Essential

Catch the guide to

seed
Cauliflower saving

craze
DRY YOUR
BUMPER FOOD
HARVESTS
WHY HERITAGE
CHOOKS ARE BEST
plant stunning
AQUILEGIAS

issue 123 2021 Discover the world of

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AU $7.99 NZ $8.99
9 771447 733004

Beauty, flavour and diversity

01
Create a garden
to enjoy all
year long
Our organically certified gardens of Heronswood
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 contents
February/march 2021

on the cover
20 Catch the cauliflower craze
26 Discover the world of heirlooms
32 Essential guide to seed saving
42 Plant stunning aquilegias
56 Dry your bumper food harvests
70 Why heritage chooks are best
26
organic gardening
17 PLANT: GETTING FRUITY
These heritage gems provide fruit for the picking,
writes Penny Woodward.

20 grow: the quiet achiever

After years of indifference from gardeners and cooks,
cauliflower is hitting the big time in the vegie world.
Karen Sutherland on growing and preparing it.

26 grow: Our precious heirlooms

Heirloom vegies and heritage fruit provide
beauty, flavour, diversity and resilience in a fast-
changing world. But in order to save them, we need
to grow them. Justin Russell tells their story.
COVER PHOTO BY KIRSTEN BRESCIANI. OTHER PHOTOS: TOP: ALAMY/BOTTOM: HELEN MCKERRAL.

32 how to special: essential guide to seed saving

Helen McKerral explores how nature spreads seed,
the value of saving seed from your garden, and how
you can do it yourself, saving money and helping
reduce the food miles on your dinner table.

42 flowers: bewitching bonnets

42
Helen McKerral has long been captivated by the
stunning, bee-attracting aquilegias.

48 action: plan ahead

OUR COVER
cover photo by kirsten bresciani.
It will soon be time to prepare your cool season head to page 26 to read about
garden and plan what to grow. You’ll find top tips, what the importance of heirloom
you can plant now and pest alerts for your patch. vegetables and heritage fruits
and how we can ensure they keep
on being available to us all.

CHECK OUT FEATURE ARTICLES, READ BLOGS

OR SUBSCRIBE AT ORGANICGARDENER.COM.AU NEXT ISSUE ON SALE march 25, 2021

organicgardener.com.au 5
 organic living
56 harvest: packing in the flavour
In The Artisan Kitchen James Strawbridge shows how to
use age-old techniques to make the best of produce.
64 Organic life: little oak farm is who we are
Moving from inner-city Sydney to rural Tasmania was a big
challenge for Pip and Hugo. Ten years on, they share the
joys of their cottage and surrounds with Leanne Croker.
70 poultry: heritage hens
Heritage poultry breeds are slow-growing, long-laying

64 and one of the keys to our long-term food security,

writes Jessamy Miller.
76 planet: on the frontline
Many conservationists dealing with environmental
catastrophes are struggling to cope with the trauma
and where to get support, writes Gemma Conroy.
79 planet: driving change
Meet the golf course superintendent who is making the
game safer for people and wildlife by ditching chemicals
and embracing soil biology. By Simon Webster.
90 LOSING THE PLOT: escape to the country
Simon Webster reveals the truth about the ‘Good Life’.

regulars
9 Editor’s Letter
10 MAIL: Reader questions and thoughts
70 12 MATTERS: News and events
14 MARKET: Planting for the future
16 Gardening on your ABC

56 82 LIBRARY: The latest books

89 WIN! an online permaculture
course worth $439

Subscribe to
PHOTOS: FROM TOP: @LIFE_AT_LITTLE_OAK_FARM / JESSAMY MILLER / BEN DEARNLEY.
Organic Gardener
for your chance to worth
win 1 of 35 $95
garden packs eac.95
from fiskars H
see pg 40 for more information

Organic Gardener magazine has been printed using recycled

paper certified against the FSC R Chain of custody standard.
The text is printed on Leipa Ultralux Silk, which is an offset
paper made of 100% waste paper that not only satisfies the
highest quality requirements but is also 100% environment-
friendly, as it uses only recycled fibres as raw material.
This saves resources, energy and therefore protects the
environment as well.

6
 Editor Steve Payne
Art Director Karen Berge
deputy & Digital Editor Leanne croker
Horticultural Editor Penny Woodward

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 EDITOR’S LETTER

STOP MAKING ME FEEL BAD!

When I come across stories like Little Oak Farm, I groan. How
can one family achieve so much, be so together, have their
sustainable life so on track? We have featured plenty of their
type over recent years – they know who they are!
Suburban Existence in Melbourne, taking over a small
apartment garden and communal space and turning it into a
wonderland of abundance. Or Jade Miles and family at Black
Barn Farm, going much bigger in rural Victoria with organic
apple orchards, vegie plots aplenty, Toulouse geese roaming!
And of course, I regularly get the Milkwood permaculture
crew’s newsletter – Kirsten Bradley and Nick Ritar. Oh, so sausage? No problem! Raise chooks, bees and a daughter,
what are they doing now? Growing more mushrooms, making Inès – no problem!
their own pasta, expanding their bees, moving to Tasmania, Of course we don’t feature these stories to dishearten
starting from scratch, and more – so much more than me! you. They are there for inspiration, pointing the way, showing
I did expand our home’s solar panels to 6.6kw, and what can be done, seeding ideas, helping others.
I added some raised beds, the chooks are still laying, the Many of you may have achieved similar self-reliant lives.
tomatoes gave plenty before they succumbed to wilt. Still, But we all have different skill levels, energy levels. Some
it pales into insignificance alongside these self-reliance mere mortals like me play sport for goodness sake when
champions. When will they stop, do they relax? they could be building sandstone walls!
But what I learnt from these stories, is that the Pips and Before I go, I must mention our feature articles on
Hugos of this world love what they are doing (Little Oak Farm heirloom plants (page 26) and seed saving (page 32). Justin
page 64). They are immersed in it. They also work extremely Russell has done a fabulous job on the former, explaining
hard, often packing in all the regular stuff – work, kids, why heirlooms are so important and how he fell in love with
schooling, alongside the sustainable living. In fact, as Pip them, while Helen McKerral provides an in-depth guide to
and Hugo say: “It’s become who we are.” all aspects of seed saving – invaluable when looking to
The couple left an inner-Sydney apartment for save money and expand into more unusual varieties.
a 30-hectare property at Cygnet, Tassie. Gradually,
exhaustingly, over a decade they turned it into a way of life.
It helps that Pip has design qualifications, while Hugo’s
Chilean heritage means food and sharing with family and
friends is everything. Raise pigs and make your own chorizo
PHOTO STEVE: MARTHA BEASLEY. OTHER PHOTOS: @ LIFE_AT_LITTLE_OAK_FARM.

From left: Pip and Hugo; preserving

fresh fruit gets them through the
winter; chooks enjoy scrounging.

organicgardener.com.au 9
ORGANIC FEEDBACK

PEARS IN TROUBLE
I have two pears, one ‘Williams’ and one ‘Bartlett’. Last
spring the blossoms were eaten by ants. I banded the
trunks this year and have been protecting the blossoms
from frost with horticultural fleece. The ‘Williams’ pear is
thriving and covered in blossoms. The ‘Bartlett’ has nasty
little ill-formed buds that are dark and not opening properly
(but no ants). I researched possible problems and pictures of
blossom blast look most like mine. We did have five inches
(127mm) of rain one weekend in Yass! I have read that severe
cold and wet sets it off. Should I persevere for next year
or cut my losses and replace it with a new tree in a better
spot? I read that it’s not usually able to be fixed.
Margaret Olsen, Yass (NSW)

Dear Margaret,
Pear blossom blast isn’t common in Australia but it is a
possibility during the kind of cold, wet conditions you’ve
experienced. In other contexts, this problem is known as
bacterial canker. It’s a disease caused by the bacterium
Pseudomonas syringae, and it commonly affects fruiting and
ornamental trees by entering winter pruning cuts or wounds
in the bark. In your case, the blossoms may have been injured
by a late frost (despite your efforts with frost cloth), giving
the bacteria an entry point and causing the blossoms and
leaf tips to die back. You shouldn’t need to remove or replace
the tree. It should be possible to cut the plant back to
healthy wood. Burn the infected prunings. Note that the
disease spreads easily via infected tools, so sterilise
secateurs with straight metho between pruning cuts.
Justin Russell Above: ‘Williams’ pear tree.

SEEKING A SLOTH
Thanks for this most enjoyable and informative
magazine. Could you tell me where I can purchase the sloth
hanging basket shown on page 57 of issue 121? I love it.
Bronte Clark, via email

Hi Bronte,
I’m glad you loved the sloth planter and enjoy OG. My
daughter bought this and a delightful whale pot online
from: sproutwellgreenhouses.com.au/product/hanging-
sloth-planter-2/. Have fun filling your pots with plants!
PHOTO: TOP: ALAMY/BOTTOM: PENNY WOODWARD

Penny Woodward

NATIVE BEE CORRECTION

There was a typo in ‘The Native Buzz’ (OG 119) we would like to
correct. On page 48 it stated there are 17 species of stingless
bees in Australia. The correct figure is 11. Native bee experts
Above: Different types of pots add have confirmed there are six species in the genus Tetragonula
colour and fun to any garden. and five species in the genus Austroplebeia.

10
 JOIN OUR FREE
VEGGIE CLASSES
More than 35, 000 Aussie
families have already joined.
Go to the link and get instant access

aussiegardener.com.au/veg

NETTLE MEMORIES What is one good thing about COVID?

I spent the first 40 years of my life in Kent in the UK,
and grew up on five acres (2 ha) with dogs, cats, ponies, Lots more Aussies have started growing their own food!

chickens, geese, sheep and sometimes a pair of pigs. My We own the Aussie Gardener store, and to
help out during this time we are running
memories of nettles are from regularly falling into them FREE Veggie Growing Classes online.
or trying to get through them to catch a recalcitrant So far 35, 000 families have signed up to learn how to turn
pony or herd of sheep. This was usually followed by their backyards into productive spaces to feed the family.
a mad hunt for a dock leaf (Rumex obtusifolius) to It is totally free and we would love to
rub over the nettle rash, the sap of which instantly see you come and join in the fun.

soothed your skin. My parents didn’t like to use weed Happy Gardening,
killer so there were plenty of nettles. They provide
food for a variety of beautiful butterflies in the UK. My
Brian & Kaylene
granny used to tell about using nettles to make delicious
and nutritious soup during the war – “free food”.
Georgina Liley, Albany (WA)

Above: Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica).

Marvellous memories
WINNING Georgina. We’d love to
send you a copy of The
WORDS Sustainable House Handbook
by Josh Byrne as thanks.

Please include your town/suburb. Photos are helpful, and any details
such as climate and soil. The more information we have the better.

post Locked Bag 5555, St Leonards NSW 1590

email editor@organicgardener. com.au
web organicgardener.com.au
PHOTO: ALAMY

Find us on:
 news
ORGANIC GROW

Sydney edible
garden trail
After successfully running the Sydney Edible
Garden Trail as a virtual event in 2020, it returns
this March 20−21 as a physical trail with gardens
open for visits.
The trail will feature home gardens, school and
community gardens, large and small, showcasing
sustainable practices from composting to organic
gardening for home food security.
Costa Georgiadis, of ABC Gardening Australia,
will also be hosting live feeds from a number of
gardens in a virtual event, on the weekend of
February 27 and 28.
Where: Various Sydney gardens
When: Physical Trail: March 20–21; Virtual Trail:
February 27/28
A wild banana future Above: A Papua
New Guinea Cost: From $25 per adult with access to over
Wild bananas in Papa New Guinea could be the key to farmer holding 50 gardens. Family and children’s tickets are also
protecting this favourite fruit from climate change and some of the
available. Virtual Trail: $6.36 (including admin fee)
local red
pests and diseases, according to a report by ABC Rural.[1] bananas. Details: sydneyediblegardentrail.com
Belgium-based scientist Sebastien Carpentier Right: Costa
recently led an expedition to Papua New Guinea Georgiadis
to collect and conserve the genetics of these wild will be hosting
bananas, genes which are now stored in the world’s live feeds for
the Sydney
largest banana gene bank in Leuven, Belgium. Edible Garden
Dr Carpentier is a team leader with the Alliance Virtual Trail.
of Bioversity International and the International
Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT).
“The gene bank of Bioversity International contains
currently 1617 accessions,” Dr Carpentier explains.
“Those are mainly cultivated bananas. The wild diversity
is underrepresented and some of them are or will become
on the red list of endangered species. Hence the
initiative for the collection missions on wild bananas.”
One of the aims of the program is to have a back-up
in case of natural habitat loss. But protecting and
encouraging diversity also means unique traits (for Recycle your pots
example, the superior water-use efficiency of the Musa An exciting new recovery and recycling program has been
balbisiana) can be adapted to help cultivated varieties announced for polypropylene plastic pots, trays, labels and
resist future climate change effects such as drought. stakes used by the horticultural industry. Long awaited by
“Our aim is to get banana agriculture more landscapers, nursery people and home gardeners, this will
sustainable with less inputs of pesticides and water,” allow us to close the loop on horticultural polypropylene.
PHOTO TOP LEFT: SEBASTIEN CARPENTER

Dr Carpentier says. The Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation (APCO) in

The work also aims to support local populations to partnership with Greenlife Industry Australia (GIA) has secured
protect the environment, while all material is collected funding for the program. From early 2021, GIA and APCO will
under the protection of the International Plant Treaty work closely with the horticultural sector across Australia,
for fair and equal sharing. including the Landscape Association and Horticulture Innovation,
1. ‘Scientists race to find wild, ancient bananas to save the on the design and implementation of an industry-endorsed
popular fruit from climate change’ by John Daly, abc.net.au/ network of collection points for plant packaging.
news/rural/2020-11-26/ancient-bananas-in-png-can-save-the-
worlds-favourite-fruit/12917960

12
 ORGANIC MARKET

Planting for the future

Sow the seeds of great ideas!

Tools to go
Whether you plan
to spend time

Bags of vegies tidying up your garden or head out

to help with a local bushcare project, this
The new Vegebag, from the Forestry Tools bush regeneration kit is ready
well-known Vegepod creators, to go! A four-pocket leather tool pouch with
is container gardening with a a leather belt, the kit will be handy with just
difference. Designed to function the tools you need for a good tidy up. The
like a greenhouse, the polyethylene Bush Regen Kit 2 costs $160 and includes
knitted mesh, which also protects Barnel B175 heavy-duty pruners, an
crops from UV and pests, helps manage Australian-made aluminium narrow
temperatures by allowing water and air to trowel, Barnel Z210 150mm folding
penetrate. With a hard exterior base and saw and a Mundial 15cm knife. For more
a simple wicking system, you’ll soon be details, visit: forestrytools.com.au
growing a delicious range of veg, from
leafy greens to tomatoes and broccoli.
Available from vegepod.com.au for $89.

Planting ahead
Join Australia’s largest community of gardeners at The
Diggers Club, which for over 40 years has been helping
its members grow rare heirloom varieties full of flavour
and beauty. Members receive seasonal magazines,
20 per cent off all products, access to horticultural
experts, free entry to the Diggers gardens in Victoria
ILLUSTRATION: ISTOCK

and eight free packets of seeds per year. Plus, if you

join for two years you will receive four packets of
free herb or vegie seeds to add to your autumn patch.
For details and to join visit: diggers.com.au/join

14
Autumn planting
February/March is the last call for overwintering vegies in cool
climates. So, if that’s the plan and you are looking for heirloom
or open-pollinated seeds, Seed Freaks have over 400 different
seed varieties to choose from. They specialise in rare beans and
also have a range of around 200 tomato varieties (for the warmer
months or the tropics). All heirloom or open-pollinated seeds
are $3.50 and 90 per cent are grown organically in Tasmania.
Visit seedfreaks.com.au to find out what seeds are available.
Head to page 26 for our feature on growing heirloom varieties.

