NEWSLETTER JUNE 2013

CASINO COMMUNITY GARDEN

Monthly Newsletter #4 Issued June 2013

Vegetable Planting Guide by Gardening Australia

Beetroot, Broad beans, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celeriac, Celery, Chicory, Chives, Collards, Endive, Garlic, Kale, Kohlrabi, Lettuce, Mustard greens, Onions, Parsley, Peas, Radish, Rocket,Shallots, Silverbeet, Snow Peas.
ABC Vegie Guide
Website advises whether to plant in garden or seed trays and time until harvest.

June in your patch (North from Coffs Harbour)

•  Still time to plant winter vegies including potatoes, and fruit trees.
• Time to feed your garden with a seaweed tea, or any low environmental impact liquid fertiliser, perfect for giving them a kick start as they establish.  Apply to soil early in the morning and in the concentrations mentioned on the packet.
• Plant flowers - marigolds, lupins, pansies, violas, phlox, verbena and lavender for colour and to attract beneficial insects.
• Consider a green manure crop for an overworked patch. Try millet, oats, lupins or field peas.
• Water with deep drink first thing in the morning a couple of times a week.
• Always check soil moisture before watering at this time of year.
• Top up mulch on your vegie patches, herb gardens and ornamental beds for weed suppression to about 7cm.  Keep mulch clear of plant stems... especiallly young seedlings.  Choose a sustainable, low environmental impact mulch, one that will enrich your soil as it breaks down.
• Weeding is an awesome job to do at this time of year.  Cut down the competition between your plants and weeds, and tidy up your patch.  It may sound tedious, but it's incredibly rewarding.

Sustainable Gardening  here

Around Casino Community Garden this Month

Every Tuesday from 8.30am: Join in at the garden for hoeing, weeding and general garden activities, planting still going on.

Every Wednesday 12 noon: Lunch gatherings every week at the garden - come on down at noon and have a bite to eat, a cuppa and a chat to the regulars.... we often talk about good things like good food, gardening and all things healthy living.....

We currently have a regular gardener. Come along and say hello to Mark on Tuesday or Wednesday morning, and see all that is going on at the garden.

Photo by Heather Day

May Garden Clinic

Our May Garden Clinic was held under the banner of a regional campaign by Sustain Northern Rivers - Think Global - Eat Local.

It was a glorious, sundrenched Autumn day and the garden looked very inviting.

Speakers kept our interest and were well-informed on their topics.  We enjoyed a generous BBQ lunch, tea and coffee, platters of fruit, homemade damper and rosella jam, fruit cake and jamdrops.

Peter Cotterill - Reducing Waste and Recycling

Peter kicked off the speaking program with his talk on reducing waste and recycling, and answered 

our questions.  He reminded us to consider what we purchase and avoid buying unnecessarily to reduce waste, reuse, recycle and dispose thoughtfully.

Peter outlined RVC services and discussed landfills and pointed out items free to dispose of, which many were not aware of.  He filled us in on RVC's future plans concerning waste and services available.

Eddie Handford - Bees

Eddie spoke about bees being killed out by a mite which is a major pest, and small hive bees.  Eddie demonstrated a trap to catch them which he invented, which was accepted in the industry.  Some pesticides are also taking a big toll on bees and are banned in Europe.

We learnt about the life cycle of bees and why they swarm and many interesting facts.

If you get stung by a bee, scratch out the sting with a fingernail.

Don't Squeeze.

Shirley Wheatley - Container Gardening

 Shirley's talk on Container Gardening was previously given at the "Living on the Line" session at the garden in April with full story in our May Newsletter.

Shirley demonstrated a collection of re-usable items, and a tip -new to many - was planting the stump of celery from the greengrocer for ongoing celery in your container or garden.

In the photo, Shirley is showing us the garlic started in toilet rolls, ready to replant.

Shirley also brought along several books available at the library, to show us. There is a wealth of information available locally.

