself, the broad bean is delightful and smooth'.. . this was not the case and I was not happy.. until.. we went out to Sosta Cucina in North Melbourne, two friends of ours work there. I had an Artichoke and Broad Bean salad... smooth, creamy like peas. Mat thought to ask the chef, why? how are they soo creamy.. well... I learn't something new that day.. Broad Beans are to be 'double shelled'... no doubt about it, those bitter disappointments now turned into a 'valuable' crop in my eyes. See the pics I have taken to show you if you didn't already know that... and they are sooo lovely!.

Broad Bean Pods

Broad Bean out of the Pod

The Tasty inner Pod of the Broad Bean, I now am in love with them

Our Backyard Bees

2010-10-23T15:01:00.000+11:00

Just to share our excitement, I have captured this on video for our journal. This is the second time we have opened our hive to see what has been happening. We have a one month old collected swarm. So far soo good. You will see the lovely clean comb they have made on the first frame Mat handles, as well as a lucky spot of the Queen who we found out at our Beekeeping club is a Caucasian Queen. Gentle ladies they are noted to be, you will see from the video how calm they are.. just doing their thing.

In case you missed the Queen - here is she is again!

The lovely hummmmm of our Bees :)

'Frankenfish' No Way I Say

2010-10-15T18:31:00.002+11:00

Listening this morning to a science podcast I was horrified to hear about the American FDA being close to a decision on whether a genetically modified salmon - dubbed the 'Frankenfish' - should be approved for human consumption. Not only do they want us to eat it, they think it should not have to be labelled GM! That I am offended by, you can choose to eat it if you want to... but having no choice is the problem for me.

This atlantic salmon that has a growth hormone from a chinook salmon and DNA from the eel-like ocean pout can grow two kilograms in less than 500 days, as opposed to nearly 700 days for an unmodified fish. What happens I say 'if' they get out, run with others and breed? Like the European carp in our Australian waterways? what a disaster. Oh no, I have heard the breeding fish will be isolated but when humans are involved.. well... mistakes happen that's for sure.

The 'Frankenfish' Monster

Seeing the FDA and the Bio Tech industry are in each other's pockets, makes me think we won't have much of a choice but I hope otherwise. Even China of all countries has reservations, and if they do.. well... we all should. I've also read this week that for the first time since colonisation Americans are expected to live fewer years than the previous generations... Is it all the GM corn crops, that go into 70% of 'junk food' or is it the GM corn that is fed to all the animals - like cows which should be eating grass!

OK I just have to vent somewhere and try and make some difference.. even if it is only in the form of awareness and making informative choices.

Otherwise a family friend Kevin has given me some lovely seedlings. I have about half a dozen melons I am trying out in the greenhouse. I have read that you can keep them in pots, and use a support for them to climb - we'll see how they go. Watermelons and Rockmelons about 6 weeks old. I also scored some Capsicum seedlings too.

Baby Rockmelon 6-8 weeks old

Raspberry flowers going to turn into tasty berries!

The vegetable patch is full at the moment, I am waiting for the Borage I planted to stop flowering - the bees love it but it has really taken over. I've got loads of Broad Beans, Leeks, Garlic, Beets, Rocket, Spinach and Carrots with a few Radish, Cabbage and Cauliflower growing in between.....I am eager to replace them with something else, perhaps some Corn, Cucumber or Squash I am thinking.

Just today too on our 21st day of having our hive there was a number of bees kind of just hovering around the front of the hive. Kind of like a pulsing up and down incorporating a somewhat outward rhythm to it - my guess is new bees, getting their flying skills - how exciting.. tomorrow we open the hive again to see what has been happening.

Our First Time... Opening the Hive

2010-10-06T12:12:00.007+11:00

Wooooo hoooo we are excited it's the first opening of our hive. Not sure if it is the same kind of excitement that a footy fan feels but after living in Melbourne and having to see two weekends of crazy footy fever on the street - I am glad to say I was not part of it. Happy to see some good friends stay in the last couple of weeks Glenn Baker (who was sorely disappointed at the outcome of Collingwood vs St Kilda) as well the ever so cheeky Nick Mortimer - who we always enjoy the company of... like the 'good olde days'.