Permaculture living
Ready to get the skills you need to create down-to-
earth resilience in times of change, while learning
from home? Join David Holmgren (who originated
the permaculture concept with Bill Mollison in the
late ’70s) and the Milkwood crew of experts in this
live online course. Running for 12 weeks and with a
fully supported student forum, you can learn from
the comfort of your own home and get the skills
you need to start your own permaculture projects.
For more information visit: milkwood.net/courses
Go to page 89 for a chance to win one online course.

Pots that last

Every gardener knows about
the plastic punnet challenge – we all
have too many and they break easily. The new
silicone punnets from Mr Fothergill’s don’t crack,
crush, rot or become brittle, making them an ideal Solar-powered irrigation
sustainable addition to the garden. The punnets Gardena’s solar-powered AquaBloom Kit is a simple watering solution
also help regulate soil temperature – important for areas without access to a tap and electricity. Great for planter
when growing from seeds and cuttings. A bonus is boxes and pot plants on balconies, terraces and patios, the kit is easy
that the flexible silicone allows for easy removal to install and will water up to 20 plants equally with its micro-drip
of seedlings when ready to plant out. When you’re system powered by solar panels that charge batteries and an
done, simply wash them out and start sowing integrated pump that carries the water to the plants. A great
your next lot of seeds. Available as a twin pack solution when going away on holidays, or just set to automatic
at Bunnings and independent garden retailers irrigation throughout the year. Available from Bunnings and
nationwide, $17.95. Visit: mrfothergills.com.au independent hardware stores, $199. Visit: gardena.com/au

organicgardener.com.au 15
 the best of your gard
ening on YOUR local
RAD
abc IO
NSW ABC North Queensland
ABC radio Sydney Friday 10am
Saturday 9am ABC Tropical North,

Not a patch ABC radio Central Coast

Saturday 9am
ABC Capricornia, ABC Wide
Bay, ABC North West QLD,
on the locals ABC Central West
Saturday 8.30am
ABC Western QLD
Friday 10am
Gavin McGrath is hardly ABC Illawarra ABC Far North
a doyen when it comes to Saturday 8.30am Friday 10am
organic gardening, but ABC Mid North Coast Saturday 8.30am
thanks to his regular & ABC Coffs Coast SA
gardening correspondent Saturday 9.30am ABC radio Adelaide, ABC North
Thursday 9.30am & West, ABC Eyre Peninsula,
Rob Pelletier, he is less of
ABC Newcastle ABC South East SA
a mug around the vegie
Saturday 8.30am Saturday 8.30am
patch than he used to be. You can hear them chatting ABC New England ABC Riverland
on ABC Local Radio in Ballarat and across south-west North West Saturday 7am
Victoria every other Wednesday just after 10am. We Saturday 8.30am ABC Broken Hill
asked Gavin about the show and the region. Thursday 9.30am Saturday 9am
What do you enjoy most about your ABC North Coast Statewide, ABC radio Adelaide,
conversations with the local gardeners? Saturday 8.30am
ABC Riverina
ABC North & West, ABC Eyre
Peninsula, ABC South East,
Regular listeners will know I’m a little “green” (as in
Saturday 8.30am ABC Broken Hill, ABC Riverland
inexperienced) as a gardener, so I’m just as likely to learn ABC South East sunday 11am
something new from them as they are from me. The best part Wednesday 10am VIC
is when they flick through photos of what they are up to so Saturday 9am ABC radio Melbourne;
we can have a stickybeak. Some of the projects are brilliant. ABC Western Plains ABC Victoria
Do people discuss drought/bushfires/climate Thursday 9.35am, fortnightly Saturday 9.30am

change much with you and are attitudes Saturday 8.30am

WA
ABC Central Victoria

changing? Not all the time but certainly during summer. ABC radio Perth, ABC Great
Thursday 9.30am
ABC Gippsland
One of our popular topics is how to get the most out of Southern, ABC SOUth west, Monday 10am
a garden using the least amount of water. I think people ABC Goldfields Esperance ABC Mildura-Swan Hill
are learning to adapt. ABC kimberley, ABC pilbara, Tuesday 9.40am
Can you tell us a little about the food and ABC Midwest and Wheatbelt ABC Ballarat
cultural life across Victoria’s south-west? If you can Tuesday 2.15pm
Saturday 9.05am
Wednesday 10.20am fortnightly
ABC Goulburn Murray
think of something you like, you can probably find it here –
NT Tuesday 9.40am
you just have to do a little exploring. There’s the Great ABC radio Darwin ABC Southwest Victoria
Ocean Road and Daylesford for starters, but also a rich Saturday 9am Thursday 7.20am fortnightly
selection of wineries, restaurants and places to visit. ABC Alice Springs, ABC Wimmera

THIS INFORMATION IS CORRECT AT THE TIME OF PRINTING BUT IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE.

Do you have a garden? If so what’s growing ABC Katherine Thursday 9.40am
ACT
in it? My wife Nat and I have had a crack at broccoli, Saturday 8.30am
QLD ABC radio Canberra
carrots, lettuce and strawberries. Unfortunately, we tried
ABC radio Brisbane Saturday 8.30am
some herbs and they took over the whole vegie patch. TAS
Saturday 6am
My skillset is limited. I’m safest looking after lawns ABC Gold Coast ABC radio Hobart
and shrubs, and leaving the vegie patch to Nat. Saturday 6am ABC Northern Tasmania
ABC Sunshine Coast Saturday 9am,
Monday 5:50pm tino carnevale & Joel Rheinberger
ABC Southern Queensland
discover the Saturday 9am
best of the ABC For more information about coverage in your area
Gardening Australia returns on Friday, February 12. call 139 994 or visit: reception.abc.net.au
But you can still get your fill of gardening inspo watching
missed episodes on iview.
Check out organicgardener.com.au for blogs, gardening
Download the ABC listen app and listen to live radio
tips, competitions and the latest news. streams of gardening programs across Australia.

16
 ORGANIC PLANT

GETTING
FRUITY
these heritage gems
provide fruit for
the picking, writes
Penny Woodward.

‘CARDINAL’ GRAPE
VITIS VINIFERA ‘CARDINAL’
Many potted heritage Also known as ‘Red Cardinal’, this lovely old grape
fruit trees can be bears loose bunches of large, red-purple seeded
planted in autumn, fruit early in the season. A tough well-known home
garden cultivar, it originally came from California in
when they can quickly
the late 1930s, and is mainly eaten fresh or sun dried
establish in still-warm to produce raisins. ‘Cardinal’ is a vigorous grower,
soil. Water well after needing strong support from a pergola or sturdy
planting and keep 3-4m W timber frame. Top dress with compost and mulch
over the soil each spring. Water regularly, especially
well-watered through
while the fruit is growing and swelling. In high
dry periods. Once 3-4m H
humidity, prune to thin the foliage to prevent
new growth starts in powdery mildew (if affected, spray with milk diluted
spring, feed and mulch Full sun with water 1:9). Prune hard in winter back to the main
well. Alternatively framework, leaving spurs with only two basal buds.
Cardinal is heat and humidity tolerant and very
wait until bare-rooted
cold-tolerant when dormant, but new growth
PHOTO: ALAMY

Harvest:
trees and vines are summer/
autumn can be damaged by temperatures below -3°C.
available in winter.

organicgardener.com.au 17
 ORGANIC PLANT

Climate Zone Key:

Tropical subTropical Arid/Semi-Arid Warm Temperate Cold Temperate

‘BROWN TURKEY’ FIG

FICUS CARICA ‘BROWN TURKEY’
6m W All figs are easy-to-grow, deciduous trees but ‘Brown Turkey’ is
particularly resilient, doing well in both dry and humid regions as
well as temperate climates. Plant into good composty soil in a
5m H
sunny position with good drainage. These heritage figs, originally
from Provence in France, can eventually get very big, both tall and
Full sun wide, but are also happy having their roots constrained in a large
pot. Smaller trees are easier to net to protect fruit from birds,
bats, rats and possums. Purple-brown fruits are sweet, with
Harvest:
summer/ pale-pink, richly flavoured flesh. Eat fresh, or cut in half and dry
autumn for later. Figs also make delicious jam and are easily bottled. In
also spring
winter, prune back by one half to one third as fruit usually only
grows on new wood. This cultivar quite often bears two crops,
with the main crop in autumn and a breba crop that will over-
winter to ripen in spring. Figs won’t ripen once picked.

MEDLAR
MESPILUS GERMANICA
3m W
Medlars are deciduous small fruiting trees in the rose family that
have been grown and eaten since medieval times. They thrive in
3-4m H cooler climates, in a sunny position with well-drained, reasonable
soil. The lovely open, white flowers are followed by the unusual
dark-brown, rounded fruit. Pick fruit when hard and inedible in late
Sun/semi
shade
autumn and leave for 1-2 weeks in a cool, dark spot until they soften
and flesh becomes brown and mushy. This is known as ‘bletting’.
The flesh smells of ripe apples, has the texture of custard and
Harvest: tastes like honey. I love them. Louis Glowinski in his seminal fruit
autumn
book says, “If approached without bias and preferably with closed
eyes, the taste is delicious.” Eat bletted fruit by scooping out the
flesh from the skin and removing the large seeds or just mix the
flesh with thick cream. Add to cakes, biscuits and desserts or make
them into jams and jellies that combine well with gamey meats.

‘BEURRE BOSC’ PEAR

PYRUS COMMUNIS ‘BEURRE BOSC’
4-5m W
(or dwarf My favourite heritage pear, this one originated from Belgium in
2m)
the first decade of the 1800s. Buttery and delicious when soft,
PHOTOS: TOP: ALAMY/CENTRE & BOTTOM: PENNY WOODWARD.

I prefer to eat them while still hard and crisp. For me this
12m H heritage pear is the epitome of perfect pear flavour. Plant trees
(or dwarf
2m) into deep, rich, slightly acid soil, in a sunny position. Trees need to
be cross-pollinated by another pear cultivar such as ‘Williams’ or
‘Doyenne Du Comice’ and need 800 chill hours so are not suited
Full sun
to warmer climates. Dwarf trees are best for an average garden,
and can be planted into pots or espaliered. Full-sized trees need
a lot of space. Feed during spring, summer and autumn with
Harvest:
autumn compost and well-rotted manure, and keep well watered. Harvest
the russet-skinned, bell-shaped fruit while it is still firm but snaps
easily from the tree when fruit is lifted. Fruit will gradually ripen
over coming days or even weeks. Refrigerate for longer storage.

18
In ground worm farm
 TOP TIP
IN HOT WEATHER,
CAULIFLOWER HEADS CAN
GET SUNBURNT EASILY,
AFFECTING THE FLAVOUR
AND COLOUR. PROTECT
PLANTS BY TYING THE
OUTER LEAVES TOGETHER
OVER THE TOP.
 ORGANIC GROW

THE QUIET ACHIEVER

After years of indifference from gardeners and cooks, cauliflower
is hitting the big time in the vegie world. Karen Sutherland gives
the lowdown on growing and preparing it.

L
et’s say you’ve kicked some winners with kale, By the 12–13th century, Arabian botanists
bewitched broccoli and conquered cabbage. You described cauliflowers as originating from Cyprus
can trade tales of the horrors of cabbage moth and there was a trade in seeds for many years
with the most venerable of vegetable growers. You’ve between Cyprus and Western Europe. In 1597,
been expanding your patch, and you’re up for a new John Gerard’s Herball first used the Latin name
challenge – so why not give cauliflower a crack? ‘cole fiore’, meaning ‘flowered cabbage’. At the
Cauliflower has come to prominence of late and, same time, cauliflowers began to appear in French
thankfully, is no longer thought of as so bland it cookbooks and were already grown in Italy.
needs to be coated in cheesy sauce to be loved. Having
found new friends in the paleo, vegan and gluten-free The good stuff
communities, it now shines as a low carbohydrate Cauliflower is a low-calorie, high-fibre food, with
‘rice’. Whole-baked cauliflower is unexpectedly divine good levels of vitamins C and K and some B vitamins.
and is even more amazing when you’re baking your Importantly, cauli contains high levels of health-
own homegrown, chemical-free head. promoting phytochemicals such as carotenoid
This brassica is the ultimate background performer, antioxidants (in green cauliflower) and glucosinolates.
ticking away in the garden for so long that you kind The purple colour in cauliflowers such as ‘Sicily
of forget it’s there, then emerging triumphant and Purple’ comes from anthocyanins. These are water-
fulsome. If you have space and patience, it is soluble pigments found in many other plants and
tremendously rewarding. plant-based products, such as red wine, and well-
known for their anti-inflammatory, anti-viral and
Origins anti-cancer benefits. Nutrients and phytochemicals
Cauliflower’s name comes from the Latin words caulis are retained best by eating cauliflower lightly
(cabbage) and flõs (flower). Cauliflower, Brassica steamed or sautéd. Cauliflower is best avoided if
PHOTO: KIRSTEN BRESCIANI

oleracea Botrytis Group, is in the Brassicaceae family you have low thyroid function as it is goitrogenic,
which also includes broccoli, cabbage, Brussels meaning it affects thyroid hormone production.
sprouts and kale. This flowering cabbage was
mentioned as ‘cyma’ in the 1st century CE by Left: Purple cauliflower, such as 'Sicily Purple’, gets
Pliny the Elder in his Natural History. its colour from health-promoting anthocyanins.

organicgardener.com.au 21
 ORGANIC GROW

From above: Thinning out cauliflower seedlings;

the 'Green Macerata'; harvesting cauliflower.
While you’re waiting for your cauliflowers
Cultivation from seed to curd to grow, interplant with some quicker
Growing cauliflower is not a casual commitment! growing vegetables that you can harvest
The growth times are long (more than two months),
first. Leafy lettuces, spring onions, radishes
as well as requiring fertile, well-drained soil, full sun,
regular watering, and stable daytime temperatures and Hakurei turnips are all suitable.
between 21–29°C.
Choose a bed that hasn’t grown any brassicas,
including kale or broccoli, for the last three years – this Sowing the seeds
crop rotation will minimise pest and disease problems. Cauliflower seeds are usually viable for four years in
If possible, prepare your soil four weeks before good storage conditions. Choose good-quality, fresh
planting seedlings by checking the pH. Cauliflowers seeds to give yourself the best chance of success. I’ve
like an acid soil with pH from 5.5–7, so if your soil is found that planting quite small brassica seedlings
too acidic (less than 5.5), use lime or dolomite lime gives the best chance of a good harvest, as long as
to raise the pH, or sulphur if your soil is too alkaline they are protected from pests!
(over pH 7). Simple pH kits can be purchased from To sow seeds directly, after preparing your soil,
your local nursery. Then, add plenty of organic ensure it’s broken down to a fine tilth and raked level.
matter to help with soil moisture retention and Sow seeds around 40cm apart in rows up to 45cm
microbial levels. Spread around 50mm of compost apart, pushing each seed in gently to a depth of
and 25mm of well-rotted fowl manure over the around 0.5cm. Firm the soil on top of each seed
surface before forking through evenly. and water with a fine spray. Keep moist. Plant two
Make sure your bed has good drainage as seeds in each spot then cut the weakest one off at
cauliflowers won’t tolerate wet feet. ground level in a couple of weeks.
PHOTO: TOP LEFT: ISTOCK/TOP RIGHT: THE GARDEN COLLECTION

To plant in punnets, sow seeds in seed-raising mix

When to sow? to a depth of 0.5cm. Water once or twice daily while
In cooler regions, sow in spring and autumn, but in seedlings emerge over the next two weeks and until
autumn make sure plants are well established before they’re ready for planting a couple of weeks later.
really cold weather slows growth. Conversely, if As seedlings emerge, whether in the punnet or
spring sown seed or plants are not growing strongly in the ground, fertilise with liquid seaweed and an
before hot weather arrives, then they may be all-purpose liquid feed, both diluted to the rates
adversely affected, too. By choosing different given on the bottle for seedlings.
cultivars, harvests can occur from winter through For planting, space seedlings the same as for
spring and well into summer. In sub-tropical and seeds, to allow them to grow to their best size. Mini
tropical climates, sow cauliflower seeds or seedlings cauliflower varieties can be planted more closely. Water
in early autumn for a winter harvest, choosing quick your newly transplanted seedlings in with diluted
maturing cultivars such as ‘Snowball’ or ‘Mini’. seaweed solution to help prevent transplant shock.

