Casino Community Garden
Monthly Newsletter #15 Issued June 2014
Around Casino Community Garden this Month
Gardening: Tuesday and Wednesday mornings from 8.30am
BYO Lunch: Every Wednesday 12 noon.
Monthly Meeting: First Wednesday of Month.
Lunch 12 noon, MEETING 12.30 for about an hour.
Thanks to Aly Gray for the poster
News from the Meeting
Wednesday 4th June 2014
Welcome to Winter Garden Clinic—Saturday 14th June 1pm to 4pm
- Publicity is being distributed around town
- Mark is bringing along his solar BBQ and will boil water and cook chat potatoes to demonstrate how it works.
- The cob oven will be going for pizzas
- The stainless steel bench will be in place by then and members are looking forward to having the use of it.
- The marquees will be set up as usual.
- The Garden has been successful in receiving a 356 grant from RVC for purchase of marquees and equipment for future events.
- Opening of new pathway.
Snapped leaving meeting on new path, Jo, Keith, Bobby, Aly and Doreen
Power
Power will be connected in the next fortnight. Trying for a coin operated mechanism.
Thanks to Richmond Valley Council for assistance with this.
High School Students
Two groups of students came along last week and Linda is happy with the way the 8 week program is working.
Planning Day
Would be good to set up a planning day on how to go forward. Will be in late July. Details next newsletter and on Facebook.
Small jars and old newspapers
Appreciate if people could save small jars for home made chutney etc for future garden clinics, and also old newspapers for weed control, to be covered with wood chips. Drop in to the garden on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. Thanks !!
Andrew and completed path, pic Jo Nemeth
June Feature — Sustainable Gardening Australia
on Weedicides
When trying to live sustainably, we want to reduce the incidence of harm caused by the products we use.
And how difficult is this getting!!!
According to the Environmental Protection Agency in the USA, there are over 84,000 chemicals in overall commercial use with between 500 and 1000 added each year. Many of these have some degree of toxicity for humans or the environment.
At SGA, we want to minimise harmful effects. So, together with the Burnley College of Melbourne University, we developed a rating system for commercially available garden products so that we could differentiate between those which had low, medium or high undesirable impacts.
An important observation is that products containing glyphosate, are rated as medium impact. This is particularly so because the glyphosate-containing Roundup is widely used in agricultural contexts. Canola, which is the source of cooking oil and is used in much processed food, has been released in NSW in the genetically engineered Roundup-Ready form. This means that the crop still grows after being sprayed with glyphosate to kill weeds. Many different weed killers for domestic use also contain glyphosate.
So, let’s look at each of the rating criteria:
Is the product made from “natural” non-synthesised ingredients?
Chemicals that have been synthesized have generally caused the consumption of more energy during their manufacture than natural materials such as vinegar and salt. For most weedicides, the answer to that question is “no”.
What is the Schedule heading?
By law, chemical products must be labelled according to the Poisons Schedule which is primarily directed to protect human safety. Products have a “schedule heading” (a number preceded by “S”) and a “signal heading”. Products with no schedule heading i.e. below S5, are deemed safe to use. But they may have a signal heading such as “keep out of reach of children” or “read safety directions” .Those labelled S6 have a heading of “poison” and those classified as S7 have a heading of “Dangerous Poison”. S7 chemicals are not permitted to be sold, stored or used in domestic situations. Clearly products with sche.dule headings of S5 or higher have higher potential impacts than those that are unscheduled.
Products containing glyphosate are classified as S5 and carry a signal heading of “Caution” and usually with advice to keep out of reach of children and to read safety directions. This is because if it is mishandled it can cause irritation of the skin, respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts and eyes, Some other chemicals in weed killers scheduled S5 on the basis of animal testing are propyzamide (carcinogen), MCPA (2-methyl-4-chlorophenoxyacetic acid) (affects liver and kidneys) although their concentrations and other chemicals in products can increase their schedule heading to S6 Poison.
Is it hazardous to bees, amphibians, pets or fish?
Who sprays weedicides on pets, frogs or fish? Most of us draw the line at that, but need to remember that we are effectively doing that if the chemical finds its way into streams or ponds or if pets are around when the product is being used. For example, glyphosate is harmful to aquatic organisms and dicamba and MCPA have slight toxicity to fish.
Is it pre-mixed and ready to apply?
Products which are pre-mixed and ready for use are less hazardous than those that require dilution and mixing since they are less likely to spill on either people, soil or non-target organisms.