To be honest I was not sure what to expect. I had visions of a Winnie the Pooh scene. Us being Winnie, running from the angry bees chasing us around the backyard. But no, they were calm... somewhat passive even. There seems to be a great fear amongst many people I know, fair enough if you are allergic but it seems that a lot of people put bees and wasps in the same category... crazy in my eyes as they are totally different, for starters wasps are carnivorous and nasty. Bees though on the other hand only eat honey.. well a mixture of nectar and water which will become what we know as honey. They don't go out of their way to annoy you, they are just happy doing their thing... being busy.

The smoker and protective equipment came out. All ready to go, we opened the hive to find them busily and happily building their comb, there were also lots of brood cells (bees in the making) and of course honey. Quite a lot of sticky, glistening but not all capped honey!

Busily making comb on the new foundation

Capped Brood (babies in the making) mainly and honey in the outside combs

We have quite a few more bees than we thought

Oh and for all those pessimists who said... 'good luck with the stings'.... FYI no stings thus far :)

It's all in a box...

2010-09-27T23:41:00.005+10:00

Well it is interesting times here at our place, we were almost ready for the arrival of our new friends.... feeling a little nervous... excited too at the same time but the reality of 'actually' having bees was upon us. We finished off our introductory course only a week ago and then attended the beekeepers meeting to put our name down for a 'swarm' thinking we have time well a month we were told that we would have to wait at least. So on the weekend we decided we would go to see one of the members Bob Owen who runs Bob's Beekeeping Supplies in Eltham to buy our supplies and pack so we can make up our boxes 'supers' for brood and honey. Saturday morning I also got a phone call from a member to say we had a swarm waiting! Yikes.

So supers, we brought 2 x 8 frame sets to make up. Nicely the frames with foundation comb were assembled so Mat put together the supers, base board and lid. We quickly painted them Sat, Sun in two coats of outdoor acrylic paint (something light in colour we've been told) then get them ready to drop off to the member on Wednesday so he could house them, for a day/night and then let us have them on the Friday morning.

All painted and ready to go. Frames with foundations ready to go. 8 in each super - we will house them for now in the one, then add another once they start to really fill the bottom one up as they like to be cozy.

Closer view of the foundations which the bees will fill out for brood and honey.

Taken late in the day with only a few stragglers coming home.

Mat also put some sleepers together for the back corner of the block. It is about 6m from the Veg patch and 3m to the Greenhouse. We will have to finish this off with some screening on the fence and some pebbles.

So here we are... we wait a few more days before we can open the hive, meanwhile I am out there each day checking on the activity. Lots of comings and goings with legs full of pollen and hopefully nectar. I hope too the queen is busy laying to replace those tired ladies who only live for 4-6 weeks. We eagerly await to see what activity is going on. I can't wait, I will def try and take some photos when we open the hive! Oh and no stings .. yet... they are very civilised so far.

A few of many bee facts

A beehive contains 10,000 to 60,000 bees
There is only one reproductive, the queen, in each hive and she lives up to 3-4 years
The queen can lay from 1500 to 3000 eggs per day
Man's first alcoholic beverage, Mead is a wine made with honey
All the bees in the hive are female except the drones
And the drones, the male bee make up about 1/4 of 1% of the hive population
They forage as far as 6kms from the hive
Most importanly bee pollination is vital to us and our planet.... they maintain the variety of fruits and crops we all enjoy!

And on a less exciting note the potatoes are kicking along in the greenhouse, I can't fill those bags anymore so let them grow and flower!

Happy Potato Bags growing

Oh soo much Celery..

2010-09-10T15:48:00.000+10:00

Ok I may have planted quite a few more celery plants than we needed... With more growing in the patch I needed to get busy with it.

I did make an awesome cream of celery soup though. Another idea my mum uses which is lovely is boil it and mix it into your potato mash.

Cream of Celery Soup

20-30g of butte
5 cups of chopped celery
1 large leek sliced
2 rashers of bacon chopped
1.2L of hot water
4 tsp of veg stock
200ml of light cream
chopped chives (from the garden of course!)

No need to add salt to this dish, there is enough in the butter, bacon and stock... the boiled down celery will also make it even saltier!