22
 Watering HARVESTING
Sudden dry or hot weather can cause issues with Cut heads when they are tight
flavour and head formation, so mulch around your and before the curds start to
plants to keep soil temperatures even, and be sure to open up. As cauliflowers are heat
water regularly and deeply. Using a drip system close
sensitive, pop your harvested
to the roots can help with water getting to where its
caulis in the crisper section of your
needed, or in a small garden you might pull back the
fridge if you’re not planning to use
mulch gently at the base of each plant when hand
them straightaway.
watering. Avoid overhead sprays, which can
encourage mildew, especially in humid conditions.

Fertilising
Best results are achieved with ongoing fertilising Alternatively net your plants soon after planting.
once heads, known as curds, start to grow. Feed your I now grow all my brassicas inside insect-excluding
cauliflower weekly with diluted liquid seaweed as well mesh – worth the effort to set up given there is
as a nutrient-rich liquid feed, such as compost tea or no cabbage moth or aphid anxiety! If you get
worm leachate tea, or a commercial complete fertiliser. caterpillars on your plants, use homemade soap
Liquid seaweed increases plant wall thickness and spray (make by dissolving two tablespoons of soap
therefore resistance to diseases and pests, as well as flakes into one litre of water) or, if you’re losing the
giving better tolerance to extreme temperatures. battle, use Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), also sold as
Dipel. This is a biological control that affects only
Pests and problems caterpillars, which takes a couple of days to work,
The worst cauliflower pests are the dreaded cabbage so keep up removal by hand while you’re waiting.
moth, as well as other moths and aphids, and slugs at Catch slugs with jars of beer set into the soil near
harvest time. For aphids, place yellow plastic dishes ground level. Also, protect by placing plastic garden
half-filled with water near your plants to attract aphids pots with a hole cut in base over the top.
PHOTO: GAP PHOTOS

to a watery grave. Cabbage moths can be deterred by In hot weather, cauliflower heads can get sunburnt
fake ‘moths’ cut out from white, plastic ice-cream lids easily, affecting the flavour and colour. Protect plants
and attached to the end of thin stakes, then put into by tying the outer leaves together over the top of
the garden as if the moths are hovering over the plants. each plant or seek out varieties such as ‘Self Blanche’.

organicgardener.com.au 23
 take your pick
VARIETY DESCRIPTION WEEKS TO HARVEST NOTES
FROM TRANSPLANT
‘All Year Round’ Dwarf plant, medium, white head 13–15 F1 hydrid; best in cool climates
‘Green Macerata’ Vibrant green, 1–1.2kg head 9–11 Italian, vigorous, early
bearing; frost tolerant
‘Mini‘ Small, firm, white head, dwarf 9 Good for warmer regions
plant
‘Paleface’ Large, white heads 16–20 Developed in WA, can be
slow to start
‘Phenomenal Early’ Large, firm, white head 11–14 Good for warmer regions
‘Purple Sicily’ Large, purple heads; milder, 15–17 From early 1800s, good
'Violet Sicilian’ sweeter flavour than white pest resistance; probably
a broccoli-cauli cross
‘Romanesco’ Bright-green, large head 12–16 From 16th century Italy,
that forms a fractal pattern; probably a broccoli cauli
nutty flavour cross; Frost tolerant
‘Self Blanche’ Medium, white head 11–13 Abundant leaves to protect
head from sun
PHOTO: ALAMY

‘Snow Ball’ Early, white, tight head 9–12 German from 1700s; bred for
summer and autumn harvest

24
 ORGANIC GROW

In the kitchen
and beyond
A versatile vegetable: the French eat cauliflower
raw as crudites, while Italians prefer it pickled in
a mixed jar of giardiniera. It’s tasty whether
steamed, roasted, stir-fried or deep-fried in
batter. It adds flavour to a soup or curry. Add
young leaves to any dish and cut older leaves
and the stems to cook in slower, longer-cooking
dishes like minestrone soup.
Cauliflower can cause gas, which can be
reduced by adding carminative herbs and spices,
such as winter savoury leaves or fennel and
cumin seeds and ground coriander. Flavourwise,
other good partners for cauliflower are
turmeric, garlic, cheese, almond and mustard.
Cauli has risen in popularity in recent years
due to its suitability for a number of special
diets, from gluten free to keto. It can be pulsed
into ‘rice’, used to make pizza bases or even
added to smoothies. Finally, don’t forget to
treat your chickens, who will always love
a feed on cauliflower stems and leaves.
PHOTOS: LEFT: GAP PHOTOS LEE AVISON DESIGN MAUREEN SAWYER/RIGHT: ISTOCK

Left: ‘Purple Sicily’ is also called ‘Violet Sicilian’.

Above: The ‘Romaneso’ head forms a fractal pattern.
SOURCES
Seed saving If in a hurry, you might strike it lucky and find heirloom
As brassicas cross-pollinate easily, many varieties seedlings at your local nursery (if not, hybrids will do but
have been lost. If you would like to save your own you can’t save seed). Otherwise, here are some suppliers:
seeds, remember that most heirloom cauliflowers in The Diggers Club: diggers.com.au
Australia, except for ‘Snow Ball’, are biennials, so Eden seeds: edenseeds.com.au
they will take two growing seasons to produce seed. Goodman Seeds: goodmanseeds.com.au
The Seed Savers Handbook recommends that plants Greenpatch Organic Seeds & Plants:
should be separated by 360–900m from any other greenpatchseeds.com.au
Brassica oleracea to remain true to type. Alternatively, Life-force Seeds: lifeforceseeds.com.au
just make sure that only one brassica species is in The Lost Seed: thelostseed.com.au
flower at a time. See page 32 for our ‘Essential Seedfreaks: seedfreaks.com.au
Guide to Seed-saving’. Southern Harvest: southernharvest.com.au

organicgardener.com.au 25
Seeds tell stories of people and
places, ways of growing and above
all resilience in the face of hardship
and sometimes, gross injustice.

PHOTO: KIRSTEN BRESCIANI

 ORGANIC GROW

Our precious
heirlooms
Heirloom vegies and Heritage fruit
provide beauty, flavour, diversity and
resilience in a fast-changing world. But
in order to save them, we need to grow
them. Justin Russell tells their story.

W
hen it comes to growing heirloom vegies,
every enthusiast falls down the rabbit hole
via a different route. For some, it is the promise
of supreme flavour. For others it is an ancestral
connection. For others again, it is something as
simple as exceptional beauty. After seeing a cob of
luminescent ‘Glass Gem’ corn, who wouldn’t want
to give it go? For me, a lover of words, my passion
for growing heirlooms started with the names.
The first tomato I grew was the exotic sounding
‘Rouge de Marmande’. Then there was ‘Dragon’s
Tongue’ bean. The mysterious ‘Drunken Woman’
lettuce. ‘Bull’s Blood’ beetroot. And perhaps the best
named vegetable of all time, ‘Old Women Meet and
Gossip’, a kale variety from Ethiopia. To be honest,
I didn’t really care what they tasted like and whether
they were superior to hybrid varieties in some way.
I was totally fascinated by their monikers.
Today, after growing heirlooms for more than
20 years, I’ve come to learn that they’re so much
more than names. Seeds are not inanimate objects.
They tell stories of people and places, ways of growing
and above all resilience in the face of hardship and
sometimes, gross injustice. Native American farmer
Rowen White, a Mohawk seed keeper (sierraseeds.org),
believes that seeds contain ancestral memories
and therefore have the power to reconnect people
to culture and create a fairer food system.

Heirloom vegies and fruits offer beauty, colour,

flavour and a connection to our ancestors.

organicgardener.com.au 27
 “Encoded in these seeds are ceremonies and seed
songs and lineages and migration stories,” White
says. “When we have a relationship to these seeds
and eat them at our kitchen tables, then we begin
to call all of that richness back into our lives again.”
The small, black, ‘Cherokee Trail of Tears’ bean
you may hold in the palm of your hand, has a very
real story to tell. In the late 1830s, a relocation march
was forced upon the Cherokee people of southeastern
America by the US government. During brutal winter
conditions at least 4,000 people died, many from
exposure, others from disease and murder. The
Cherokee that survived were made to scratch out
an existence on unfamiliar lands in Oklahoma,
which were designated as “Indian Territories”.
Seeds were carried in the pockets of survivors. These
were planted in the new lands, saved, and handed
down to subsequent generations. ‘Cherokee Trail
of Tears’ bean now serves as a living memorial to
those who died, and the injustices of colonisation.

Heirlooms and ownership

This story begs the question, what defines an heirloom
plant? Is it just a variety that has been handed down
through generations? There is no fixed, agreed upon
definition so I define heirlooms like this: where F1
hybrids are plants owned by corporations, heirlooms
are plants held in common by everyday people.
This plays out in practical ways. If you try to save
seed from a hybrid (made from crossing two parent
plants), particularly an F1 hybrid, the offspring won’t
look like the plant you saved seed from (see ‘Creating
hybrids’ below). That is, it won’t grow true to type.
Heirlooms differ in that they are open-pollinated,
which means a particular variety (technically, a
cultivar) will grow true to type from saved seed.
All this means that heirlooms can be grown and
shared for many generations. F1 hybrids must be
purchased anew every year from the corporation that
has ownership, and here’s the thing: despite all the
rhetoric about “feeding the world” and the “Green
Revolution”, corporatised agriculture is actually
Top: The 'Cherokee Trail of Tears' bean. mostly about profit, and the ultimate way to maintain
Above: 'Glass Gem' corn. profits is to make food growers (gardeners and farmers)
PHOTO: TOP: GAP PHOTOS LYNN KEDDIE/BOTTOM: ALAMY

the seed is stable and grows true to the resulting in two ‘pure lines’. Once
Creating hybrids parent. These are sometimes called
modern heirlooms.
stabilised the breeder then cross-
pollinates these two lines, producing
Hybrids can occur accidentally in F1 (first filial) hybrid seeds and the F1 hybrid seeds that will grow plants
nature or deliberately when a gardener, plants grown from them, result from two showing the required characteristics of
farmer or seed company crosses two different plants being bred on themselves both lines. F1 hybrid seed are deliberately
different cultivars of the same species and selected over several generations unstable after the first generation
in an attempt to develop particular for a particular characteristic (such so that seed can’t be collected and
characteristics. These are then selected as long storage for one plant and regrown by the gardener or farmer
over seven or more generations until simultaneous fruiting for the other), to get the same results.

28
 ORGANIC GROW

Top 5 heirlooms
to plant now
1 BROCCOLI ‘PURPLE SPROUTING’ – One of my
all-time favourites, this non-heading broccoli
produces a mass of purple florets in late winter and
spring. Plant in early autumn for a long growing season.

2 BEETROOT ‘CHIOGGIA’ – A wonderful variety

that originated in a market town north of Venice.
Decorative and delicious with red and white candy
stripe bulbs topped by tasty, spinach-like greens.

3 PEA ‘ALDERMAN’ – A traditional shelling pea

from the UK that grows to 2m tall and produces
an abundant crop of fat, green pods. The flavour of
the shelled peas is simply wonderful!

4 CARROT ‘KURODA’ – A quick-growing Japanese

variety that produces chunky roots with red-orange
flesh. Great for heavier soils and copes with
The garden at St Erth
in Victoria.

subtropical conditions.

5 ONION ‘BARLETTA’ – An old Italian variety that

produces flat, white, sweet bulbs in just three
months. Plant in late summer or early autumn for
a harvest before the winter solstice. Digging the future
No organisation in Australia has done more to
preserve and distribute heirlooms than The Diggers
Club. Established in the late 1970s by Clive and
pay continually for seeds they were once able to save
Penny Blazey, the inspiration for Diggers was
and replant for free. Food sovereignty advocates argue
Gerrard Winstanley, a 17th century English radical
that everyone should have the ability to determine
who founded an activist group known as the True
what they grow and eat. This is only possible if seeds
Levellers. Contemporaries called them the Diggers,
are open-pollinated and held in common ownership.
because they occupied land that had been privatised
The saddest part is that since the advent of
by enclosures, tearing down hedges and filling in
industrial agriculture, globally, thousands of unique
ditches so that they could plant vegetables and
fruit and vegetable cultivars have been lost from
feed the crops to the poor. The Blazeys set up their
gardens and farms. Gradually, small seed companies
business with an equally radical purpose: to rescue
specialising in heirlooms have been swallowed up
old and interesting vegetable varieties that were
by big companies more interested in hybrids. It is
being dropped by large seed merchants.
estimated that in the last century developed countries
The first Diggers catalogue, published in 1978,
have lost more than 90 per cent of cultivars.
featured 300 heirloom vegetable and flower
There is also the issue of nutrition. Many
varieties. The business flourished in the ensuing
developers of F1 hybrid vegetable varieties, being
decades, to the point that the most recent Diggers
primarily interested in profits, want their seeds to
seed annual was sent to 76,000 members. It
bear crops that resist pests, are super abundant,
featured more than 350 varieties of heirloom
can be picked all at once, transported long distances,
vegetables and fruit, and 100 varieties of flowers.
and will display well on a supermarket shelf. The
In 2011, the Blazeys gifted ownership of their
trade off in achieving these goals is a dilution of
business, along with two historic family owned
nutrients in hybrid vegetable varieties.
gardens – Heronswood on the Mornington Peninsula
Not so with heirlooms. These varieties are usually
and St Erth in the central highlands – to a newly
lower yielding than hybrids, but what they lack in
PHOTO: THE DIGGERS CLUB

established charity. The Diggers Foundation has

numbers they certainly make up for with nutrients.
a simple, but profound aim: “To encourage and
This nutrient density is a boon for eaters in two
inspire gardeners to create beautiful and productive
ways. One is better quality food with greater health
gardens for a sustainable future.”
effects. The second is more pleasurable food with
gobsmacking flavour – we can taste the nutrients!

organicgardener.com.au 29
 ORGANIC GROW

Stories to tell
CUCUMBER ‘LEMON’ Not all heirloom veg is
completely above board. This unfortunate cucumber,
which is actually a ripper to grow and lovely to
eat, was the product of a snake oil salesman who
claimed he used an orange blossom plucked from his
daughter’s wedding bouquet to pollinate a cucumber.
The result was a “true lemon cucumber”, which he
sold at the exorbitant price of $1 per seed! In truth,
citrus and cucurbits will not cross pollinate and the
round, lemon yellow, zesty tasting fruit is simply
the result of traditional plant breeding and was
introduced to the US in 1894. It’s a great variety
for growing on a trellis.

LETTUCE ‘FORELLENSCHLUSS’ There are lots

of beautiful heirloom lettuce varieties in cultivation,
but my favourite, and I would argue the most
beautiful of all, is ‘Forellenschluss’. It’s an Austrian
variety whose name loosely translates as “speckled
trout”. Kind of odd, right, until you see the plant.
It’s a cos or romaine style lettuce with lime green
leaves that are artfully splashed with spots and
blotches of maroon, resembling the markings on
a trout’s back. The leaves taste as good as they
look, and the plant is a good variety to grow as
a bolt-resistant summer lettuce.

PUMPKIN ‘QUEENSLAND BLUE’ As the name

suggests this homegrown heirloom originated in
Beaudesert, Queensland, sometime during the early
20th century. No-one’s quite sure when but there is
a record of seed being sent to the US in 1932, so it
was probably bred in the years during or just after
the First World War. What is known for sure is that
this pumpkin produces a glaucous coloured fruit with
enough flavoursome flesh to keep the average family
in pumpkin soup for a fortnight. I remember my Pa
growing Queensland Blues on his Brisbane market
garden and on many occasions, I was served roasted
“blue” alongside sliced lamb for Sunday lunch.
Queensland Blue is a national treasure!

