Good Organic Gardening Issue#9.4 - 2018

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

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

BLUEBERRY ‘KISSES’ The plant: Grow Blueberry ‘Kisses’ and you’ll be rewarded with an abundance of big, plump, sweet blueberries you can pick straight from your own backyard. It’s an Australian-bred variety with lush evergreen foliage, coloured new growth, showy flowers and antioxidant-rich berries that can be harvested for months. Growing: To get the sweetest kisses, plant it in a sunny spot with slightly acidic, well-drained soil or grow it in azalea and camellia potting mix in decorative pots. It has a low chill requirement, which makes it a versatile blueberry that can be grown pretty much anywhere in Australia. For healthy, vigorous growth and loads of flowers and fruit, liquid-feed plants every fortnight. Design: At just 1m tall, it makes the perfect low evergreen hedge or fruiting border, or plant it in sunny…

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

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

IN AREAS WITH HIGH SUMMER RAINFALL, FRUIT CAN BE PRONE TO CRACKING, SO LOOK OUT FOR TYPES THAT ARE MORE SPLIT-RESISTANT. When it comes to cherries, I don’t have a stop button; I could eat a whole bowlful and still be left wanting more. Cherries are nature’s dessert: round, sweet and divine, eaten fresh from the tree or enjoyed in cheesecakes, pies, puddings, sauces and delectable summer cocktails and desserts. Among fruiting trees, sweet cherries (Prunus avium) rate highly in the looks department with their pretty, serrated dark-green foliage, attractive reddish-brown bark, gorgeous spring blossoms and vibrant autumn foliage colour in all the sunset tones. All that, plus you get the bonus of a delicious crop of summer fruit jampacked with healthy antioxidants. CHERRY PICKING Most trees grow to around 4m tall and 3m wide, so…