Melt the butter, fry the bacon and leek until the leeks are soft and clear looking.
Add the hot water and stock powder
Add the celery and bring to the boil
Cook until the celery is soft (I cooked them on a slow boil for about an hour)
Process with a blender (if you want super smooth soup, sieve the liquid through a strainer)
Add the cream and bring to the boil again, then simmer for 5mins
Serve with chopped chives

Yum! smooth, creamy and tasty
Serves: Makes a few bowls and some.

My Heirloom Beets in the Mix

2010-09-10T15:44:00.003+10:00

My tasty beets in the mix, got to love a colourful salad, to make us all feel a little more vibrant!

Roasted Beetroot and Walnut Salad

3 large beetroots
100g walnut kernels
60ml (1/4 cup) red wine vinegar
60ml (1/4 cup) extra virgin olive oil
20g of Goat Cheese broken into pieces
1 tsp ground cumin
1 large orange (juice half of it - keep the other half and chop into segments)
A few handfulls of mixed salad leaves

Preheat oven to 200°C. Wrap each beetroot bulb in foil. Place on a baking tray. Bake for 1 hour or until tender when pierced with a skewer. Set aside to cool slightly. Wearing rubber gloves to avoid staining your hands, peel the beetroot. Cut into 3cm pieces.
Meanwhile, heat a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the walnuts and cook, stirring often, for 1 minute or until aromatic - set aside, place in serving bowl.
Whisk the vinegar, oil, orange juice and cumin in a jug. Season with salt and pepper. Use a zester to remove about 5-6 pieces of the rind from orange. (remove white pith from the rind. Cut the rind into very thin strips.)
Add salad leaves, cheese, beetroot and dressing to the walnuts.
Add zest and orange segments. Gently toss to combine. Cover and set aside to develop the flavours.

Serves: about 4-6.. well enough

Fully hydrated and plumped up!

2010-09-08T13:59:00.001+10:00

Melbourne’s dams have banked 24 billion litres in the past week... Most of the rivers in the state are under flood warning. Major flooding all over the north east of the state and even us city dwellers have been hit with 30mm on average in just a couple of days.

The patch is booming...fully hydrated, plumped up! Coincidently we have just finished putting in our water tank. A 3000L slimline next to our garage. We have been away for a week in sunny QLD helping a friend do some renovations so I really noticed the change the recent down pour has made and some 'making room' needed to be made, a little mini harvest!

Our new water tank

Super green after all the rain!.. Carrots, Celery, Leeks, Broad Beans, Garlic, Beets, Radish, Chard, Cabbage, Onion, Borage

Blue Borage Herb, which can be used in drinks. I just wanted to see how they grew! They are also apparently good for bees to help make tasty honey.

I've recently brought a book on seed saving, I think we should make the effort to be as self sufficient as possible, besides the saving on buying seeds - I am going to eagerly try and get reading so I can work out what I need to do for my flowering spring onions.

Spring Onion Flower - I hope to collect these seeds and keep for next season, I will journal my seed saving experiments along the way.

I am so thrilled to see the bees today buzzing around all of my broad beans. We are almost ready to get our hive, I am soo excited as this Sunday we finish the second half of our beekeeping course. Equipment we must buy now and register ourselves for a 'swarm'.. It is the start of the season and I just can't wait. I know that Mat will be super excited to get out there in his suit.. anything for a dress up!

Getting right into the broad bean flowers which are now starting to form pods

In the greenhouse, the potatoes have all sprouted and I am almost at the top of the bag with mulch, finally! It has been a constant job everyday covering up the new shoots - well almost, sometimes every second. Today was a big job as I had left them for 6 days. I hope to have a full bag of yummy taties which will supply us for a couple of months I am hoping. We'll see if the fruit of my labour pays off.

Almost full!

Some fruits of my work.. Celery, Beets (heirloom, white and red x 2, Black Spanish Radish and Carrots (finally growing straight)

New beginnings..

2010-08-11T10:41:00.001+10:00

I have been pondering about a visit from a cousin of mine. A welcomed visit for sure as last time we crossed paths his life as well as mine was very different. It was so lovely to see him back on track and on 'his' journey.