Keith Day - Home Irrigation

Keith pointed out a concern to many of us, that we waste water hosing our gardens and often we are not available to water at the best time of day.  Keith outlined a solution that is not difficult to implement.

It is a system that turns on and off automatically and directs water where required and can be set up for about $75 for the average vegetable garden, or we can use soaker hoses for much less.

He showed us what we need to purchase and how it all fits together, easily doable by the home handyman.

Words and photos May Garden Clinic Jan Brine

Around the Garden

Nasturtiums

They're tasty additions to salads, great ground cover, pest controllers, attract beneficial pollinators, make cheerful cut flowers and are also a great medicinal plant.

They attract predatory wasps which attack caterpillars, deter pumpkin beetles and cabbage whites if grown next to brassicas and act as a catch plant for aphids (preferred meal for them apparently). They are a great companion plant and great living mulch.

Unripe nasturtium seeds can be used as a caper substitute - pour freshly boiled vinegar over a tightly packed jar of the freshly picked seeds.

More at Brisbane Local Food

Rocket (Arugula/ Rucola in overseas recipes)

As with other greens, rocket is very low calorie and has many vital phytochemicals, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals beneficial for health.

It is a quick growing crop, preferring well-drained, fertile soil and full sun to flourish.  In general rocket grows to about half a metre in height with creamy-white colour edible flowers.

Sow regularly for rocket all year.  Keep well watered in well drained ground.  Will go to flower rapidly in hot dry weather.  Harvest by picking off the leaves as required.

Source: various Google

Grow Citrus Trees in Pots

No longer do you need a big old-fashioned backyard to have citrus on hand.  With new dwarf varieties, you can grow productive citrus trees in pots even on a sunny balcony.

Lots a' Lemons and Dwarf Eureka,  both lemons, suit pots.  For a small lime try Dwarf Tahitian or one of the Australian native limes.  Citrus splitzers are multi-grafted citrus with both lime and lemons (and other combinations) on one plant and are ideal for large pots.  Mandarins, cumquats and calamondins also make good potted plants.  As citrus are productive in Winter there is a good range available now at the nursery.

To get the most from your potted citrus, give it regular care and attention.   One thing thatis essential is sunlight.  Citrus need full sun which means placing them in the sunniest part of your garden or balcony.  As they fruit during Winter, make sure the spot is sunny in Winter.

Getting Started

Select a large pot to grow your citrus and put the pot into its final position before you beginto fill it with potting mix.  Pots that are suitable must have several large drainage holes in their base and be elevated slightly off the ground on pot feet or bricks.  Buy a good quality potting mix and make sure you have enough potting mix to fill the pot to within 4cm of the rim (to allow space for watering).  For a large pot - that is one that is over 40cm in diameter - you'll need several bags of potting mix.  Modern potting mixes provide good drainage, but for a plant that's going to be in a large pot for a long time it is best to add about 10 percent soil to the potting mix, combining it well.  This  prevents the mix from slumping - that is diminishing in the pot so the plant is sitting well below the top of the pot.  Water the plant in well, firming it in the potting mix.

On-going Care

Potted citrus need to be watered two to three times a week. In very hot or windy weather, particularly if this type of weather occurs when your tree is in flower or forming small fruit, it may need daily watering.  Always make sure the water soaks into the potting mix and doesn't simply run through without soaking in.  Citrus also need to be well nourished.  The best way to provide all the nutrients they need is to use complete citrus food.  This should be applied in small amounts once a month from August to mid Autumn.  Water the pot well when applying any fertiliser.  To avoid pest problems, regularly spray new growth with horticultural spray oil such as PestOil.  This treatment controls citrus leaf miner and aphids along with sap suckers like spined citrus bugs.

Citrus trees in pots

By Jennifer Stackhouse

Recipe Corner

Choko Pickles

2 kg chokos

3 large onions

2 cups sugar

1 litre vinegar

1 heaped dessertspoon each turmeric, mustard, curry powder

3 heaped tablespoons of plain flour

2 tablespoons salt.