POTATO ‘PINK EYE’ I was once asked whether I

have a favourite vegetable. Off the top of my head
I said, yes, the potato. It remains so to this day. My
favourite spuds are waxy, and one of the best waxy
spuds of all is the Tasmanian bred beauty, the ‘Pink
PHOTO: TOP: ALAMY/BOTTOM: ISTOCK

Eye’. It has nothing to do with irritated eyes. The

name refers to the small indentations scattered
around the tuber, which are coloured pink against
the rest of the creamy-white skin. ‘Pink Eye’ was
developed around 1900 at South Arm, a peninsula to
the southeast of Hobart. Here, it thrived in salt spray
and sandy soil, earning a reputation as one of the Top: 'Forellenschluss' lettuce.
world’s easiest to grow and most delicious to eat Above: 'Queensland Blue' origins date back to 1900s.

30
 eritage fruit
H

An heirloom apple
tree at St Erth.

Just like heirloom vegies, fruiting plants can be handed

down through the generations. In fact, if you plant an
‘Isaac Newton’ apple, also known as the 'Flower of Kent',
you’re planting a tree with the exact same DNA as the
tree in Lincolnshire under which the famous physicist
developed his theory of gravity. There’s a simple reason for
this – nearly every apple tree is grafted with scions that
were historically taken as cuttings from the original tree.
The other thing to note is that fruiting plants aren’t
immune from genetic modification or corporate control.
Many old varieties have been lost over the last hundred
years as they’ve fallen out of favour with orchardists.
Thankfully, there are numerous groups in Australia and
overseas dedicated to conserving heritage fruiting
plants, including some excellent nurseries.
For more information visit: heritagefruitssociety.org

Top: The Tasmanian 'Pink Eye'.

Above: 'Broad Ripple Yellow Currant'.
SUPPLIERS
potatoes. It’s still available from seed potato sellers You can get heirloom seeds from a variety of sources,
in winter and if you’re in a temperate climate, it’s including online sellers and gardeners giving them away.
However, not all online sellers are reputable. Look for
PHOTO: TOP: ALAMY/BOTTOM: THE DIGGERS CLUB/FAR RIGHT: THE DIGGERS CLUB

definitely worth a go.

sellers with a strong track record. These include:
The Diggers Club: diggers.com.au
TOMATO ‘BROAD RIPPLE YELLOW CURRANT’ Eden Seeds: edenseeds.com.au
Sometimes the best heirlooms aren’t the biggest, or Green Harvest: greenharvest.com.au
the flashiest. This little currant sized tomato is pretty Greenpatch Organic Seeds: greenpatchseeds.com.au
enough, but what really sets it apart is its wonderful Heirloom Harvest: heirloomharvest.com.au
story of triumph over adversity. You’re probably Inspirations Vegetable Seeds: vegetableseeds.net.au
wondering about the name? Well, Broad Ripple is The Lost Seed: thelostseed.com.au
a neighbourhood in Indianapolis. The tomato in Rangeview Seeds: rangeviewseeds.com.au
question was thought to be extinct, until some keen Royston Petrie: rpseeds.com.au
eye spotted it growing out of a crack in the sidewalk Seed Freaks: seedfreaks.com.au
in the aforementioned neighbourhood. It was pulled Southern Harvest: southernharvest.com.au
up, transplanted and survived. Seed is now available Also look for seed saver groups in your area and start
all over the world and is grown by tomato enthusiasts saving seeds yourself: seedsavers.net
who enjoy prolific crops of bright yellow fruit
produced on tough, vigorous vines. Turn the page for our Essential Guide to Seed Saving.

organicgardener.com.au 31
 PHOTO: ALAMY

Allium seed heads

cut down for drying
and seed-saving.
 OW TO SPECIAL
H

Essential guide to
Seed
saving
Helen McKerral explores how nature spreads seeds, the value
of saving seed from your garden, and how to do it.

F
or countless generations of farmers, home often amazed at how many vegetables prefer sawdust
gardeners and First Nations peoples worldwide, paths over meticulously prepared beds!
saving their own vegetable and crop seeds to Saving seed saves you money, and you’ll also
replant was not optional: it meant survival. become more sustainable by further reducing the food
Vegetables were open pollinated by whatever bees miles on your dinner table. As well, you’ll be part of
and insects were about, and this, plus deliberate a global seed-saving community: when rare varieties
crosses by farmers and gardeners, created numerous grow in many gardens, they are unlikely to be lost.
heirloom varieties suited to different conditions and If you collect seeds from the healthiest, strongest,
tastes not only in Australia, but around the globe. most productive plants year after year, you select
Although many of us now buy seeds from our those that do best in your local microclimate – in
local nursery or seed supplier, this is a relatively effect, a breeding program that adapts plants ever
recent development, and saving seed from your more closely to your specific garden conditions.
own garden to replant the following year has In fact, since beginning to save seeds, I’ve often had
many wonderful benefits. more success than with commercial seeds. Once, I was
even too successful: thinking to save time, I banged
Why save seed? ripe parsnip seed heads against the ground in areas
Saving seed is fun, and watching a plant’s entire I wanted sown. Unfortunately, they came up in a
life cycle makes you a better gardener. When you carpet so thick that I then spent many, many hours
plant seeds back into your garden, you notice thinning them out! The seeds in those heads equalled
where seedlings thrive, and better understand their dozens of commercial seed packets, and it was super
cultivation requirements, such as the thyme that fresh, with high germination rates. I still sow
germinates only in my drystone walls. And I’m vegetables that way, but much more carefully!

organicgardener.com.au 33
 OW TO SPECIAL
H

Vegies gone to seed

attract insects.
Right: Salsify seed will
be blown by the wind.

DID YOU
Finally, some unusual varieties, such as glossy KNOW?
angelica, grow only from fresh seed, rarely available
commercially, so collecting your own ensures you
keep them. The oldest viable seeds to successfully
grow new plants are truly ancient. They
Pollination, hybrids and heirlooms
Many vegetables and most fruit trees are pollinated include a 1,200-year-old lotus seed from
by insects, notably bees, but others, such as corn and
avocadoes, are wind-pollinated. Species pollinated
a lake bed in China, a 2,000-year-old date
by wind must be planted close together, or in a block. palm seed excavated from the rubble of an
Other vegetables such as tomatoes, lettuce, and
silverbeet are also self-fertile (self-pollinating), ancient site in Israel, and, astonishingly,
so they don’t need pollen from another flower silene grown from tissue culture extracted
or plant to fruit or set seed.
Heirlooms are open-pollinated and reliably from 32,000-year-old seeds found in
stable, with offspring indistinguishable from parents. squirrel burrows in Siberian permafrost!
This means you can collect your own and plant seeds
that will grow true to the parent plant. These seeds
belong to everyone (refer to ‘Our precious heirlooms’
on page 26 for more details on this type of seed).
However, some cultivars in your garden may To minimise natural hybridisation, plant just one
hybridise naturally. Certain vegetables are more variety of the vegetable, or make sure they flower at
prone to this – self-fertile tomatoes generally breed different times, and/or use insect exclusion net or bags
true, but squashes are more likely to cross. This over the buds you wish to collect from. When flowers
can be beneficial, resulting in interesting flower open, pollinate using a little paintbrush to transfer
colours, or pumpkins with unusual shapes. pollen, and re-bag. Collect seed when fruit ripens.

34
 TO
TOMA TIP
Fermenting tomato seeds before storage
improves germination and removes several
seed-borne diseases. Simply scoop out seeds
and place in a jar with a cup of water. Screw on
the lid, shake, and leave on a kitchen counter.
Shake daily for a few days until scummy, then
decant the scum and water – viable seeds sink.
Drain seeds in a sieve, then dry completely
on paper towel for at least a week.

Separating seed

Brassica seed
pods developing.

How to save seed

Letting flowers and vegetables seed means leaving
them in the ground past their ‘prime’, but it’s simply
another satisfying harvest. Yes, beds look somewhat
messy during seasonal changeovers, but it’s natural
PHOTOS: HELEN MCKERRAL/TOMATO TIP: TOP: GAP THOMAS ALAMY/CENTRE & BOTTOM: GAP DAVE BEVAN

in a healthy garden.
You need fewer plants than you think for seed:
an individual plant usually produces dozens, if
not thousands, of seeds.
When improving soil for subsequent crops in Shaking in jar of water
your garden, work around the plant(s) left behind
for seed, or start crops in pots, transplanting after
removing seed plants.
It’s essential to save seed from your best plants.
For all leafy and root vegetables, choose the last
plant to go to seed, otherwise you’ll be selecting
for plants that bolt (set seed early in the season).
When selecting root vegetables, scrape away
a little soil to ensure your selection is not only slow
to bolt but also has thick roots. Conversely, the best
seed for fruiting vegetables comes from the fruit of
those that fruit early.
Choose disease-free plants, or at least the
healthiest ones. However, tomatoes and capsicums
must be disease-free, because viruses can be
All stages: including sieved and dry seed.
carried in seeds.

organicgardener.com.au 35
 When to collect
Annual plants will set seed at the end of the season
before the plant dies. Perennial plants, which grow
for more than one year, generally flower and set
seed every year. However, biennial plants will grow
for one year and then flower, set seed and die in the
second year, so will need to stay in the ground longer
if you want to collect seed. In tropical and sub-
tropical regions, biennials will often grow as annuals.
Seed is often ripe just before pods or capsules
are completely dry, or fruits are fully ripe. You
may need to net or bag fruit or seed heads
against pests during ripening.

How to collect
Cut entire seed heads and invert over a tub or
newspaper in a dry place, or in a paper bag.
Shake seeds off immediately, or let them fall
later if not yet dry. Sieve larger seed to remove
debris, or winnow smaller seed: place in a shallow,
curved bowl, and blow across the surface. Shake
the bowl several times, continuing to blow until
only seeds are left in the bottom.
From fruit, scoop out or extract seeds, and dry Top left: Collect sweetpea seeds to replant every year.
thoroughly on clean paper towel. Remove beans Top: Red dragon climbing beans hung to dry.
and peas from dry pods. Above: Celery seed heads upended ready for collection.
Store in small, clean, sealed glass jars in a Opposite: Carrot seed (left and top) and parsnip seed.
dry, cool, dark place – a bedroom cupboard is fine,
or the refrigerator. Avoid sheds with fluctuating To kill insect pests, add a little diatomaceous
temperatures. Some seeds remain viable for earth to the jar and shake to coat seeds. If you
lengthy periods, but others, such as carrots, have a vacuum sealer, this not only kills insects,
are best sown within the year. but also extends seed viability.

36
 OW TO SPECIAL
H

A dozen seeds to save

VEGETABLE/HERB POLLINATION GROWTH STORAGE YEARS COLLECTION NOTES
BASIL Insect, cross- A 5-6 Separate different varieties. Cut stalks
pollinate when the top seed capsules turn brown,
and dry in a paper bag.
BEAN/PEA Self-pollinate A, P 3-4 Pick pods when yellow or leave on plant to
dry. Crack pods and dry seeds until there is
no give when squeezed.
CARROT Insect, cross- B 2-3 Leave in ground until second year to flower,
pollinate separate different varieties, pick umbels
once seed is well-formed and dry inside.
CORIANDER Insect, cross- A 2-3 Pick whole flower head once seed starts to
pollinate brown, dry in a large paper bag inside.
EGGPLANT Insect, cross and P 5-6 Wait for fruit to start to yellow, pick whole
self-pollinate fruit and grate the whole eggplant. Add
water and mash up, seeds will drop to the
bottom. Dry for several days.
KALE (and other Insect, cross- B 4 Separate from all other brassicas. Leave in
brassicas) pollinate ground until it flowers in second year, pick
each seed pod as it turns brown and finish
drying inside. Crush pods to release seed.
LETTUCE Self-pollinate A 5 Collect from later seed-setting plants, when
most of the fluffy white seeds are formed,
pick the whole head and dry inside.
PARSNIP Insect, Cross- B 1 Leave in ground until it flowers in second
pollinate year, collect the whole seed head when seed
turns brown and finish drying inside.
PUMPKIN Insect, cross- A 5-8 Pollinate by hand, keep separate from other
pollinate varieties of same species. Harvest seed
when cutting open pumpkin, dry on a saucer
for two weeks.
RADISH Insect, cross- A, B 3-4 Collect seeds from late-season seeders,
pollinate cut heads as pods brown and hang inside to
finish drying. Crush pods to release seeds.
SILVERBEET Wind, insect and B 8-10 Bag flower heads to inhibit cross-pollination
cross-pollinate from related species. Harvest seed when
it turns light brown by running your
hand up the flower stems while holding
a bowl underneath.
PHOTOS: HELEN MCKERRAL

TOMATO Self-pollinate A 4-7 Wind aids self-pollination. Collect seed from

mid-season fruit, dry on paper. Or ferment
first to reduce disease (see ‘Tomato tip’).
Perennial – P; Annual – A; Biennial – B
 Naturalising magic
Once plants begin seeding in your garden, you’ll be
amazed at where they pop up – places that suit them
best are often not the ones you think! If they aren’t
in the way, leave them: these plants are almost
always healthier and more productive than those
from seeds sown into perfectly prepared seedbeds.
In my garden, heirloom picking lettuces, parsley,
parsnip, celery, carrots, radish, chives, rocket, kale,
dill and more, seed for an almost year-round supply.
Wild cherry tomato seedlings don’t germinate until
December, but are usually amongst the first to fruit
and last to finish. Take note of nature’s hints: in this
instance, an indication of how late soil warms in my
garden, and a guide as to when to transplant
seedlings. Collecting seed from naturalised plants is
even better than collecting from ones you’ve sown.
Annual flowers may naturalise, too. Aquilegias,
honesty and hellebores naturalise in my garden
without being invasive. When first sowing any
uncommon plant that might naturalise, first
collect all seed, scatter a little, and sow the rest
into a tray. This will help to manage the extremes
of low germination or an invasion.
Encourage seeds to naturalise by not mulching
too thickly in summer, and let mulch thin further
PHOTOS: TOP LEFT AND ABOVE: HELEN MCKERRAL/LEFT: MILKWOOD.

in autumn so seed falls on clean ground. If autumn

rains are late, irrigate with efficient sprinklers
rather than drippers for a few weeks to promote
germination while soil is warm.
In spite of my embarrassment of riches with
parsnip seedlings, I still pull entire plants of other
vegetables (lettuce, dill) and swish or bash seed heads
in areas that might suit them, or throw spent seeding
plants there as an easy way to spread them.

Top left: Chives, erigeron and brassicas seed in my garden.

Above: Heirloom ‘Freckles’ lettuce naturalising in a pot.
Left: Removing beans from dried pods.

38
 OW TO SPECIAL
H

SMART SEEDS AND DISPERSAL

Seeds and their capsules are wonders of evolution. Each
tiny package of genetic material with its clever wrapping
has been honed over millions of years to spread to the right
place at the right time. Some seeds even escape with a
bang! Remember, the clever wrapping is not the seed itself,
and needs to be dried, removed or winnowed. Also, extra
adaptations to cold, drought or fire mean some seeds need
special treatment after storage to germinate (see chart on
page 37). Seeds of course need help to get to a new location
– here are some examples of natural seed dispersal:

WATER Cranberry harvest is a spectacular example,

where berries float down streams and across lakes.
Coconuts float, too, perfectly adapted to the ocean with
waterproof shells and their own fresh water supply inside
to start germination when they arrive on distant shores.
Some mangrove seeds fall and float vertically, rooting
rapidly as soon as they touch a suitable substrate,
whereas others germinate attached to the tree before
falling, so that roots dibber into the mud!

WIND The ways in which seeds use wind to disperse

are astonishing. Some, such as maples, have winged seeds
(‘samaras’) to helicopter away. Dandelions use parachutes in
the form of fluffy attachments. Others, such as orchid seeds,
are minute or light and flattened, to float on the faintest
current. And others, such as poppies, have pepper-pot
capsules on swaying long stalks to scatter rolling seeds.

ANIMALS AND PEOPLE Caltrop’s pointy spikes,

goosegrass burrs, grass seeds’ barbs and acaena’s
devilishly hooked spines (once in your socks, they are there
forever; believe me, just throw away that pair!) are all
designed to hitchhike on fur, skin, clothes or rubber tyres.
A second strategy gives delicious nuts, seeds and fruits
a chance to spread: enticement to be eaten, followed by
discarding the large indigestible seed (mango); or to eat
the lot, and deposit seeds elsewhere (berries). Blackberry
and emu bush seeds need to pass through the gut of a bird
to germinate. Squirrels bury acorns, ants carry seeds
inside nests… the adaptations are endless.