It got me thinking though every life form comes to an end at some stage, during ones life there are also cycles and stages of growth and change. Like seedlings, we all start out as babies ....we all grow, given a decent environment and although sometimes we take different paths than what was intended for us.. cycles start and continue until we recognise them and are willing to learn from them. Sometimes like a neglected plant, ticking along, struggling to survive... but it tries. Its intended purpose is to grow, change and fruit.. like us... No matter what we try to do to our lives, no matter what path we find ourselves on, we all have a purpose.. the universe has intent for each and every one of us. It is just up to us to embrace it!

In the greenhouse the potatoes are sprouting, after eagerly watching them for the last few weeks. I have been covering them up with compost as I see them come through. Some have come up earlier than others which means I have odd shaped mounds in my bags which is slightly annoying because they are not evenly filled though I am sure I will be happy with the end results.

Here we come Potato action!

In the patch there has been a little of 'out with the old and in with some temporaries'. Our capsicum finally came out after making it through most of winter. It braved the frost and cold and on its last legs was still fruiting!

The last of our Capsicums

I transplanted most of the broccoli in the greenhouse in the patch as they really filled up the pots quickly and were already starting to flower even though they were only 30-40cms tall. So I have given them some more room to spread their legs. The broad beans are still flowering which is lovely to bring some colour to the patch in winter and as a bonus the butterflies have been staying away! Love the fact that they think there are 'others' there and leave us alone... they think the flowers are other butterflies!

Broad Beans almost as tall as me I am told..I think I am taller

Our Winter patch

Salami Making, Bees and Potatoes in Bags

2010-07-05T18:22:00.001+10:00

Yay for some sunshine today - thankfully! I don't know about you but this weather is getting to me, I suppose we are just not used to the winter weather I know I remembered braving as a child happily.. the past few years though winter hasn't been quite as cold, perhaps I have just become used to a couple more degrees but this winter... brrrr icy.

Despite the cold we had quite the productive weekend. We got to join in on a family tradition of Italian Salami making with some friends. I was super excited to see the generations of one family get together to process 85kgs of pork. What I can tell you is that you combine 30g of salt per 1kg of pork, the pork used is from the shoulder and the leg... mixed with some wine, herbs including fennel and pepper and chili. They used a combination of sheep intestine and when that ran out some synthetic skins were used. The intestines were soaked and cleaned the day prior in water with lemons and oranges. A machine which minces the chopped meat was used to make the sausages, though I was happy to see an old school hand mincer as well. Now we have 5kg of salami hanging in our shed - 2 weeks and they should be ready - cross fingers. Thanks to Gino and all the family of Nicola and Leo for having us!.

Home made Salami, now being cured.

We met a lovely man Bob, from Bob's Beekeeping in Eltham who kindly showed us his bee hive and gave us a run through on what you need to do to keep them- really fascinating, well the bees certainly are and I loved seeing Bob get excited about his bees . It was nice to hear that all that I had read was pretty much true, which gave me some confidence in dealing with looking after them. To my surprise they were more active than what I thought for winter but I suppose active will be when you have 30,000 workers coming and going over spring and summer.. Off to join a club and register to get a swarm will be our next step. I can't wait to get one of those suits too...!

The patch and greenhouse are kicking along. Broccoli a plenty in the greenhouse and the patch has been fruitful too, with loads less pests due to the lucky combination I have managed to plant this time.

Broccoli in the patch

Broccoli we ate last night

My girlfriend Sandy and I potted out our potatoes in bags today. I got these from the Diggers club, I didn't want to put these in the ground as they are heavy leachers of nutrients from the soil. 3 years will have to pass before it is good for anything to grow in. So I brought some potato bags (12) and a gourmet mix of potatoes - King Edward, Lustre, Nicola, Kipfler, Pink Eye and Cranberry Red. We put some pea straw in the bottom and then compost to approx 10cm from the bottom and placed 4 potatoes in each bag. We'll see how I go with these.