Peel and dice chokos, peel and slice onions, put in plastic ontainer, sprinkle with salt and let stand overnight.  Next morning strain liquid off.

Put chokos and onions on to cook with vinegar and sugar (15 - 20 minutes).

Mix the dry ingredients together with vinegar (you may need a little extra for this), add to choko mixture and boil for 15 - 20 minutes.

Bottle while hot.

Other combinations of vegetables can be used such as cauliflower, green tomatoes, cucumbers, beans to make up 2kg.

If preferred, less sugar can be used as this is quite sweet - maybe one cup!

Choko Chutney (I'm sure 2013 is the year of the Choko)

10 fair-sized chokos

2 large onions

4 Granny Smith apples 

1/2 red and 1/2 green capsicum and a little ginger, fresh or crystallised  (can be added)

1 litre vinegar (reserve a little of this to mix the dry ingredients)

200g sultanas

1 dessertspoon mustard

1 dessertspoon curry powder

1 tablespoon turmeric

3 tablespoons plain flour

4 cups sugar (maybe less could be used, depends on your taste, seems a lot!)

Cut chokos and onions rather small, cover with cold water and a handful of salt.  Boil until soft, drain off water, add vinegar, sultanas, capsicum and sugar and boil for 10 minutes.  Mix remaining dry ingredients with reserved vinegar.  Stir into choko mix, boil 10 minutes to cook the flour, stir occasionally.   Bottle while hot, this chutney will keep well.

Thanks to Shirley Wheatley for these recipes 

Moist Boiled Fruit Cake

Place following in medium saucepan

1 x 425 g mango slices in natural juice, or any tin fruit

500g mixed fruit

1/2 cup water

Spices (cinnamon, mixed spice etc to taste)

Bring to very gentle boil on stove top hot plate for a minute or so.

Add 1 flat teaspoon bi-carb soda, it will froth up.   Allow to cool.

Later add 1 and 1/2 cups Self Raising flour 

2 beaten eggs (or 3 small)

Mix through and spoon into medium springform cake tin lied with baking paper.

Bake in moderate oven for 1 hour,  Test with skewer to see if cooked, should be just drry.

Notes: 

This is a very forgiving recipe, substitute port, sherry etc for some of the liquid, add walnuts, almonds, ginger, glace cherries, mixed peel, etc...as liked.

Makes a good Christmas Cake decorated with slivered almonds.

If you are thinking of making gluten free, check the label of the Mixed Fruit as many contain wheat.

If you only have the 375g dried mixed fruit, it still works.  Or buy the 1kg mixed fruit and use half, and the 800g tin mango in natural juice and use half and freeze remainder for next time.

 Words and photo Jan Brine

______________________

Casino Community Garden

A Project of the Casino Neighbourhood Centre

Coordinator - Jo Nemeth   Phone 6662 5435

Email: coordinator.cdp@cnci.org.au

Weekly Garden Gatherings -

Tuesdays from 8.30am and Wednesdays at noon 

for a free lunch - all welcome!

______________________

NEWSLETTER MAY 2013

CASINO COMMUNITY GARDEN

Monthly Newsletter #3 Issued May 2013

Vegetable Planting Guide by Gardening Australia

ABC Vegie Guide

On website, click on subtropical, then vegetable, for description

Broad beans, burdock, cabbage (loose and tight headed), carrots, cauliflower, chicory, chives, collards, endive, garlic, huauzontle, Jerusalem artichoke, kohlrabi,lettuce, mangle-wurzel, mitzuna, mustard greens, oregano, pak choy, bok choy etc, parsley, peas and snow peas, radish, rocket, salsify, silverbeet, spinach, turnips/swedes.

Sustain Food has a Northern Rivers annual chart we can print.