FIRE AND MORE Many Australian native plants, such

as banksia, have woody seed capsules to protect seeds
from fire, opening afterwards to drop seeds into sunny,
nutrient-rich ash beds.
Some seeds, such as those of the Californian poppy
and broom, have pods that open with explosive force
More information
The Seed Savers Handbook, Seed Savers Network, 2010
to scatter seeds.
Growing Australian Native Plants from Seed, Murray Ralph,
PHOTOS: HELEN MCKERRAL

Bushland Horticulture
Top: Ornamental poppies have a pepper shaker capsule The Seed Garden, Lee Buttala and Shanyn Siegel, Seed
with small openings at top for distributing seed.
Savers Exchange
Bottom: Australian natives such as banksias have
woody cones to protect seeds against fire. Visit: seedsavers.net

organicgardener.com.au 39
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organicgardener.com.au 41
 Aquilegias are terrific in
DID YOU
a vase: cut them early in
KNOW? the morning, as buds begin to
open. In the US, species such
as Aquilegia formosa and
A. canadensis include
hummingbirds amongst Aquilegia vulgaris ‘White Barlow’.
their pollinators. Right: A. vulgaris ‘Pink’.
 ORGANIC FLOWERS

Bewitching bonnets
Helen McKerral has long been captivated by the
stunning, bee-attracting Aquilegias.

F
airies’ hats, granny’s bonnets, doves at a dish… the cure was worse than the disease because,
it’s plain that more than one gardener has been although a few species are edible, all parts of the
bewitched by the evocative nodding flowers of most common ones contain toxins in varying
plants otherwise known as columbines, or aquilegias. amounts so should not be eaten. Gardeners today
PHOTOS: HELEN MCKERRAL

Aquilegias have been popular in gardens for grow aquilegias for their beautiful ferny foliage
centuries and are portrayed in medieval paintings and stunning display of flowers.
as well as in heraldic emblems. Fifteenth century Bees and butterflies also love them – in my
cooks used them to colour recipes and to treat Adelaide Hills garden they buzz with insect life
ulcers and nervous disorders, but one suspects from October to December.

organicgardener.com.au 43
 ORGANIC FLOWERS

In my garden,
aquilegias
are the prime
‘naturalising’
perennial.

Even better for home gardeners is

that they hybridise (cross-pollinate)
so readily that, if you plant just
a few colours and forms, you’ll
end up with almost every possible
variety. I began with purple,
white and the double ‘Nora Barlow’
and now have literally dozens of
different single, double and starry
varieties in purple, pale and dark
pink, blue, mauve, white, black
and bicolour ones. ‘Leprechaun
Gold’ has lovely gold and green
variegated foliage that looks great
even when the plant isn’t in bloom.
Aquilegias will grow in all climate
zones but do best in regions with
cold winters. In climates with
warmer winters they must be
planted in autumn, need a
semi-shaded position and may
not last for more than a single
season (so it’s best to collect seed
for resowing each year).

Family matters
Aquilegia is a genus of around
70 Northern Hemisphere species
of short-lived deciduous perennials
in the Ranunculus family. Relatives
include buttercups, hellebores,
clematis and anemones. Numerous
aquilegia hybrids, both natural
and cultivated, exist, with most
growing 70–100cm tall. Flowers are
usually spurred, sometimes spectacularly so; those
without spurs are described as stellate or clementine,
as they resemble clematis flowers.
Naturalising wonders
Aquilegias, particularly A. vulgaris, are the prime
With their large, spurred blooms in bicolour ‘naturalising’ perennial in my garden: they seed freely, filling
shades of pink, yellow, red, white and blue, gaps with colour without becoming invasive. Other gardens
A. caerulea hybrids (eg A. x hybrida ‘McKana Giant’) in cool regions of Victoria and Tasmania are different, so
are widely available. However, my favourites are test by collecting seed initially, especially if you live near
A. vulgaris varieties with their smaller, nodding bushland. I don’t let them seed near my vegetable garden
flowers: they are outstanding in woodland and because they are large, deep-rooted plants that aren’t
sheltered gardens where they naturalise into easily pulled. I also remove them while still small from pots
gorgeous drifts of colour in spring. Colours and gravel paths, where they love to pop up; elsewhere,
range from white through to a purple so dark they seem to find places that suit them best, in neither full
as to be almost black, and the flowers may sun nor deep shade. Plant a range of colours and forms,
be single, double, starry or rosiform. and they’ll reproduce and expand in number, form and
I’ve also enjoyed finding unusual species hue throughout any garden with the right microclimate.
and varieties at farmers’ markets, specialist
perennial nurseries and seed suppliers.

44
 Clockwise from left: ‘Nora Barlow’;
Aquilegia atrata; cranebills are
the classic aquilegia companion;
A. vulgaris ‘Double Pale Blue’.

VARIETY BEST FEATURES

A. vulgaris ‘Nora Barlow’ Double starry pink and white flowers
A. vulgaris ‘Leprechaun Gold’ Compact gold and green variegated foliage
A. chrysantha, A. longissima Long-spurred yellow flowers
PHOTOS: HELEN MCKERRAL

A. canadensis and hybrids Bright, nodding red and yellow flowers

A. vulgaris ‘Barlow Rose’ Very pretty double, soft pink flowers
A. vulgaris ‘Hensol Harebell’ A floriferous blue variety
A. caerulea cultivars Two-toned, large flowers

organicgardener.com.au 45
 Tips and ideas
Mass plant to highlight complementary colours.
Deadhead to extend flowering, allowing final
flowers to seed.
Remove old leaves in autumn; fresh ones emerge
soon after.
Let them naturalise: they’ll fill gaps without you
needing to do anything other than leave seedlings
behind when you weed (see ‘Naturalising wonders’).
In warmer regions, underplant deciduous trees
Left: Aquilegia with aquilegias to show off the pastel colours: they’ll
seed is black
and shiny. get plenty of light during winter, and sun protection
Below right: in summer.
A. alpina. Mix taller varieties into planters or large, wide pots.

Propagate your own

You can easily propagate aquilegias from seed
collected in late spring to early summer. Pods are
ready when they change colour from green to
yellow, feel dry rather than sticky, rattle when
shaken, and/or when capsules have begun to
open. Ripe seed is black and shiny.
Either immediately sow seed shallowly into
trays of seed-raising mix, or store in a cool, dry
place and sow in situ with autumn rains but before
soil temperature drops significantly. Simply scatter
seed in the areas of the garden you’d like them
to grow. Or, if sowing into trays, replant seedlings
into the ground in spring, or prick out when 5cm
tall into small pots or tubes.
Established clumps are easily divided. Just dig
up, hose soil from the roots, and slice with a sharp
knife, ensuring buds each have a corresponding
bunch of roots. Space plants 40–60cm apart.

Old friends
Aquilegias complement many other old-fashioned
spring-flowering perennials.
Marguerite daisies, especially heritage single
white varieties, are hardy and, when planted to
the northwest of your aquilegias, provide shelter
the latter needs. Similarly, try them near the base
of climbing supports for clematis, honeysuckle,
rambling roses or hardenbergia, where they’ll
brighten shaded, empty spaces with colour.
True geraniums, or cranesbills, thrive in the
same part-sun conditions that aquilegias like.
Other old fashioned perennials like verbena, phlox,
shasta daisies, peonies and delphiniums, or annuals
such as stock, snapdragons and candytuft are
also classic combos.
In slightly more or dappled shade, try them with
sweet violets, hostas, hellebores, campanulas and
forget-me-nots. Choose varieties with pale or bright
flowers that stand out well in shade, rather than dark
blues and blacks that vanish into the shadows.

46
 ORGANIC FLOWERS

How to Pests and

grow diseases
Few pests bother aquilegias.
Sun: Aquilegias need good light Green aphids attack flower
to flower well but, with our summers stems occasionally but I’ve
so much hotter than in the Northern never sprayed them and plants
Hemisphere, it’s best to give them always seem to manage. Other
protection from afternoon sun that insects sometimes nibble off new
shrivels flowers and shortens the growth, and fungal disease may
life of your display. Morning sun blacken leaves in excessively
only, or positions under deciduous damp, shady conditions without
trees where they receive full sun sufficient air circulation but, if
in late winter and early spring, but provided with moist soil during
dappled shade in late spring and their growing season, plus mulch,
summer, are ideal. aquilegias are surprisingly hardy
plants for Mediterranean and
Soil: Aquilegias tolerate most temperate climate regions.
soils except for very acid or
unimproved ones. Neither are they Green aphids on flower stems.
greedy: add a little manure or blood
and bone, fertilise with a mulch
of rotted compost in winter, and
aquilegias will reward you with
a stunning display every spring.
Water: Although Northern
Hemisphere plants, aquilegias need
less water than you might expect,
because here they grow and set seed
before the hottest time of year, when
they conveniently enter summer
dormancy. This means that, in my
sheltered Mediterranean climate
garden (rainfall approximately
900mm, primarily between autumn
and spring), they naturalise in parts
that receive no artificial irrigation.
Conversely, they loathe waterlogging,
so provide good drainage.

A. x hybrida
A. ‘Barlow’.

BUYING SEED OR PLANTS

Buy flowering potted plants in spring and plant into moist soil, watering
regularly for the first summer. Seed is cheaper, though, and can be
planted from summer into autumn. Perennials in punnets are also great
value-for-money: buy several punnets for a stunning display not only for
one year, but for at least five more (or a lifetime if you collect seed!).
Summer and autumn plantings have time to establish strong clumps and
flower beautifully the following spring.
PHOTOS: HELEN MCKERRAL

Some cottage garden nurseries and mail-order suppliers also stock unusual
species such as yellow A. chrysantha, blue A. flabellata, or red A. canadensis,
A. formosa and their cultivars.
TRY: mrfothergills.com.au lambley.com.au renaissanceherbs.com.au
southernharvest.com.au birchgrovegardens.com.au

organicgardener.com.au 47
 Plan ahead It will soon be time to prepare your cool season
garden and plan what to grow.

T
his is an in-between time, with summer This simply means remembering where you planted
heat still raging in many regions, but these crop families last year and the year before,
cooler autumn nights not far away. While and planting them in a different spot this year.
you finish harvesting your summer crops, it’s a It’s also a good time to check commercial seed
good opportunity to plan for autumn and winter company websites to identify rare or unusual
plantings. These would include brassicas such cultivars of vegies that can be planted now, as
as kale, broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts and well as regrowing old favourites using seed you
cauliflower (see page 20) as well as alliums like may have already collected.
PHOTO: ISTOCK

garlic, shallots and old-fashioned potato onions. Penny Woodward

Consider crop rotation to minimise diseases
being carried from one year to the next in the soil. Above: Sprouting purple broccoli.

48
 ORGANIC ACTION

Tropical
Leonie Shanahan

Must do: Clean up gardens. Nourish food gardens with

compost and mulch, and water with seaweed, fish emulsion
and worm casting solution.

Plant now: Plant heirloom seeds for their flavour,

nutrients and to save the seeds. Try ‘Hong Kong’ broccoli,
cultivated over 4000 years ago. Every part of the plant
is edible. Another of interest is celtuce (Lactuca sativa
var. asparagine), a non-hearting stem lettuce – a French
heirloom from the 1700s said to be higher in vitamin C
than other lettuces.

Passionfruit vines need strong support. Grow

in well-drained soil, in full sun with good air
flow but protected from wind. Feed with
lots of organic matter, regular fertiliser,
magnesium (water with magnesium sulphate
in the form of Epsom salts: 1 tablespoon to 10L water), trace
elements (rock dust is a good source) and keep soil mulched.
Foliar feed with liquid seaweed monthly. Fruit drops to the
ground when ripe. After fruiting, prune back by one third.
Plant a new vine every two years as they are short lived.

SUBTropical
Leonie Shanahan

Pest alert: Fruit piercing moth, Eudocima species.

Go outside at night with a torch, if you see a moth with red,
glowing eyes and orange on its wingspan, you have this night
moth. They puncture the ripe and ripening fruit then suck
the juice out. The fruit rots, falls and goes brown. The only
solution is to bag fruit or pick early before they strike. The
moth attacks citrus, mangoes, papaws and persimmons.
PHOTOS: TOP: ALAMY/BOTTOM: LEONIE SHANAHAN/ILLUSTRATION: ISTOCK

Spend time talking with older gardeners,

especially those who save seed, to learn
about best garden practice and best seeds
to grow in your area. Ask about successful,
unusual plants – often they will share seeds
that are not available from seed companies,
for example, ‘First Fleet’ lettuce.

Action alert: Prepare garden beds (weed, feed and

mulch) for the most productive time of year – winter. Order
your organic/heirloom seeds. A planting scheme could include:
beans, borage, peas, carrots, leeks, sage and cucumber.

Top: You can eat both the leaves and stem of celtuce.
Right: Damage caused by fruit piercing moth.

organicgardener.com.au 49
 Above: A jujube (Ziziphus jujuba).
Left: White borage.

arid/semi-arid
Helen McKerral

rare herbs: Plant rare varieties of common herbs –

the more gardeners who grow them, the less likely they are to
be lost. White borage is a pretty alternative to blue, but don’t
grow them together or you’ll end up with mostly blue (white
is recessive). Buy from specialist suppliers and then collect
seed regularly as it develops.

plant now: Jujubes or Chinese dates (Ziziphus jujuba)

are small trees with delicious fruit that are eaten fresh like
mini apples, or dried when they become chewy and sweet.
PHOTO: TOP: ISTOCK/LEFT: HELEN MCKERRAL

Plants are heat, drought and salt tolerant and love long, hot
summers. Plant named cultivars when soil is moist after
opening rains, or while they are deciduous in winter.

Unusual heirloom vegetables and heritage fruit

are often not commercially available even from
specialist suppliers, but local garden clubs,
farmers’ markets, seed-saver groups and rare
fruit societies are other places to find them.

50
 ORGANIC ACTION

warmPenny
temperate
Woodward

Prepare your soil 6–8 weeks beforehand for

late March to May garlic planting. Either sow
green manure and dig in at least three weeks
before planting. Or spread well-rotted cow,
sheep or horse manure, and compost, over
the surface of the bed, lightly fork into the
top few centimetres or allow the worms to do the work for
you. Water well and keep moist to hasten break down.

Pest alert: The last of the heat will continue to

stress plants and provide perfect conditions for mites. Look
for pale mottled leaves. To control, spray water under and
on top of leaves, or use a potassium based soap spray, or
wettable sulphur. Water-stressed plants are more likely
to attract mites.

Plant now: Plant seeds of some unusual plants

in the celery family like the heirloom ‘Red Stem’ celery,
Chinese celery or the Australian native, ‘Island Sea’ celery
(Apium insulare).

Gourd
There are edible and ornamental varieties
of different shapes and sizes in the gourd
family, and it’s easy to save the large seed
collected from these plants.
Some will have a very hard ‘shell’ others
are more brittle. All gourds are ready to pick
for seed saving when the whole vine has died
back and the gourd is dried and a tan colour.
You can confirm this by tapping the gourd, if
they sound hollow and make a ‘rattle’ sound,
the seeds are dry inside.
Open the shell and empty seeds out.
PHOTO: RIGHT: PENNY WOODWARD/ILLUSTRATION: ISTOCK

Rub off the dry flesh with your hands.

Store seeds in paper bag or seed packet.
Alternatively, seeds can be stored naturally
in the unopened gourd, open when the seed
is needed. Seed is viable for four years.
To use the gourd shell for craft (vases,
bowls, painting, musical instruments),
the gourd needs to be fully dried over
many months.
Leonie Shanahan
‘Island Sea’ celery.

organicgardener.com.au 51
 Build a
bamboo trellis
Trellises keep climbing plants off the ground,
minimising disease and making harvesting easier.
Depending on the season and climate, examples are
peas, beans, cucumbers, pumpkins and melons.
You need
17 x 2m poles (I’ve used bamboo):
12 for verticals
1 for the cross pole
4 for horizontals
Twine
4 short metal stakes (optional)
In this pictured example, poles are placed 50cm apart,
resulting in a structure that is 2.5m long and 1.2m wide
at the base.
1. Insert the end poles in the ground, cross them over at
the top and tie together. Lay a pole horizontally where the
poles intersect and tie.
2. Insert middle poles 50cm apart, evenly spaced and tie on.
3. Add two poles horizontally to each side, one third of the
way up the trellis and tie on, then add poles two thirds up
the structure. If the trellis needs more strength, add metal
stakes to each corner pole.
4. Weave twine around each pole in the gaps as shown, or
use fibre netting. Leonie Shanahan Measure distances between poles.