A gourmet mix of potatoes - King Edward, Lustre, Nicola, Kipfler, Pink Eye and Cranberry Red

Bag with pea straw and compost

Playing in the Greenhouse

2010-06-08T18:16:00.001+10:00

I don't know how game most of you are to get outside in a Melbourne Winter but I must confess that 15 degree days make it hard to get out there rather than gazing out the window from the comfy warmth with a cup of tea in hand. I rug up and brave that chill in the air anyhow for a few hours today at least the warmth of the greenhouse makes it a treat to work in.

Today I have painted in pots a few Raspberries which were kindly given to me yesterday after visiting some friends in Fairfield - thank you very much to Jan and Johanna for the gifts, I am quite chuffed. Johanna sweetly gave me about 5 canes of two types - one which fruits in Summer and another which fruits in Autumn from their garden. Not sure where I will put them in the garden yet but for now I will nurse them in the Greenhouse. I blended some compost and organic soil mix.

I also potted a Blueberry I had in a small pot and dug up the Passionfruit to see if I could save it from continually being eaten by the Earwig army.

Here are my lovely Raspberries :)

About 15 Broccoli growing without holes in the leaves for once!

Tomato plants in flower x 2

Broccoli, Cabbage, Tomato, Brussel Sprout, Raspberry, Chilli and Basil

30,000 strong 'Our right to know' petition presented

2010-05-24T10:01:00.001+10:00

Over 30,000 people signed the petition calling for GE food to be labelled, which was presented to government by celebrity chef, Andrew McConnell, in Melbourne.

Before the public consultations, the Federal Government had GE marked as only a minor issue for their expert panel to consider as part of this year's review of Australia's food labelling laws. The panel's consultation paper devoted just one line to GE.

By the time the public submissions had closed, the panel had received around 6,000 submissions and the majority were on GE. Add to this over 30,000 signatures from consumers and a GM-Free charter signed by 200 of Australia's leading chefs, and it would be fair to say that demand for GE labelling emerged as one of the major issues of the food labelling review.

The petition will be kept open until the panel reports back and government makes their decision, so if you haven't visited the site, there's still time.

Our Greenhouse.. experimenting in and out of the patch

2010-05-23T19:23:00.000+10:00

We've recently added a Greenhouse to our backyard so we can eventually use it for our Aquaponics set up. After a many weeks of a couple of hours here and there, we finally got it all together. We brought it on ebay from a seller called Bloom room. They have loads of auctions on their new self assembly kits.

While I have still been reading and researching, which Aquaponic system, what tanks to buy meanwhile my numerous seedlings are needing a home, we've decided to use it as a greenhouse for all our winter veg for the time being. In the patch they fight with the white butterfly, getting eaten alive by those hatching larvae I have learnt to hate so much. We'll see how they go in the Greenhouse vs. the randoms I have planted in the patch.

So what I have done today is planted my seedlings out in pots, loads of Broccoli, Cabbage, Brussel Sprouts as well as 4 or 5 surprise Tomato Plants that have self seeded in the patch from last season which I thought I would bring indoors to see if we can grow them in winter this year in the greenhouse.
I will post a picture tomorrow of the seedlings and the completed greenhouse :)

Nad and Phil laying edging and weed mat on the base.

We partly assembled the main frame of the greenhouse then put it in place.

Scoria was laid in the bottom, then a base of sand which we had left over from the path around the vegetable patch which was compacted.

Help Make Sustainable Food Choices I Say..

2010-05-04T11:18:00.003+10:00

Today I logged in to my Diggers club account to look at buying some Potato bags and I noticed a free guide there I would like to share. GM Crops have always worried me, sure we want to experiment as human beings but I believe people should have the right to choose natural foods that are free of genetic modification.

Those of you who buy big brands are in my mind risk taking. We have no knowledge about the long term side effects on our bodies and environment from consuming GM food sources. I've seen documentaries on Monsanto and the big GM Debate, creating sterile seeds, messing with natures cycle....it doesn't look good.

Locally produced GE Canola is entering our food supply. Did you know that last year harvested GE canola was crushed for oil for the first time. Canola accounts for half the edible oil stock in Australia and is found in a range of everyday foods from margarine and vegetable oil to ice-cream, baby-food and breads.

Other GE contamination risks are ingredients derived from imported GE soy and corn which may be found in many processed foods like baked goods, flours, starches, sauces, sweets, soft drinks, lecithin and sausage skins, Soy alone can be found in 60% of all processed food.