May in your patch (North from Coffs Harbour)

• Time to plant winter wonders - leeks, beetroot, celery, lettuce, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, turnips, onions, kale, kohlrabi, spinach and silverbeet.
• Check out the herbs - lemon grass, spring onions, chamomile, thyme, mint, rosemary and lemon balm, Try lemon balm in a pot around the outdoor area. It will stop it spreading and keep mozzies away!
• Pretty up your patch with these flowers - marigolds, lupins, pansies, cornflowers, violas, snapdragons, stock, ageratum, verbena and lavender.  Growing these flowers will add colour and interest and attract beneficial insects.
• Feed your plants with a seaweed tea, especially the new seedlings.
• Keep up the weeding, mulching and watering when needed. 

Full details of May in your patch.
 More and to sign up for the Sustainable Gardening Newsletter here

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Around Casino Community Garden this Month

Every Tuesday from 8.30am: Join in at the garden for hoeing, weeding and general garden activities, planting still going on.

Every Wednesday 12 noon: Lunch gatherings every week at the garden - come on down at noon and have a bite to eat, a cuppa and a chat to the regulars.... we often talk about good things like good food, gardening and all things healthy living.....

  THINK GLOBAL - EAT LOCAL EVENT

Saturday 18th May Garden Clinic 10am - 2pm Free Admission

Topics:       
Bees in your garden - Eddie Handford

Home Garden Irrigation - Keith Day

Container Gardening - Shirley Wheatley

Recycling - Peter Cotterill (RVC) 

Sausage Sizzle Lunch provided (gold coin  donation appreciated) and we'll have the billy on. Bring your mug if you're not keen on a paper cup.   

And if you have a plant you can't identify, or you would like to chat over a problem in your garden, our gardeners may be able to help with your query.

Exciting News!

Casino Community Garden now on Facebook 

(works if you are already on FB, otherwise you will be asked to sign up)

Any ideas for topics for the Newsletter, please bring along to the garden

Wednesday lunchtimes. 

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Growing Your Own Food Demonstration  

By Shirley Wheatley at the "Living on the Line" session (run by On Track) at the Casino Community Garden on Thursday 18th April - with some editing by Jan Brine.

I've been given the honour of sharing my knowledge, through experience, of growing your own vegies, mainly in containers. 

I've been doing it for years, but in this day and age of sustainability, (the current buzz word), it has become trendy, and in order to feed ourselves, absolutely necessary.

Container growing is less hard work as it cuts out digging, and if you elevate the containers it cuts out bending.  It gives you a fair bit of control over the weather too, pots drain well, they can be shifted around, either into the best sunny position, or if they need protection from the hot sun just move them to a shady spot.  It is ideal for people who live in units, you only need a spot on a balcony for a few pots, and for people who rent, the containers of plants can be taken to a new address as easily as the furniture.

Any container that will hold soil is useable, but of course, the larger you want the plant to grow the larger the container you need.  Herbs can be grown in small pots. Herbs are so handy for your culinary needs, and they are easy to replace as the need arises.

Foam vegie boxes are ideal and are available from the supermarket or the fruit shop for free. Recycle is the name of the game.

I use black plastic growing bags and any thing I can get my hands on.  I'll grow parsnips in the deepest one. Lettuce and Asian greens are suited to the shallower boxes. Potatoes can be grown in a jute bag - you'd put two or three potatoes in a bag, acording to its size.  I really enjoyed growing mushrooms in a bag and a box in the pantry.

You'll need a good potting mix. I buy mine from Aldi, and I'm very happy with the quality - they don't always have it so I stock up when they do. A 22 litre bag is about four dollars.  As I age I'm happy with the size because I have to lift it. And that's heavy enough.

Phil Dudman says you can make your own potting mix. You need a nine litre bucket and a wheel- barrrow or something large enough to mix it in, two buckets of potting mix, one bucket of garden compost, some coir peat (I missed the amount but I would perhaps use one brick), wet it and mix it in (it's a great sustainable product), and using a 440g empty baked bean tin (more recycling), add two tins of chicken manure, like dynamic lifter (he's not allowed to say that on ABC radio) and one tin of trace elements and mix it all together.