Add horizontal poles for strength. Finished trellis secured by stakes.

PHOTOS: LEONIE SHANAHAN

52
 Tropical
Subtropical
Arid/semi-Arid
Warm Temperate
Cold Temperate

coldenny
temperate
Woodward
WHAT TO PLANT AND SOW NOW
Must do: Use up existing compost so your compost
bins are ready for the abundance of autumn leaves. Or
create a simple compost heap by piling up the leaves and
PLANT/SOW FEBRUARY MARCH
add manure and kitchen scraps to increase the nutrient Asian greens
profile. Water and turn regularly. Alternatively make a Basil
simple chicken wire tube about 1m in diameter and fill it BeanS: French/Climb
with leaves and other fine garden scraps. Beetroot
Broccoli
When buying garlic cloves for planting, if Brussels sprouts
they’ve come from a different climate or soil
Cabbage
to your own, they may take a few years to
Carrot
adapt to the new conditions. In the first year
you may only get small bulbs. But if you save Cauliflower
and replant, they will do better in the second year, and CELERY/celeriac
even better in the third. This is particularly true if the Daikon
garlic comes from a warmer climate to a cold climate. Eggplant
Herbs/Mediterranean
Plant now: As soon as we start getting the first Kale
cooler nights, plant seeds of Asian greens such as bok choy,
Kohlrabi
tatsoi, gai lan and wong bok.
Leek
Lettuce
onion
Parsley
Parsnip
Peas
Radish
Rocket/Arugula
Silverbeet
SPRING ONION
Swede
Taro/Coco yam
Tomato
Turnip
PHOTOS: ISTOCK

Our climate zone map is a simplified version of a Bureau of Meteorology map.

For more detailed climatic information in relation to cities and major towns,
Plant bok choy as soon as cooler nights start. go to: bom.gov.au/jsp/ncc/climate_averages/climate-classifications/index.jsp

organicgardener.com.au 53
 ORGANIC Partner promotion

Bringing organic learning

to classrooms
The launch of our new resource for schools is bringing organics into the classroom,
giving children a greater awareness of where their food comes from.

H
ere at Australian Organic Limited, education is a a collaboration between the Australian Government,
primary tool used to spread the organic word and primary industries organisations and the education sector.
encourage a greater understanding of what it means “Primary Industries Education Foundation Australia is
to grow, produce and buy certified organic products. That’s very excited to support the newly created Australian Organic
why the re-launch of our Australian Organic Schools program Schools curriculum resources for K-10 students,” says
in November 2020 is a vital, and exciting, part of what we do. Luciano Mesiti, Chief Executive Officer at PIEFA. “These
The new program, ‘Why Organic?’, contains free resources brand-new, curriculum linked teaching units provide
surrounding a range of key topics to bring organic learning excellent learning support tools for teachers to improve
into schools. The aim is to increase student and educator organic food and fibre education in Australian schools.”
awareness on organic principles and practices and how they Australian Organic Limited Chief Executive Officer, Niki
interact and impact on environmental systems. Students Ford, says the program aims to educate children about key
learn from a range of topics, including farming methods, organic principles and practices in a fun and interactive format.
healthy soils, where food comes from and healthy food choices. “Being a mother myself, I believe it is more important than
Organic principles cross a range of different areas, starting ever to teach children where their food and fibre comes from.
at the very basics of farming and production. Sustainable and With nearly 86 per cent of all Australians living in urban areas,
regenerative, made without harmful synthetic chemicals and it is imperative to connect children with what they consume.
pesticides, and allowing animals to be truly free-range are “The Australian Organic Schools program is designed to be
just some of main principles. All these add up to better easy to teach and fun to learn,” Ms Ford says. “We hope all
health all round for humans, animals and the environment. teachers and children enjoy the program and begin to seed
If there’s anything we’ve learned from recent awareness thinking about the foundation of Australian agriculture and
campaigns such as the National Farmers’ Federation’s the sustainability of the environment around them.”
#BackOnTrack, it’s that we need to better connect with our Educators can register on the Australian Organic Schools
farmers and with primary production. Getting children used to website to download free resources, including lesson plans
the notion of where food comes from, how it is produced and and activities. There are also free organic gardening guides
educating them as to why organic is a better choice for our for eager green thumbs.
bodies and the environment will give them the tools they need For more details visit: organicschools.com.au
to make more informed decisions in their adult lives.
Australian Organic Schools is a proud member of Primary
PHOTO: ISTOCK

Industries Education Foundation Australia (PIEFA), a

not-for-profit teaching resources foundation formed through

54
 Last year’s bushfires on
Kangaroo Island have left
wildlife and scientists
struggling, see page 76.

welcome to
PHOTO: NICOLAS RAKOTOPARE / THREATENED SPECIES RECOVERY HUB

Organic Living
Inside: Drying produce Little Oak Farm Scientists in need

organicgardener.com.au 55
 ORGANIC HARVEST

Packing in the flavour

In his new book The Artisan Kitchen, chef and sustainable living expert
James Strawbridge shows how to use age-old techniques such as preserving
and fermenting to make the best of produce. Here, learn the basics of drying
and dehydrating – perfect for late summer and autumn crops.

J
ames Strawbridge’s new book brings together cooking, but now, we’re rediscovering that connection
all he believes about good-quality food: slowing and realising how accessible artisan food is.”
down, using seasonal and local produce, and Working with seasonal produce using artisanal skills
bringing together a community, including family, such as preserving, drying and fermenting means you
other gardeners and growers, as well as other foodies. not only make the most of your harvest, but can then
“Sourcing local and seasonal ingredients is my share the results throughout the year. Here’s how to
passion, and then preserving them to be enjoyed over extend the joy of your crop that little bit longer.
the coming days, weeks, and months is intoxicating,”
James writes in The Artisan Kitchen. “For too long we’ve Facing page: Dried apples (see recipe on page 59).
been separated from the ingredients that go into our Above: James Strawbridge.

organicgardener.com.au 57
 ORGANIC HARVEST

DEHYDRATING
Dried foods for crisp or chewy,
intensely flavoursome preservation.

Skill level: EASY

Timings: 4–12 HOURS, depending
on produce and drying method

THE SCIENCE
Moisture extraction
Drying food is as simple as it sounds. The basic
technique is to thinly slice produce to maximise its
surface area so that warm air can pass over it and
draw out moisture, thus preventing the growth of
unwanted bacteria. The key to effective drying is
good air circulation, a constant temperature, and
avoiding direct contact with moisture. The result
is an intense experience, as the flavours have been
packed together closely in the drying process.

Preparation
Pre-treating produce before dehydrating isn’t
essential but may help maintain colour, nutrients
and texture. For example, coating apples or
pears in lemon juice will avoid browning, since
the ascorbic acid creates a barrier between the
enzymes in the flesh and the oxygen, slowing
the oxidisation process that leads to browning.
Tough-skinned veg and fruit with a natural
protective wax, on the other hand, benefit from
blanching. This thermal treatment increases the Above: Slice produce thinly and space it out on drying
permeability of cell membranes, which in turn racks to maximise airflow.
increases the rate of moisture removal. It also
destroys the enzymes that would otherwise
survive the dehydration process and cause the
food to deteriorate. Meat and fish, which have Dehydrating apple slices
a high moisture content, generally require brining Maximum airflow, dry air, and a constant temperature are key
or dry-salt curing first – the salt draws out much to controlled moisture removal.
of the moisture by osmosis, speeding up the drying
process and inhibiting surface microbes.

Conditions
Controlling the temperature during dehydration is
vital. The aim is to remove moisture as quickly as
possible without affecting the flavour, texture and
nutritional value of the produce. If the heat is too
A flow of dry air Too much heat can cause A fully dehydrated
high, food may case-harden, meaning it will feel encourages water to case-hardening, when apple slice will shrink
dry on the outside, yet moisture will still be migrate from the interior surface sugar “bakes” to from cellular collapse
trapped inside. If the temperature is too low, the to the surface, where form a seal that prevents due to the loss of
drying time is significantly increased and bacteria it evaporates. further moisture loss. water content.
may survive and multiply before the food has dried.

58
 The Practice
DRIED APPLES METHOD
1. Peel, core, and slice the apples into rings and then
segments. (Peeling isn’t obligatory – the skin can give
With the abundance of apples in autumn, it the dried pieces a nice, slightly chewy texture. Try them
makes perfect sense not only to preserve the fruit both ways and stick with what you prefer.)
over winter, but also intensify its flavour into a 2. If the apple slices start to discolour, use a spray bottle
sweet treat for snacking or using in other recipes. to spritz them with lemon juice before dehydrating or dip
Dried apple adds a delicious punch of flavour them in a solution made with 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
when used in stuffing and sausages. You can and 1 litre of water. Drain and dry them well.
substitute pears, but the dehydrator will need to 3. If using a dehydrator, lay the slices on the drying
run for an extra hour, as pears tend to be wetter. racks, spaced out to allow good airflow, and dry at 50°C
for 6–8 hours. Alternatively, spread the slices out on a
Makes: 800g silicone baking sheet and dry in the oven for 5–8 hours
at 65°C with the fan on and the door slightly ajar to allow
INGREDIENTS moisture to escape. The higher temperature allows for
10 dessert apples (about 1kg) heat loss due to the open door.
Juice of 1 lemon (optional) 4. Remove the slices when they are dry and leathery.
Aim for 15–20 per cent weight loss. I like them to come
EQUIPMENT out before they become crunchy, but it’s up to you.
Spray bottle (optional) 5. Allow the dried apple slices to cool at room temperature
Dehydrator (optional) for 30 minutes, then store in a cupboard in an airtight
Silicone baking sheet (optional) glass jar or sealed bag. They should keep fresh for at least
Airtight container or freezer bags 3–6 months, if not longer.

Most foods can be dried in a dehydrator or an To rehydrate dried fruit and veg, cover
oven at around 40–50°C, though meat requires with boiling water and soak for 5–15 minutes.

EXPERT a higher temperature of around 70°C to kill off

unwanted pathogens.
Alternatively, cover with cool water for
1–2 hours until rehydrated.
TIPS The ideal temperature for storing dried food is
10–16°C. Keep it safe from moisture and insects, in
Dehydrated food absorbs moisture like a
sponge, so can come alive when rehydrated
glass jars with tight lids or in vacuum-sealed bags. in marinades, juices or alcohol.

organicgardener.com.au 59
 ORGANIC HARVEST

The Possibilities
GOURMET DEHYDRATING
Dehydrating is probably the oldest preserving
method there is, and the beauty of this
relatively simple process is that you can
have a go at drying almost anything.

Foraged favourites
When a growing season is fleeting, you want to preserve
those precious tastes in as many ways as you can.
Make instant dashi stock from dried nettles, seaweed
and ceps. Add miso and boiling water with noodles for
an umami-rich broth.
Make intensely flavoured powders by grinding dried
produce such as wild garlic in a spice blender.
With such a short wild-fruit season, I like to dehydrate
blackberries, haw berries and alpine strawberries, then
blitz for a fruity crumb (pictured at right) to use in
granola and herbal teas.

Flavoured salts
Sprinkle fragrant or spicy salt blends over a dish or
use as the base of an aromatic cure.
Blitz dried chillies into a fine flake and combine with
sea salt for a spicy sprinkle.
Dried seaweed flakes are excellent for making your
own seaweed butter.

Fruit and veg crisps Every year my children

Fruit and veg crisps are a healthy treat and can add
a great textural element to meals. receive a huge bag of dried
Reduce food waste by drying out apple peel into
crunchy crisps that are delicious on a bowl of yoghurt apple rings from my mum and
or chopped into granola.
Plate up kale crisps (see recipe below) with her husband – it’s a family
preserved lemons, anchovy, calendula petals and
fresh mint. Sprinkle with olive oil and sea salt for tradition that just keeps
a mouth-watering, mineral-rich dish.
growing in popularity.
Try …
Kale crisps
Blanch 150g kale in boiling water for a few seconds, then plunge into a This is an edited
bowl of ice-cold water to lock in the colour and flavour. Remove the woody extract from The
stems and veins, then chop the kale into crisp-sized pieces. Massage with Artisan Kitchen by
a drizzle of oil, and try adding some fermented chilli and garlic powder for James Strawbridge
a special treat. Spread out evenly on a rack in your dehydrator at 40°C or (Dorling Kindersley
on a baking sheet lined with parchment in an oven at 50°C for 3–5 hours. & Penguin Random
Check after 3 hours and every 30 minutes or so thereafter until crunchy. House, $49.99).
Store in an airtight container and consume within 1–2 weeks. Photography by
John Hersey.

60
 DRIED
CALENDULA AND
ROSE PETALS MAKE
INCREDIBLE FLORAL
SALTS FOR SEASONING
LAMB OR MELTED
CHOCOLATE.
 ORGANIC HARVEST

HARVEST NOTES

Apples
By growing different heritage apple trees
it’s possible to harvest apples from January
to July with one of the first being ‘Vista
Bella’ and one of the last ‘Sturmer’. If you
cohabit with cockatoos, rosellas, possums,
bush rats and fruit bats, then you’ll need
to net your trees. Ripe apples should pick
easily by just lifting the fruit, or you can
check the colour and taste. If you’re still
not sure, cut one in half and see if the
seed is well-developed and dark brown.
Once picked, eat fresh or store in a cool,
dark room or shed, or refrigerate, for
variable lengths of time depending on
the cultivar. Alternatively bottle, freeze,
dry or make into jelly, juice or cider; or
cook by stewing or baking.

in season Pepino
Pepino are cold-tender, short-lived
Fruit Vegetab perennial bushes in the tomato family
that produce medium, elongated fruit
APPLE AMARANTH
AVOCADO
in summer and autumn. The delicious
BEANS
BANANA BEETROOT
melon-flavoured fruit with overtones
CUMQUAT CAPSICUM POTATO of cucumber, have yellow-to-orange
DRAGON FRUIT CELERY-STEM PUMPKIN flesh when fully ripe, with soft-green to
FIG TARO SWEETCORN cream purple-striped skins. Pick fruit with
GRAPES CUCUMBER TOMATILLO a short stem using scissors or secateurs
KIWIFRUIT EGGPLANT TOMATO
LIME
when they’re still firm but with a little
LETTUCE ZUCCHINI
NASHI give to the flesh. Eat immediately or store
PASSIONFRUIT in a bowl for a few days; or in the fridge
PAWPAW
PEAR
Herbs for a few weeks. Delicious just eaten
BASIL fresh scooped out of the skin (although
PEPINO
some like to eat the skin too), or added
PHOTO & ILLUSTRATIONS: ISTOCK

CHINESE MITSUBA
POMEGRANATE
QUINCE
CELERY OREGANO to fruit salad, or a savoury salad as
DILL PERILLA (SHISO) well as sauces and chutney.
WATERMELON
FIVE-SEASONS SWEET Penny Woodward
HERB MARJORAM

62
 ORGANIC LIFE

PHOTOS: PIP STEELE-WAREHAM

 Little Oak Farm
is who we are
Moving from inner-city Sydney to rural Tasmania was a big challenge
for Pip and Hugo. Ten years on, they share with Leanne croker the
joys of their cottage and surrounds, Now filled with chooks, fruit
trees and a vegie patch that provides bumper harvests.
ALL PHOTOS: PHYLLIDA STEELE-WAREHAM @LIFE_AT_LITTLE_OAK_FARM