Australia’s food labelling laws are extremely lax, which means that Australians are eating GE-foods without knowing it. But you can say no to taking this risk!

The Truefood Guide is your guide to avoiding genetically-engineered (GE) food -True Food Guide
Keep genetically engineered crops out of Australian soil and our food. Get out there friends and plant your heirloom seeds

The hump.... updates

2010-05-02T17:41:00.001+10:00

It has been dull and bleak all day. I've spent some of my time today snapping pictures to make me feel a little better. The cold weather has given me the hump, a cold and not alot energy to do much other than wonder outside to check on things and potter when I feel I have enough power to.

Strawberry Temptation

I have a few pots with Strawberries - Nellie Kelly and Temptation, lucky for me being the only Strawberry eater in the household I say. I probably pic half a dozen a week off them at the moment, which makes for a delightful garden treat while working.

This bed is doing well, I have planted some Heirloom Beets which I have been planting more of when I pull ready ones up. They are a mix of beautiful, reds, orange and white. Also we have some Leeks growing which were put in about 2 months ago, already we have used a couple which shot ahead of the rest with the warmer weather we've had. A couple of Basil plants and Beans which are hanging in there. Some Onions - Barletta, All Seasons Carrots, Celery, Spring Onion, Black Spanish Radish, Broccoli, Garlic and Radicchio - which is a Italian salad green. I have had no invaders in this bed at all, a very pleasing combination.

Over with the Broad Beans I have planted some more Radicchio leaves which have taken off, these were planted by seed when I put the beans in. If you like your bitter greens they are awesome in flavour and nothing seems to bother them.

Radicchio - Red Verona 7 weeks from seedling

Brrrrrr tis cold out there...

2010-05-02T12:51:00.000+10:00

The cooler weather has officially arrived in Melbourne, including the flu/colds and all the nasty lurgy's that come along with it. Most people dislike the weather here but I don't .. I like the contrast and It certainly does give one something to look forward to. We have had an unusually warm April, which threw the patch into some confusion over the last month - the Eggplant and Capsicum kept kicking on and my Beans are still trying to hang in there but I can see their demise now that the 'real' cool is amongt us.

Broad Bean update: 7 weeks in and the broad beans are now starting to flower - they have grown to about 30-50cm in height and nothing at all has annoyed them in the way of pests which is pleasing - seeing I spend most of my time picking off the larvae from those dam white butterflies everywhere else. It is nice to have some plants that need almost no attention.

My Mosaic.. Project Madness

2010-04-12T19:07:00.000+10:00

Mosaic has always been a hobby I have enjoyed over the past 10+ years, I have created all things from plates, mirrors, vases, pots to this final piece on our initially ugly backyard wall. I don't know where this started for me because I don't remember anyone in my family doing mosaic when I was a child. Though art and craft has always been prominent with the females in my family, I didn't really do alot of it, just one off projects..I have I must admit always been a keen painter and drawer. I do recall my grandmothers both keen seamstresses, making tapestries and embroidery. My mother sewing making alot of clothing for everyone in the family and now who also now does tiled mosaic house numbers for everyone she knows. Aunty Hilda who I remember doing Leathercraft making handbags and wallets who now also mosaics. Aunty Jill who would paint amazing native flowers and also transform smooth rocks into animal creations stroke by stroke with her paintbrush. My cousin Leah also was especially crafty, her thing was sewing, patchwork and appliqué. Also my sister a keen artist, who has a great knack of just putting it all together clothing/colour wise (she gets this from our mum.. the 'amazing coordinator'). Being creative has been a huge influence all round now I think about it.

Tiles were not especially one of those things I ever liked...perhaps that is the point, smashing them into pieces brings much joy! My father has a tile obsession and just quietly my mum does too. He has successfully tiled almost all of our family home, from the floors (I do remember carpet at one point) to the walls (yes at least a quarter of the way up the wall), edging on the cornice, outside floors, kitchen bench and all surrounds and even a water feature which resides in the carport covered in tiles. I know the Spanish love their tiles but from memory I always disliked the outings to discounted tile shops in search for a bargain on some imported Spanish or Italian tiles which my father would buy, even when we didn't have a spare place for them.