Many years ago when I was a farmer I just dug up some soil and added lots of cow manure to it, it was wonderful.  If you have access to animal manure I still believe it's the best.

You can buy advanced plants or seedlings from the nursery or you can grow from seed. Seed raising can be done in margarine containers, keep the soil damp in a sunny position and they'll germinate in no time.

Phil Dudman has a top ten favourite list for pots:

1. Salad greens (lettuce, rocket mizuna etc)
2. Asian greens (pak choy, bok choy, tatsoi etc)
3. Spinach (English sspinach and silverbeet)
4. Roots (radish, beetroot, turnip)
5. Kale
6. Spring onion
7. Bush bean
8. Tomato and eggplant
9. Capsicum
10. Potato.

Don't forget to grow your herbs and rocket -always useful and easy to grow.  There are edible flowers like nasturtiums, calendulas, day lily and camomile.  Flowers and leaves are great in salads.  There's a great range of books on the topic at the Library, especially the Grass Roots Magazine.

I grow things all the time - there's a great sense of achievement and satisfaction, a gardener's therapy.  I have witnessed very young children picking a flower, sometimes just a dandelion, and I know of a lady at the end of her life whose dying wish was to be taken out into the garden to see the plants.

So how do you feel when you see flowers?  I get a great feeling, it doesn't matter if it's a prize-winning bloom you've grown, or whether it's a bud opening on a plant that's struggled against adverse weather conditions in your own garden.

I'd like to share with you the entry in the 'Friendship Book ' from Saturday March 2, 2013:
If, like our old friend Mary, you're getting a bit tired of the wind and rain this time of year often brings, then look forward to the Summer with these words from the second century written by Bishop Alexander,

"It takes God's weather to bring up God's flowers".

Pages 3 - 5

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What is Heirloom seed anyway?

The truth is that there is a fair amount of debate over what the term heirloom, in relation to seed, actually means, but lets start with three points that everyone agrees on first.

1) Heirloom seed must be open pollinated: Open pollinated varieties are plants that are pollinated by insects, birds, wind and other natural means.   They are more genetically diverse and if grown in isolation will produce seed that is 'true to type'.

2) Heirloom seed must be bred and stabilized using classic breeding practies.

3) No genetic modified seeds can be considered Heirloom.

So you have some seed that meets the above three points, is it Heirloom or isn't it?  Now is the part of the argument that is highly debated:

4) Heirloom seed needs to have been in existence for a long time, it's the actual length of time that is debated:

Some say seed needs to have originated over 50, others 100, years ago to be considered Heirloom. Others say before 1945 (end of WWII) or 1951 (beginning of widespread introduction of hybrid seeds).

To make all of this even more confusing some people use the term Heirloom seed in the literal sense

they simply mean a variety that has been nurtured and selected by a family, farm or small community over generations.

From The Seed Collection

Do we value Heirloom seeds and give them space in our gardens?

Page 6

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What is Permaculture? 

Permaculture is mainly a way to have an organic food garden that's stunningly beautiful, productive, and comes without any tedious garden work.... The term permaculture combines the words permanent and culture, or permanent and agriculture, and that is the first hint to what it's all about.  The philosophy behind permaculture was developed about thirty years ago in Australia.

Nobody digs and sows, plants and weeds, or sprays bugs in a forest.  Still, all those chores are taken care of somehow.  The forest grows and feeds its inhabitants.  If any task in your garden is an unpleasant chore then there is definitely a better way to do it or to eliminate it.  Nature has already developed a solution to every problem that you could possibly encounter in your garden.

Nature is also the ultimate recycler.  Everything goes round and round.  There is no such thing as 'waste'.  Everything is a resource.  And most importantly, it's sustainable.  It's something that works in the long run, not something that is based on inputs that will eventually run out, not something that creates waste and problems that will eventually upset the system.