A
lmost 10 years after they moved to a property Living in Sydney with full-time jobs that meant
they call Little Oak Farm, just outside Cygnet in they worked ridiculously long hours, the adventurous
the Tasmanian Huon Valley, Pip Steele-Wareham couple began to long for something new. So when
and Hugo Lazo can honestly admit they had no idea they found a property that ticked all the boxes (an
what they were doing when they bought the land. But original house, acres for fresh produce and animals,
that didn’t stop them – a good thing, considering they close to a vibrant community), they snapped it up.
had big dreams with very little experience. “It wasn’t our dream house, it wasn’t our dream
“We’re a bit fly by the seat of our pants people. property, but we knew we could do a lot with it,”
We will just go: let’s do this,” Pip says. “And that’s Pip explains.
what we decided to do, and everyone thought we
Above: Pip and Hugo’s 110-year-old cottage.
were absolutely bonkers. There weren’t many people
Opposite: Pip and Hugo want their daughter Inès to be
doing it back then [2011].” grounded in a life filled with nature and all it provides.

organicgardener.com.au 65
 ORGANIC LIFE

Going deeper
The idea was to produce food and as the property
included 30 acres (12 hectares), there was plenty of
room. But a lot of land means a lot of work, and Pip
and Hugo found it all a bit harder than expected.
“We started everything at the same time,” Pip says.
“When you don’t really know what you are doing, you
sort of dive in just wanting to plant something because
that’s the most seductive part of gardening. We didn’t
really understand our soil and the part position plays:
where the sun was, where our shade was.”
They cleared land, started breeding pigs and planted
a garden to provide them with food and flowers.
All while commuting two hours a day to and from
the property to their full-time jobs in Hobart
to keep the money coming in.
About five years into being on their property,
Pip decided she wanted to get out of marketing
and events and started a horticultural course, which
shifted everything. The problem was the lessons she
learnt meant big changes at the property. Basically
everything had to come out, but that left room for
a more planned use of space.
“My design head started to kick in,” explains Pip, who
also has a design degree. “Once I had the horticultural Top left: Pip, Inès, Hugo and Wednesday love their new life.
knowledge and it was getting well-rounded, I had the Top: Pip’s plans for the garden and house.
head space to think, ‘What actually looks good – what Above: New raised beds and striking sandstone wall.
works well together’.”
So three years ago they pulled up the whole front protection and now have a cover crop in the orchard.
cottage garden and started anew. All this has been done in just two acres around the
“We realised we had such terrible soil in the front,” house. There’s another 30 acres or so, which at the
Pip says. “It was just sand and it was facing direct moment is half bush and half paddocks.
north with no protection from the sun.”
The solution was to create new garden beds So much to do
with composting paths that were really deep, building Even when living in the city, Hugo found watering
insulation around the beds. They also put a flower the plants in their small vegie patch relaxing. Now
border around the vegetable garden to provide some with an office that looks out on the garden, even late

66
The power of flowers
Central to the beauty that has been and fragrance of the cottage garden,
an important aspect of Pip’s design, which features roses and perennials.
depicted in drawings and watercolours, Another reason why they love the
is the house and its cottage garden. cottage garden so much is that it
When they bought the house it was very attracts so many birds.
dark, very pink and red. So it was all “We are such bird nerds — they are
about bringing in light and being able amazing the way as soon as you build
to see the garden, such as the cherry that habitat and the shelter is available,
tree in blossom from the lounge. they arrive,” Pip says. “And they become
“During winters in this part of Tassie part of the seasonal routine as well,
the days can be super short, so we crave you get used to seeing them at certain
that light and space,” Hugo says. times of the year, and you wonder
Soon all the windows will be turned when they’re going to show up
into French doors, letting in all the colour if they haven’t shown up.”

Top: A quince tree with the chook coop (built

by Hugo) in the background.
Above: Chickens scrounging in the vegie patch.
Left: The colourful cottage garden.

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 ORGANIC LIFE

Below: French doors open to a purpose-built nights making sure their garden is ready for the hot
outdoor kitchen and the food garden. weather ahead can’t dampen his love of their home.
Bottom: The living room has been opened up With Hugo’s Chilean background, food is big!
to let in light and garden views.
There is even an indoor and purpose-built outdoor
kitchen, which leads to the food garden. It creates a
space to share with family and friends the goodness
of their harvest, which more often than not Hugo
himself has bottled and preserved for future use.
“Being Chilean, part of everything we did was big
family barbecues – sharing our food and culture,”
Hugo explains. “So that’s a big part of what we’ve
done. I’ve tried to grow plants and food that are
reminiscent of that culture. That’s why we had pigs
– because I couldn’t get a good chorizo sausage here.”
The herd of pigs was sold a couple of years ago
(there’s a lot of work involved with pigs, moving
them around a property so they don’t destroy one
piece of land), but they now have one or two so Hugo
can still make his chorizo. They also have chickens.
“When we first started we had a lot of Sussex
because everyone told us they were a good dual breed
bird,” Hugo says. “But I like Australorps. They are
good layers and have a great temperament, and they
are just stunning birds to look at. I’m a bit like Pip in
that sense: as much as I want things to be practical
and functional, I like pretty things, too.”

Loving and learning from nature

Ten years on, Pip and Hugo know what they are
dealing with, both in terms of their property and
the climate.
“I get lots of people contacting me, asking how
do I do this and that. And I say just start – start and
make mistakes and stuff it up.
And then once you think
you are getting a better idea,
create a masterplan,” Pip says.
“That is the thing we did
not do – we never had a
masterplan in the beginning.
We were just going off willy
nilly, creating a tonne of work
for ourselves. Whereas now,
we know what’s happening in
the next five to 10 years.”
But you can’t be too rigid,
either, says Hugo. “Your
garden has to evolve as well
– you won’t just do it once and
then just sit back,” he says.
Learning to work with
the changing seasons,
especially regarding food
crops, is also vital.
“When we get to autumn,
you are likely to not see us
because we’re just head down,
bum up harvesting and trying

68
to preserve. Because you get so much all at once,”
Hugo says.
In spring they will be swimming in spinach and
broccolis and cauliflowers.
“It’s about eating it all, but also picking it all,
blanching it all, freezing it all. Then you’ll go through
this period of December, when other than things like
potatoes, you are really just waiting,” Pip says.
“Then you hit February and all of a sudden it’s
everything again. All of the stone fruit is ready in
January, then apples start coming later and your
pears and then tomatoes, corn,” Pip says. “It’s just a
constant until winter: madly picking and preserving.
We always do enough passata to last us a year until
the next season. And there’s nothing like fresh
passata from your toms in the middle of winter.”

The future
“Little Oak is very much our belief system now,
rather than just a project we took on once,” Hugo
says. “We are very connected to the nature in this
spot It’s become who we are. We don’t know how
we would live any other way anymore.
“We also want this to be normal for Inès,” Pip says.
“It was normal for me to live in the bush and to have
nature everywhere. My dad was a bushie and I spent
a lot of time in nature. We want it to be grounding
for Inès. We were grounded in other things when we Polytunnel
were young – the hope is that this is something that produce
never really leaves her.” Pip and Hugo now have a polytunnel, which
You can follow Pip, Hugo, Inès and their dog Wednesday has made a big difference to what they can
on Instagram: @life_at_little_oak_farm grow, and when. The polytunnel is one of the
reasons they have a raspberry harvest so
Below: Plenty of tomatoes for homemade passata. early in Tasmania, which keeps their daughter
Inès happy.
“A quarter of the polytunnel is raspberries
for an early crop – we also have an outside
crop of raspberries. We also have tomatoes,
tamarillos, eggplant – all the heat lovers,”
Pip says.
The polytunnel does most of its work over
the summer/autumn period.
“Everything in there is so hungry and it gets
so hot in there that the soil just gets depleted
so easily,” Pip explains.
“By the time we pull everything out it’s
exhausted. So we will put through a green
manure, cutting it down and turning it in. Then
we start putting down the blood and bone, and
biochar and manures – turning it all in –and
straw. It then cooks for a while and then we
just put the toms straight in.”
For more information about extending
your crop with a greenhouse or polytunnel
visit: organicgardener.com.au/blogs/
greenhouse-growing

organicgardener.com.au 69
PHOTO: JESSAMY MILLER
 ORGANIC POULTRY

Heritage
hens
Heritage poultry breeds are slow-growing,
long-laying and one of the keys to our
long-term food security, writes Jessamy Miller.

I
f you grow heirloom vegetables for their variety
and authentic flavour, why not complement these
with a heritage breed of fowl? The top performers
of yesteryear, these breeds are productive, hardy and
long-lived. While they have struggled to compete
against recent hybrids, our heritage breeds are
beautiful, well adapted to our climate, and a
repository of valuable genetic diversity.
Heritage poultry have historical significance,
having been developed before the mid 20th century
and being among the foundation breeds of the
modern poultry industry. By choosing to raise these
breeds, we can help preserve their diverse practical
traits – a valuable insurance against future food
security challenges. One of the most notable traits
is their ability to lay well into their older years, while
males remain fertile and active. Hybrids by contrast
are bred to produce lots of eggs in their first few
years and are not typically long-lived.
Heritage breeds are adapted to outdoor
management, thrive in a range of conditions, and are
able to engage in natural activities, such as mating and
scratching. They also have moderate-to-slow growth,
developing over a natural timeline which results in
qualities such as more flavoursome meat, for example.

Light Sussex are ideal for families.

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 ORGANIC POULTRY

A bit of history
The early commercial poultry industry in Australia was
based on a range of purebreds. Langshans were
standouts in 1907, while in 1922–23, Australorps set a
world egg-laying record. By the 1940s, the industry was
66 per cent White Leghorns, 18 per cent Australorps,
5 per cent Langshans, and 11 per cent other breeds.
In 1948 there was a complete quarantine ban on
all poultry into Australia. This protected poultry from
disease, but meant that breeds in Australia became
genetically separate from similar breeds elsewhere,
with many now considered unique.
Selective breeding in the 1950s influenced the egg
industry to move to crossbreds, and the broiler was
developed. Hormones in chicken were banned by the
1960s, though the broiler’s fast growth had already
made hormones unnecessary. In 1970, 100 per cent
of commercial layers were crossbreds, predominantly
White Leghorn x Australorp.
The quarantine ban was lifted in the 1990s to allow
the importation of hybrids like the ISA brown, which
boasts high productivity at the expense of other traits
and quickly took over the caged bird egg industry.
Heritage breeds are likely to be more expensive LEGHORN
than hybrids as they have greater rarity value, but The Riverine Grazier of May 8, 1877 stated: ‘If a man
their attractive appearance, fascinating history and keeps Leghorns, he must have no garden, or he must
sociable nature, added to the other traits already cover the top of his hen yards. That Leghorns are great
mentioned, mean they are perfect for the organic layers and active hens there can be no denying, but
gardener. Here are a few of the best to choose from. they are great flyers.’ Clearly the Leghorn (pictured
above) has not changed in 150 years.
SUSSEX Small-bodied layers called Leghorns originated in
A true old-fashioned fowl, the Sussex (pictured pages Northern Italy, near the port of Leghorn (Livorno in
70–71) was developed in the 1800s as a table bird to Italian). They were imported into America in 1852,
supply the London market. Bred from the Dorking, it then exported to England in 1870, where they were
was considered a better layer and graced every rural crossed with Minorcas to add size.
Sussex cottage. The Sussex was formally acknowledged Present in Australia from the 1880s, Leghorns were
as a breed in England in 1903 and by 1915 Sussex the mainstay of the government-run laying tests that
classes were common at Australian poultry shows. ran up to the 1980s and were considered the elite
It was kept on farms as a dual-purpose fowl (for eggs athletes of the laying industry. After years of
and meat) but underwent selection for improved laying dominance, Leghorns lost favour as commercial
qualities, and was often crossed with Indian Game for birds when brown-shelled eggs replaced white in
the table. The hens lay a moderate number of eggs, popularity. These days they are kept for their elegance
and retain broodiness and mothering abilities. as a show fowl and reliability as backyard layers.
PHOTOS FROM FAR LEFT: ALAMY/ISTOCK/ALAMY.

Sussex take everything in their stride, and are Leghorns come in large and bantam, in colours
ideal for families. They are hardy in most climates including Brown, White and Black, with Black now
except very hot, as their profuse feathering and large considered the best layer. They lay large white eggs,
frame leaves them vulnerable to heat stress. and are busy, active birds. Hens rarely go broody.
Available varieties include Light (white), Speckled, Leghorns can be flighty and require calm
Buff and Coronation, in large and bantam. Sussex management. They prefer not to be confined and
won’t destroy the garden like a more active breed, but make ideal helpers for any garden project that
when they dig a crater to dust bath in, expect a decent involves digging, scratching or breaking down
hole. And they love food; you have been warned! weeds and scraps.

72
AUSTRALORP PLYMOUTH ROCK
The Australorp (pictured above) is the quintessential Like many heritage breeds, Plymouth Rocks (pictured
Aussie chook. It started as the Black Orpington, a dual- top right) have suffered from the vagaries of fashion.
purpose breed developed in the UK and imported into This dual-purpose breed was developed in America
Australia after 1890. Here, Orpingtons were outcrossed in the late 1800s from a combination of breeds
with Minorcas, White Leghorns and Langshans, including Black Spanish, Grey Dorking, Dominique,
transforming it into an excellent egg producer. Black Java and more. Multiple strains were created
The Hawkesbury Agricultural College held a which were amalgamated into the Plymouth Rock,
six-month egg-laying contest in 1902 with Black America’s first recognised poultry breed.
Orpingtons the surprise winners. Their success caused The Barred Rock was admitted into the American
worldwide interest and improved Orpingtons were Standard in 1874 and imported into Australia around
imported into England and America in the early the same time, causing a splash. It quickly achieved
1920s. A new name was required; the Australorp high numbers due to its reputation for laying ability,
was chosen. table properties and sheer size, as well as the appeal
Utility flocks of Australorps were retained by the of the attractive barred feathering.
laying industry in Australia to breed the crossbreds After initial popularity, the breed quite quickly
used as layers for decades. Exhibition Australorps fell from top position, replaced by the Orpington
followed a different trajectory: fanciers selected for and Wyandotte. However, their utility qualities
beauty, abundant feathering and a larger frame, not meant Barred Plymouth Rocks (usually known as
utility properties. Today there are few of the small Barred Rocks) were a common sight in farm flocks
bodied laying strain available, but most are the throughout the last century, and the White Rock was
exhibition style. a major contributor worldwide to the female broiler
These stately birds have big black eyes and slate breeder line. These days, Rocks are fair layers of
legs and come in Black, Blue and White, in large and medium, white-shelled eggs and available in Barred
bantam. They are relaxed, tend to rule the roost and as well as: White, Buff, Black and Partridge.
love their tucker. Developed as the ideal farm fowl, Rocks are still
The exhibition strain are only moderate layers of an excellent choice for a smallholding; combining
middling-sized, tinted (between white and brown) a relaxed nature with hardiness, longevity, and good
eggs, but look simply stunning on the lawn. brooding and mothering qualities.

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 ORGANIC POULTRY

Other top choices

There are many more heritage breeds to choose from,
here are a few that might take your fancy:
Anconas are smart, active birds that remain excellent
layers of large, creamy-white shelled eggs.
The Silver Grey Dorking is a traditional English table
bird with a long history, and is a real backyard beauty.
The Hamburgh is a stunning breed with excellent heat
tolerance and laying persistence.
Wyandottes are placid natured with gorgeous
feathering, and were kept as dual-purpose fowls.
The Australian Langshan is economical and hardy
and is still the top purebred layer.

Where to buy
To view heritage breeds, have a day out at a local poultry
or agricultural show. Most breeds have a breed club, which
will offer advice and contacts for stock. These are listed in
the directory pages of Australasian Poultry magazine, and
usually have a searchable Facebook page or website. Try
Clockwise from top left: The Silver Grey Dorking is a real to buy stock from your general area as they will be well
backyard beauty; Anconas are very active; the placid-
natured Wyandotte; Hamburghs are persistent layers.
adapted to local conditions. Online sites such as Gumtree
can also be useful for sourcing stock but buyer beware!

74
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 ORGANIC PLANET

ON THE FRONTLINE
Many scientists and researchers dealing with the impacts of
environmental catastrophes are struggling to cope with the
trauma and where to get support, writes Gemma Conroy.