Is it an aerosol and Schedule 5 or more?
Substances sprayed from cans or bottles can easily be inadvertently inhaled from the aerosols, so S5 products which have a caution warning, and, of course, S6 products can cause problems. Trigger sprays produce larger droplets than pressurized cans, and these droplets are less likely to travel far enough to be inhaled or reach non-target plants or animals.
Is the packaging well-designed and robust in relation to the schedule heading?
Robust plastic bottles with safety screw tops are difficult to be accessed by children, while trigger spray bottles are more prone to accidents.
OR go the really low impact route – hand pulling of weeds!
Apologies to those who have read this in the SGA newsletter.
Pic from Google
Vegetable Planting Guide by Gardening Australia For June
Beetroot, Broad Beans, Cabbage, Carrots, Celeriac, Celery, Chicory, Endive, Florence Fennel, Garlic, Huauzontle, Jerusalem Artichoke, Kale, Collards, Kohlrabi, Lettuce, Malabar Greens, Mangle-Wurzel, Mitzuna, Mustard Greens, Onion, Parsnip, Peas / Snow Peas, Radish, Rocket, Shallots, Silverbeet, Spinach.
http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/vegieguide/
Rocket
Still not well known, Rocket is a leafy green that grows well at this time of year without running to seed. It adds a delicious peppery taste to salads and food dishes. Raw rocket offers protein, fiber, vitamins and minerals in small amounts, but the greatest nutritional offering comes from its vitamin K content for bone strength and blood clotting. However people on blood thinning medication would know to be careful of vitamin K.
Silverbeet
Why isn’t my silverbeet as green as what we see in the shops?
Nitrogen gives plants their dark green color and increases leaf and stem growth. The crispness and quality of leafy vegetables such as lettuce, silverbeet, swiss chard and spinach is influenced by nitrogen levels. Plants deficient in nitrogen have light green to yellow leaves and appear stunted.
Silverbeet prefers a slightly alkaline soil with at least a pH of 6 or above, and like all vegetables, needs well-drained, well composted soil that has the addition of animal manures.
Silverbeet seems to be more popular than spinach in Australia. Silverbeet is a cool climate plant that grows just as well in warmer climatic zones. In warm areas it can be sown almost all year.
Source: various online.
Recipe Corner
Eggplant Parmigiana - by Jean Lawrence
This eggplant parmigiana is served with a rich napoli sauce and is ideal for vegetarians.
· 2 large eggplants cut into 1cm thick slices
· 1/4 cup olive oil
· 4 cloves garlic unpeeled
· 20 g butter
· 1 tbsp plain flour
· 1 cup milk
· 1 cup tomato pasta sauce
· 1 cup grated mozzarella cheese
· 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
1. Preheat oven to 200 °C or 180 °C fan. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper. Lay eggplant on trays, brush with oil. Place whole garlic among the eggplant slices. Bake for 10 mins, turn eggplant slices and bake for further 10-15 mins until golden. Squeeze roasted garlic from skins and spread over eggplant.
2. Meanwhile, make sauce. Melt butter in a saucepan on medium. Add flour and cook, stirring for 2 mins until mixture comes away from sides of pan. Remove from heat. Gradually add combined milk and pasta sauce, stirring constantly until thickened. Season with salt and pepper and simmer for 5 mins. Remove from heat.
3. Spread a little sauce over base of a 23cm square baking dish. Top with a layer of eggplant slices, a layer of sauce and half the cheese. Repeat layers once more.
Bake parmigiana for 20 mins until golden. Rest for 5 mins before serving with salad.
By turning food scraps and organic garden waste into compost you can:
· Improve soil quality and garden vitality by releasing the rich nutrients in the compost into the soil of your garden
· Prevent greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging the aerobic breakdown of organic material reducing the amount of garden and kitchen waste going to Landfill
· Recycle valuable nutrients and reduce the use of artificial fertilisers
· Save money
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Suggestions and photos welcome, by email to Jo or
Jan—email casinogarden@gmail.com
or bring to lunch Wednesdays or the meetings.
Ask Jo about being a member of the Garden— $5/ annum
See current and back issues at our newsletter blog.
Words and photos by Jan Brine unless otherwise stated.
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Casino Community Garden
A Project of the Casino Neighbourhood Centre
Contact: Jo Nemeth on 6662 5435 Email: coordinator.cdp@cnci.org.au
Location: Head for Entrance to Queen Elizabeth Park at South Casino—
Garden on Left—corner Adam & Hartley Streets
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