The aim is to create systems that are ecologically sound and economically viable, which provide for their own needs, do not exploit or pollute, and are therefore sustainable in the long term.  Permaculture uses the inherent qualities of plants and animals combined with the natural characteristics of landscapes and structures to produce a life-supporting  system for city and country, using the smallest practical area.

If you think ahead ad design your permaculture garden right, it won't take much effort, it will mostly look after itself, and it will also be incredibly productive and beautiful and attractive to wildlife.

From What is permaculture 

Also see Zaytuna Farm at The Channon, home of the Permaculture Research Institute of Australia and featured in Kitchen Gardens International.

 Pic at Zaytuna Farm Kitchen Garden on Sunday 5 May, 2013 
(International Kitchen Garden Day)

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Recipe of the Month

Shirley's Delicious Rosella Jam

• Prepare Rosellas by taking the fleshy red outer husks off the seed.
• Cover seeds with water and boil for 30 to 45 minutes.
• Strain this water and reserve.  Discard seeds.
• Add the water to red husks and boil for 15 to 20 minutes until it looks cooked.
• Measure cooked Rosella mixture and add the same amount of sugar, cup for cup.
• Boil this new mixture for about 45 minutes.  This will reduce a bit and be about to jell.
• Test for jelling by putting about a teaspoon on a saucer and place in freezer.
• Test by tilting the saucer and if the top wrinkles it is ready to jell.
• If not ready to jell, boil a bit longer and test again.
• Bottle and seal.
  
                  ______________________

Casino Community Garden

A Project of the Casino Neighbourhood Centre

Coordinator—Jo Nemeth    Phone :  6662 5435

Email: coordinator.cdp@cnci.org.au

Weekly Garden Gatherings

Tuesdays from 8.30am and Wednesdays at noon 

for a free lunch - all welcome!  

 ______________________________

Page 8

NEWSLETTER APRIL 2013

CASINO COMMUNITY GARDEN

Monthly Musings for April 2013

Vegetable Planting Guide by Gardening Australia

ABC Vegie Guide

On website, click on subtropical, then vegetable, for description

Beetroot, broad beans, broccoli, burdock, cabbage (loose and tight headed), capsicum, carrots, cauliflower, chives, endive, garlic, huauzontle, Jerusalem artichoke, kale, collards, kohlrabi, leeks, mangle-wurzel, mitzuna, mustard greens, onions, oregano, pak choy, bok choy etc, parsley, peas and snow peas, radish, rocket,salsify, shallots, silverbeet, spinach, turnips/swedes.

Sustain Food has a Northern Rivers annual chart we can print.

April in your patch (North from Coffs Harbour)

• Great time to plant your leafy greens, carrots and potatoes.
• Plants still need feeding. A seaweed tea, or any low environmental impact liquid fertiliser, is perfect for giving them a kick start. Apply to the soil early in the morning.
• Renew the herb patch with coriander, parsley, lemon grass, chamomile and oregano.
• Put in some marigolds etc, to attract beneficial insects.
• Water first thing in the morning, with a deep drink a couple of times a week.
• Top up mulch on your vegie patches, herb gardens and ornamental beds, to 7cm, after watering, especially important for weed suppression.  Keep mulch clear of plant stems, especially seedlings.
• Keep up the weeding.  

For full details and to sign up  for the Sustainable Gardening Newsletter, go to:
Sustainable Gardening

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Around Casino Community Garden this Month

More help needed:   Anyone interested in being involved is invited to attend working bees on Tuesday moornings from 8.30am and/ or lunch 12 noon on Wednesdays.

Jo says:  "There are many different ways people can be involved from computer work to phoning around to track down bits and pieces we need and planting fruit trees, vegies and flowers to researching native bush tucker and building garden bed frames.

• We need someone to come and help look after our fruit trees (some are looking a little worse for wear) - any experts there?

• We hope to see work start on the tool shed which will be built with help from DIY ardware, and the tank stand should be going up.... Fingers crossed!"

Diary 

Every Wednesday: Lunch gatherings every week at the garden, come on down at noon and have a bite to eat, a cuppa and a chat to the regulars.... we often talk about good things like good food, gardening and all things healthy living.....