When I started out with this project I was a tad ambitious I have to admit so over the past year I have stopped and started this project .. a little bit by little bit when the sun was shining and I was feeling creative and or needed what I would call 'therapy'... just me, tiles and the wall. Lots of things happened when I think back from the start to the end of this project. It's great really to look at it now almost finished and contemplate all the things that happened. I can recall sections of work and what I was thinking or feeling at the time.. nice in a way. Some happy and some sad, to name a few:

2 friends and 1 cousin were married, past teenage haunts to deal with, i said goodbye to 2 friends, my mum was diagnosed and treated for breast cancer, lovely travels to bali (twice) and mini breaks, my partner lost his dad, another friend lost his dad to motor neuron disease, our veggie patch is born, birth of many many friends babies, loads of mother-in-law troubles, my partner's brother got engaged, we became godparents, my baby sister turned 21 plus became a mum and i became an aunty for the first time.. these are just some things that come to mind...

I started out with painting the wall with some textured paint I got from Bunnings, then did a basic outline of the oval when I realised it was going to cost me too much to paint the whole dam thing. So instead of words now I will show you the evolution of this project. It is 'almost' finished.. the wall still needs more cleaning and a few final pieces which I will post as soon as it is officially completed.

Not a good pic but 'the ugly' and terribly uneven wall..

The clouds are in, I realise at this point that this is going to take a long time..

A little background, outline and sky

The tree begins.. happy days ..

more sky, background and the tree outline is done! finally onto the leaves...momentus

My Mt Fuji...now I start to get excited and argue with fellow helpers and onlookers that IT IS HALF DONE... madness starts to set in.. yellow is offically making me sick..

white tiles more white tiles... the back ground mountains are in..

The yellow is almost done, more and more white to go

Final pieces of white..

Finally the tiling is complete, I am now relieved and happy I no longer have to make cement, nor smash tiles...

Another shot now all we have to do is get grouting..

Onto the black grout

And more

Grouting of the mountain is finished

The white grouting... about 6kgs of grout applied..

All grouted, still some cleaning to be done but it is almost complete.. I am now tired but content :)

Those Bloody Beetroots..

2010-04-04T01:00:00.000+11:00

Not like the Italian electronica and dance music duo. I mean those lovely beets you can grow in your patch. I just love beetroot - but it always miffs me, what to do with it other than salad or roasted. Nothing springs to mind that is appertising other than maybe dip.

I had never grown them and to be honest I found them very easy to grow especially from seedlings as well as seed. In fact you can also use the seedlings that you need to thin out in salads too, baby beet leaves.. yum. Pests too leave them alone, but make sure you have your beet covered in soil or mulch, because when they grow they really push up and expose themselves so to speak.. best keep it covered up like a real lady. Otherwise insects bury in and make holes in your otherwise perfect beets.

Beetroot about 12 weeks old

These are the initial beets I steamed way too long..

For my first time I planted a combination of seedlings, Globe beets brought from my local garden centre and seed I purchased from Diggers Club. My first beets after about 12weeks from seedling were ok, there were a few holes but in all large and healthy looking. I went to steam them immediately as I wanted to chill them to replicate a salad I like from a restaurant we know, love and work with in Melbourne. Cafe e' Cuinca... I had heard they take a while to steam.. indeed they do. Also when cutting back the leaves leave about 5cms of the stalk so they don't bleed out too much and make loads of mess.

After about and hour or maybe sooo.. sitting there checking them every so often to see how they were going a smell surfaced.. Eww, dinner otherwise was smelling great but the water had all boiled dry in the saucepan.. dam.., everything stunk of some awful smell, I thought the teflon in the pot had burn't dry but no later to discover it was just the smell of the beetroots... and the juices boiled dry. I had to throw them all out and wait for the day that some more were ready for the picking :( very upset.

So about 3 weeks later another beet has finally grown to size to make the salad I had hoped for. It was delightful, yummy indeed. I wait to harvest some more and think of some other things to do with them.

My Beetroot salad: Wild Rocket and Mizuna leaves from the patch, drizzled with Olive Oil and Balsamic with crumbled Fetta Cheese