W
hen ecologist Daniella Teixeira visited her Teixeira. “Most conservationists got into this
bushfire-ravaged study site on Kangaroo job because they love the natural world, so why
Island, South Australia, in February 2020, shouldn’t we feel anything?”
the scale of the damage hit her hard.
Teixeira, an ecologist at the University of Silent grief
Queensland, felt numb and deeply sad as she set foot At a time when climate change is exacerbating
among the blackened trees and melted nest boxes bushfires, bleaching coral reefs, and melting
that were once home to the glossy black-cockatoos glaciers, many researchers are grappling with how PHOTOS: NICOLAS RAKOTOPARE / THREATENED SPECIES RECOVERY HUB

she studied during her PhD. The fires had burnt to cope with the stress of working at the forefront
through one-third of the island since they started of environmental catastrophes. The problem is,
in December 2019. few people are talking about it, says Cristian
“Going back to the sites where I did my research Román-Palacios.
was the hardest thing,” says Teixeira. “It was like “These kinds of questions are never asked in
a graveyard.” science,” says Román-Palacios, an ecologist at
But Teixeira was unsure about where to seek the University of Arizona. “There’s not a lot of
support for the emotional toll she was experiencing. psychological support.”
She was also discomfited to hear other researchers In 2019, a group of marine scientists published
urging the community to focus on action instead a letter in Science calling for academic institutions
of anxiety and sadness.
“It’s concerning that some people are creating Above: Daniella Teixeira surveys her field site at
yet another stigma around mental health,” says Kangaroo Island after the 2019/20 bushfires.

76
Most conservationists got into
this job because they love
the natural world, so why
shouldn’t we feel anything?

A Glossy black-cockatoo,
an endangered species
found on Kangaroo Island.
 Maggie Turp, psychologist and member of the
Climate Psychology Alliance, an international
group exploring mental health support strategies
for climate scientists and activists.
In 2019, Turp ran a free support group for
researchers and staff working at the London School of
Economics’ Grantham Research Institute on Climate
Change and the Environment for one term. Climate
scientists in the group said that dealing with hostile
responses from the public when breaking ‘bad news’
and the pressure to remain objective were the most
emotionally taxing aspects of their work.
But Turp also noticed that some researchers
appeared less comfortable talking about their
personal feelings in front of their boss and colleagues.
Such professional hierarchies can create a “whole
other level of complication that cuts through what
you’re trying to do”, says Turp. “This is something
that needs to be considered when setting up support
groups in departments.”
Establishing larger groups with researchers from
across different departments and institutions could be
Daniella Texeira inspects a fallen nest box on Kangaroo a solution, says Turp. “That way, you avoid having a
Island that was damaged during the bushfire. closed circle of people working in the same place.”
While conversations about mental health support
to support the mental health of environmental are becoming more widespread in the conservation
scientists. While mental health services are often community, Euan Ritchie says that institutions need
provided for those working in healthcare, disaster to facilitate better work-life balance for researchers
relief and the military, specialised support for facing ecological devastation.
researchers who have been impacted by traumatic “One of the best things institutions can do is to
environmental events is lacking, the authors write. simply allow people time to properly grieve and not
They argued that training employees, debriefing place unfair work expectations on individuals,” says
after traumatic events, support from colleagues Ritchie, a wildlife ecologist at Deakin University in
and supervisors, and counselling would help create Australia. “I don’t have many colleagues that aren’t
a healthier working environment for scientists. adversely affected in some way by what’s happening
Steve Simpson, one of the letter’s co-authors, to our natural world.”
says he has seen some environmental scientists For Teixeira, the bushfires have been a wake-up
switch disciplines or leave science altogether due call to prioritise self-care. She has also connected with
to a lack of support. likeminded conservationists through the Instagram
“The danger is losing good scientists because account @mind.mystory and Lonely Conservationists,
they just can’t take it,” says Simpson, a marine a blog where researchers and other conservation
biologist at the University of Exeter in the UK. workers can discuss their mental health.
He adds that allowing researchers to process “It helps to know that other people feel the same
their feelings of grief or distress will lead to better way and that I’m not alone in feeling these things,”
outcomes in the long run. says Teixeira.
”The reputation of institutions depends on
people doing good work,” says Simpson. “If we
have mechanisms that help us look after each This is an extract of the article
other, then we can do better science and keep ‘More help needed for scientists
fighting for what we think is important.” on the frontline of ecosystem loss’
by Gemma Conroy, from The Best
No easy solution Australian Science Writing 2020,
Although support groups are important for edited by Sara Phillips (NewSouth
normalising emotional responses to ecological Publishing, $32.99). The article first
loss, they are not a simple fix for the mental appeared at natureindex.com.
health challenges researchers may face, says

78
 ORGANIC PLANET

DRIVING CHANGE
Organic golf, anyone? Meet the course superintendent who
is making the game safer for people and wildlife by ditching
chemicals and embracing soil biology. By Simon Webster.

A
s many city dwellers have sought green space cost savings of not having to set up a chemical
during COVID-19 lockdowns, golf courses have warehousing and wash-down facility, they gave
become de facto parks and public recreation him the green light.
areas. And the people using them have loved what Inspired by organic farming methods, Glen started
they have found; regardless of what you think of out with microbes.
golf, its courses protect large swathes of urban green, “Basically, the goal initially was to re-establish
and are havens for wildlife. But one drawback of biology in the soil,” he explains. “There’s different
golf courses – for golfers and anyone else who might ideologies in regards to organic processes. You’ve got
wander them – is the chemicals that are used on Korean natural farming, permaculture, the soil food
them to control pests, weeds and plant diseases. web… I’ve looked into all of them and taken what
One Aussie course superintendent, Andrew Glen, I thought was the best practices to match what we
is working to change that. want to do.”
In 2016, after 32 years in the golf course With regular applications of a wide range of
construction and maintenance industry, Glen took biology – using everything from microbe brews made
charge of a new 10-hole short course at the KDV Sport from worm castings to ready-made cocktails of
complex, on Queensland’s Gold Coast. Having long effective micro-organisms – Glen set about restoring
held an interest in organics, he decided this was a life to the dead soil of this new golf course, built on
PHOTO: ISTOCK

perfect opportunity to see if he could manage the site of an old course.

a course without chemicals. When he explained “My theory was, the more diverse the better,” he
to his bosses the potential benefits, including the says. “And pretty much everything is sourced locally.

organicgardener.com.au 79
 ORGANIC PLANET

Holes-in-one
FIVE YEARS ON, ANDREW GLEN REPORTS
A RANGE OF BENEFITS:
Rich, steady grass growth.
Few weeds – thanks to a fungal-dominated
biology that favours perennial grass growth
over annual weeds.
Only one pest infestation (mole crickets,
which were easily controlled with the
introduction of predatory nematodes).
No disease outbreaks.
A large reduction in water needs, thanks

PHOTOS: TOP LEFT: SIMON WEBSTER/BELOW: GETTY IMAGE/ABOVE: ISTOCK.

to the soil’s better structure (courtesy of
the microbes’ useful habit of turning plant
matter into new soil).
More mycorrhizal fungi, which bring
minerals and water to the plant that would
be otherwise be out of reach.
No risk to the health of the staff, golfers,
wildlife, neighbours or the environment.
Reduced costs: no need for chemicals,
By using microbes indigenous to your environment, chemical storage facilities, chemical wash-
they’re better suited to where you are.” down bays, or protective spray equipment.

Feeding time Top left: Andrew Glen.

Next, Glen had to feed all this new biology, using Below: Picnickers on Melbourne’s Royal Park Golf
organic food sources that microbes love. “You feed Course during the lockdown last October.
the biology, not the plant, and the biology converts it
into food for the plant,” he says.
Glen ditched his mower catchers and instead
returned the grass clippings to the turf (with frequent
mowing, golfers don’t even notice them). There, they
become the main source of food for the growing
population of bacteria, fungi and other organisms in
the soil.
The course is thriving. And the need for inputs – in
terms of microbes and food – is reducing as the soil
starts to look after itself. Whereas in the early days
Glen added biology to fairways once a month, for
example, it’s now once a quarter.
“We’re weaning off our inputs,” he says. “After a
period of time we hope we won’t need to add much
at all. In an orchard, you’re taking nutrients and
minerals away from the plant, in the form of apples,
and you have to replenish that, but we’re not taking
away anything.”
Glen says the course stays surprisingly green even
through drought, and is attracting a marked increase
in wildlife, including birds, insects and reptiles. He is
particularly pleased that not only are staff, golfers
and neighbours spared any exposure to chemicals,
but the sensitive local waterways are protected, too.
He hopes more golf courses will take an organic
approach.
“We’ve proved it can be done,” he says. “We’re not
really seeing a downside at the moment.”

80
Chemical attraction Above: Golf courses provide a haven for people and wildlife.
There has been a reduction in chemical use on golf
courses in the past decade or so, and an increased
use of natural strategies such as integrated pest
management, drought-tolerant grasses and water
harvesting and recycling. On the field
Attitudes are definitely changing for the better,
but most courses still apply chemicals of some sort, Andrew Glen also manages
including fungicides, insecticides, herbicides, growth a football field organically
regulators, turf pigments and synthetic fertilisers. that is often used by
Professor Brian Wilson, of the University of British
professional footballers.
Columbia, Canada, says golf courses have come
under plenty of criticism over the years for their “The Richmond football team stayed
environmental impact. As well as the damaging at our hotel,” he says. “Being a Tigers
effects of chemicals on humans and wildlife, such as supporter, I was glad they were
fish and aquatic organisms, they’ve been associated
training on our chemical-free field.”
with the destruction of habitat, and excessive water
use (particularly in dry areas).
But, overall, golf’s attitude towards the
environment has improved since the 1960s, when
some industry figures were staunchly anti-green,
says Wilson, co-author of The Greening of Golf:
Sport, Globalisation and the Environment. “The use of bio-stimulants, organic-based fertilisers
Bruce Macphee, senior agronomist with the and beneficial microbes are all seen as part of a
Australian Golf Course Superintendents Association, well-balanced maintenance program, which has
agrees there have been significant changes here seen less reliance on chemicals,” he says.
in Australia, too.
Macphee argues that golf courses often do NOTE: Kabi Golf Course on the Sunshine Coast (Qld) is believed
environmental good: they can be wildlife sanctuaries, to be the first Australian course to be managed organically. The
protect topsoil and water resources, and improve air property included a restaurant, organic orchard and land set
quality and moderate temperatures in our cities. aside for wildlife but isn’t operating at present.

organicgardener.com.au 81
ORGANIC LIBRARY

American Hemp Farmer: The Gen Z Emergency The Carbon-neutral Loving Country
Adventures and Reese Halter Adventures of the Bruce Pascoe and Vicky
Misadventures in the EARTHCALLINGSOS.COM, Indefatigable Enviroteens Shukuroglou
Cannabis trade 2020, $25 (+ POST)* First Dog on the Moon HARDIE GRANT, 2020, $45
Doug Fine ALLEN & UNWIN, 2020, $16.99
CHELSEA GREEN PUBLISHING, For those like me who can’t If travelling through COVID
2020, $34 keep track of the various The blurb on the cover of normal Australia, we now
‘Gens’, Gen Z is the newest this hilariously twisted and have the chance to see some
What about growing hemp? generation given a moniker, subversive graphic novel regions through the eyes of
I’m talking about the non- being born after 1996 and (aimed at kids but really for First Nations peoples.
psychoactive plant closely making up a quarter of the anyone) from The Guardian’s Bruce Pascoe and Vicky
related to cannabis. It’s a world’s population. They cartoonist says it all: “Don’t Shukuroglou have written
health food, a medicine, is may be the end of the read this rubbish! Read my about our country’s sacred
made into cloth and used as a alphabet, but for Reese new book Coal: Everyone’s places with the help and
building material. Doug Fine Halter, Gen Z are the hope Delicious Friend” – Senator oversight of local
has the inside story on how of the planet. Halter, an Ian, the Climate Denialist communities. In the
you can not only grow it for occasional and valued Potato. Or this snippet: “No introduction Pascoe asks us
a living but also grow it contributor to OG, has mother, I shan’t eat another to “Enjoy the book, embrace
regeneratively so that you been fighting for planet morsel of kale until you this country and learn, really
protect the soil, environment Earth for decades and has show me your realistic learn about Aboriginal
and climate. One of the written numerous calls implementation schedule Australia.” From the lands of
fastest growing agricultural to action, such as Love! for nationwide Utility-Scale the Bidjara and Karingbal
industries in the US, this Nature (2018). In this latest Solar Photovoltaics (that language groups at
ancient crop is hemmed entreaty, he sets up a is a network of solar panel Carnarvon Gorge, west to
around by regulations and a conversation with three ‘farms’ so big it could power Broome and the Yawuru
lack of markets in Australia Gen Z activists, exploring whole cities.)” language group, all the way
(see: abc.net.au/news/2020- the extinction crisis and The Enviroteens – Binky, south to Bruny Island and
05-07/hemp-smoothies- climate crisis but also the aka The Monotreme, Worried the Nuenonne language, and
muesli-among-creative-uses- way forward with success Norman (once bitten by a countless places in between,
of-first-edible-crop/12196510). stories, strategies for radioactive croissant and we are introduced to the
So if you’re thinking of political and social change now Pastry Person), and people, country and wildlife
growing it, this book, written – all the while showing Letitia, an occasionally bossy (both plants and animals).
by ‘a maverick journalist deep empathy for all life science-wombat and genius Through these stories and
and solar-powered goat forms on the planet. inventor – are on a mission expansive photography we
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organicgardener.com.au 89
 LOSING THE PLOT

Escape to the country

Simon Webster reveals the truth about the ‘good life’.

A
ll of a sudden, everyone wants to move to the 4. People will help you. Some people – generally
country. In the normal scheme of things, selling in rural supplies stores – will make you feel stupid.
a rural property can take years, as you wait for But they will be far outnumbered by the people who
an idiot the right buyer to come along. These days, offer advice and assistance for no reason other
the ‘Sold’ sign gets slapped on the farm gate before than to be helpful. This is also strange but true.
the ‘For sale’ sign, which can lead to some confusion 5. Your vegie patch won’t always look amazing. When it
(they really shouldn’t do it that way). does, grab a deckchair, a cuppa, and sit back and enjoy.
If you are thinking of swapping city for bush, go 6. You will live in close proximity to snakes. And rats.
for it. You won’t regret it. But please bear in mind And ticks. And possibly bullrouts (a type of stonefish),
the following top 10 truths about the ‘good life’. which will poison you for having the temerity to step
foot in a creek. Amazingly, this will soon feel normal.
1. Machines will break, animals will die. This was the 7. You will still go to supermarkets. At first you will
advice the seller of our property gave us on the day he feel this is something to be ashamed of. Then, after
handed over the keys, with a tear in his eye, after three you’ve run into all your neighbours, local market
decades of devotion to this little patch of dirt. Then he gardeners and self-sufficiency gurus in the checkout
skipped off into the sunset, jumped in the air, and queue, you will realise it’s as normal as bullrouts.
clicked his heels on the way out. He was right. Manure 8. Your house will become one giant spider’s web. So
happens. All too often. Try to be Zen about this. stay in touch with old friends. When they announce
2. You will learn to fix pumps. You will spend many they’re going to visit, you’ll clean.
hours struggling to join pipes together, searching for 9. You will feel overwhelmed. Every now and then,
damp patches of grass, wading into ice-cold creeks you will look around and see only rampant weeds,
wielding a monkey wrench, and explaining to the broken fencing, the crumbling driveway, and the
family why there’s nothing coming out of the tap. leaking tank. It will feel like everything is out of
You will want to tell someone to stick their Zen up control. That’s because it is. Go and spend some time
ILLUSTRATION: ISTOCK

their downpipe. But try to be Zen about this, too. working on the pump to take your mind off it.
3. You will own a rain gauge. And you will record 10. Your kids would rather help you in the garden
rainfall amounts on a chart that you will have on than go on screens. As if. You’re moving to the
prominent display on your fridge. Strange but true. country; not Shangri-La.

90