Saturday 6th April:  Naomi from ACE will be holding the first of four workshops - Gardening with Rhythms of the Moon (10am - 4pm) Cost to be advised.

Wednesday 18th April: 'Living on the Line' information session (put on by On-Track Community Programs) 10am to noon.  The garden group will be doing a brief presentation to the participants about gardening in containers.

New sign erected recently by RVC

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Community Garden Enjoys First Pizzas

The community was out in force to try the first pizzas to come out of the new pizza oven at the Community Garden on Saturday 16th March.

"We've been using the oven to boil the billy at our Wednesday lunches at the garden but this was our first time cooking pizzas" said Jo Nemeth, Community Development worker from the Casino Neighbourhood Centre, "and they were delicious, even though we are still getting the hang of using the oven."

The pizza oven cook-up saw over 30 people in all, gathering and making pizzas at the Community Garden on the day.  People also supplied the gathering with home-made damper and jams and the garden itself also provided the herbs needed for the pizzas.

"The garden group again pulled together to put on a great day; mowing as much as the soggy ground would allow, making up batches of dough for the bases, managing the fire and clearing up afterwards, among other things.  Without this group of dedicated people and those who have worked hard up until now, there would be no garden for us all to enjoy".                    
                                                                                                                     The Media Release.

Pic- roasting a couple of eggplant from the garden before cooking the pizzas.

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Reading for April

Organic Gardening

The practice of growing vegetables and food crop plants without the use of artificial fertilizers and pesticides is what organic gardening is all about.  Carried out to produce food crops that are free of chemicals and therefore a healthier choice.

Starting or building an organic garden is based around the principle that 'The Soil Feeds the Plant.'  So it is by naturally increasing the health structure and fertility of the soil that we take steps towards a productive organic garden.

 Organic gardening also focuses oh the health and structure of the soil that we use. Beneficial or garden friendly insects are also encouraged in an organic garden.

It needs to be remembered that any residual pesticides etc will take some time to work their way out of your garden, so organic may not be immediate, but by following steps below you will be on your way.

Organic Gardening Tips

• Stop using fertilizers, pesticides, weed killers and any other non-organic additives to all parts of your garden.
• Choose a place in your garden that is sunny, away from buildings and drains and other areas that are possibly a source of contamination.  Clear the area and establish where you want the garden beds to be.
• Establish an organic compost bin that you fill with pesticide-free grass clippings, leaves and other fine material.
• Once the compost has started to decompose, spread a layer over the garden bed and dig it into the soil, not too deeply.  The beneficial microbes and bacteria do not like to be buried too deeply.
• Obtain organic mulch to place over the top of the garden bed and keep the area moist.
• Avoid soil compaction by not standing on the garden bed.
• After a few weeks you are ready to start planting.  You will need organic seeds or seedlings to promote the organic nature of the garden.

Green Crops and Organic Vegetable Gardening
Green manure crops such as Alfalfa have a number of benefits and are used widely in organic gardens, where one basic principle is to 'never leave the soil bare.'

Green crops help prevent weeds, encourage soil micro organisms, fix nitrogen in the soil, especially pea and bean crops.

Sow a green manure crop immediately after you have finished with one area. Green manure crops can also be planted between rows.  Green crops can be dug into the soil after two months or so.

Composting and Organic Gardening
Another basic principle of gardening in the organic way is to compost, it's amazing how much valuable organic material can be returned to the soil with proper composting techniques.  Remember that compost not only acts as a fertilizer, it also improves soil structure and water retention.  How often do we hear that this plant likes a humus rich soil. Compost increases the amount of humus in the soil.

Mulch and Organic Gardening
Remember the principle 'never leave the soil bare'.  MULCH is a big part of this.
Mulch serves a number of purposes:

• Mulch helps prevent weeds
• Mulch helps retain moisture
• Mulch helps provide a cool root run
• And mulch encourages healthy micro organisms that are so important to soil health and a thriving organic garden.

Source:  Nurseries Online

Pages 4 and 5
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Autumn - Time to Plant Garlic

Pop garlic into any sunny, well-drained spot in the garden, or in a pot.

There are several reasons to plant garlic. First up, it is relatively easy to grow and highly rewarding.  Also, growing your own garlic means you get to eat a fresh, organic product and one that hasn't been imported.

Crops take many months to grow.  The bulbs are harvested as the foliage dies down in late Spring or early Summer. Bulbs can be stored and used over many months.

Step by Step

1. Separate the cloves

To grow your own garlic, buy organic garlic from a nursery, greengrocer or mail-order supplier.  Break the head up into separate cloves and plant them so the pointy tip of the clove is about 1.5 -2cm below the ground.

2. Plant

Pop garlic into any sunny, well drained spot in the garden or in a pot.  If you are a serious garlic eater, grow a crop by planting rows, spacing each clove about 15cm apart.

3. Weed and Mulch

Keep plants free of weeds (they don't like competition), water regularly and fertilise through their growing season using a complete fertiliser.  A layer of mulch around each plant keeps weeds down and moisture in your soil.

Words Jennifer Stackhouse      Homelife

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Recipe Corner

The Many Uses of Eggplant

This vegetable is quite diverse and more versatile, both in the garden and in the kitchen, than you might think.  It has been around for many centuries, used in cuisine of many countries.

Once harvested, eggplants will keep for about a week wrapped in perforated plastic in the refrigerator.  Fruits can be sliced or cubed, then blanched or steamed, and frozen up to eight months for later use.

Cook your Eggplant

Eggplant has chemicals that can cause digestive upset if eaten raw, so is usually cooked.  It can be grilled, stuffed, roasted, served in soups, stews and on kabobs, and used in curries and stirfries.  Eggplant is nutritious, being low in calories, fat and sodium.  It is high in fibre, and provides additional nutrients such as potassium, magnesium, folic acid, vitamin B6 and A.

To prepare eggplants
If  you want to keep the calories and fat low, cook in broth, wine, or vegetable juice instead of oil or butter.  Since the flesh discolours quickly, use right away after cutting.  Salt slices or cubes and stand aside for ten minutes or so during preparation.  Then wash off the salt, drain, and pat dry before cooking.  One satisfactory method is in a pan with a splash of olive oil.

Dietary Fibre
Eggplants provide dietary fibre in abundance.  They aid digestion and promote health for your heart.  Additionally, they also help to lower the level of cholesterol in your body.  One cup serving of eggplant would contain approximately 10% of the recommended dietary fibre.

Use the skin of the eggplant
The skin, especially, is loaded with fibre, so it is essential that you include the skin in the dish to reap its benefits.

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Make your own Eggplant Dip - Easy Baba Ghanosh

• 1 large eggplant
• 2 tablespoons tahini
• 1/4 cup (65 ml) lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1/3 cup (85 ml) olive oil
• pinch salt to taste

Pierce the eggplant 4 or 5 times with the tip of a paring knife. Microwave on High for 6 to 8 minutes until softened, then place on a plate and allow to cool to room temperature.

Peel off the skin and stem, discard. Roughly chop the eggplant and place into a blender along with the tahini, lemon juice, garlic and olive oil.  Puree until smooth, adding water if needed to make a thick paste' season to taste with salt.

Serve with pita bread, crackers or selection of raw vegetables, e.g. carrot sticks, capsicum, cauliflower florets, and celery to taste.

NOTE: Tahini may be replaced with mayonnaise.

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Casino Community Garden 

A Project of the Casino Neighbourhood Centre 

Coordinator- Jo Nemeth   Phone 6662 5435

Email: coordinator.cdp@cnci.org.au

Weekly Garden Gatherings - Tuesdays from 8.30am (all welcome)

Weekly Garden Lunch Gathering -Wednesdays at noon (all welcome)

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