Plant-a-genda

I now have a very nifty box to store all my seed packets in. When you're done planting a few seeds you can move it to the next month to remind you to do succession planting, so you don't end up with a huge glut of one type of veggie. Winter veg can be stored in the correct months after checking the info on the seed packet, and there's a 'what to sow when' chart and companion planting guide. If I had the time and could gather the materials, I would probably have made something similar as it is a bit pricey for what you get - but for the organisation factor alone, for me its worth every cent. See www.plantagenda.com.au

Chilli Chicken Stirfry

Ooh, this is so yummy and healthy - and only takes about 10-15 mins to throw together. Chop some onion and garlic and fry gently in a bit of olive oil. Add some thin strips chicken breast or thigh fillets, and cook until tender & golden. Add a good amount of finely diced vegetables. I use a bag of frozen stir-fry veg from Aldi, if I'm trying to put a meal together at the end of a very long day. I always see what's in the fridge and maybe add some diced capsicum, celery, zucchini, broccoli and some baby bok choy/spinach from the garden too. Then just stir in a a good dollop of hot chilli - fresh if you have it, or get those jars or they come in tubes now, 1/4 cup teriaki sauce and a good dash of honey. If you have a fresh jar of sprouts make sure you throw those in. You can also add 1 tbspn of fresh coriander if you like it - personally I can't stand the stuff and I can whiff it a mile away. Serve with rice.

Currently reading...

These 3 books are great - I've read them all through, but these are the sort of books you keep handy and keep on referring to. They're all Australian - 'Easy Organic Gardening' by Lyn Bagnall is packed with info on organic gardening and includes a really good guide to each fruit/veg and moon planting guide - basically everything you need to know. As mentioned previously, 'The Permaculture Home Garden' by Linda Woodrow is my absolute inspiration and full of brilliant advise, and finally 'Living the Good Life' by Linda Cockburn is a great read by someone I admire greatly who has walked the walk, before talking the talk. A very down-to-earth and witty account of one family trying to live for 6 months without spending a cent. Christmas is coming - put 'em on your list, you won't regret it!!

Container Veggie Gardening

There's no excuse for not growing some of your own food with these veggie gardens that can sit right outside your kitchen door. With the right care, its amazing how much you can continue picking from them. These were only planted out two weeks ago, and have already grown considerably. I used some of the chives and parsley on my omelette today. And of course, once you feel confident with this - its exactly the same principles with a bigger veggie patch.

So, you'll need a recycled polystyrene container from a greengrocer or fishmonger. They will be happy to give these away as due to food regulations, (and just shows what horrendous waste we have here) they can only be used once. A good, deep oblong one is perfect. Punch some holes in the bottom for drainage and lay some newspaper in the bottom. Fill with a 50:50 mix of organic potting mix and coir - which is recycled coconut husks that you buy in a brick from any hardware place for about $2.50. Place it in a bucket of water and leave for an hour, by which time it will have absorbed all the water, and filled the bucket completely. Mix this with potting mix and a handful of blood and bone. Fill container.

Now for the fun part, make holes in the soil mix and carefully plant the seedlings. This box has 3 lettuce down the middle, 2 cherry tomatoes along with a stake at each end, chives or shallots, parsley - 2 varieties, silverbeet, rocket, beetroot (use leaves in salads), bok choy and at each end we pushed in a couple of bean seeds that will grow out and trail over the box. You then need to add a good handful of complete organic fertiliser granules, again - only a couple of dollars from the hardware store and water everything in really well. Add a good layer of mulch such as pea straw, lucerne or anything that is fairly easy to spread around the plants (straw is too long/sharp and could damage the seedlings). I've stood the box on 2 bricks so it doesn't damage the deck and drains better; but it is pretty heavy once its filled with the soil. You can sprinkle some organic snail pellets around the plants if you need to, but I haven't had any problems with pests at all being so close to the house and raised from the ground. When you're learning to grow veggies, there's enough to think about without worrying about every single pest that comes along! Even with veggies in the garden, this is still a great option for last minute extra's to add to meals and alot of fun, especially when you get little children involved in learning all about gardening.
Thanks to BM 'Cittaslow', BM Permaculture Network & BM City Council for promoting home kitchen gardens... contact any of these for future courses or info available from Food Co-op, Katoomba.

The Charge of the Light Brigade

Sixty Minutes tonight carried a great story on the Australian Light Horse and their famous battle at Beersheba. On October 31, 1917 they went on the attack against the Turks. Eight hundred daring horseman charging into immortality.It was a massive gamble, but it paid off and changed the course of the war in the Middle East. 90 years on and the children and grandchildren of the Light Horsemen have returned to the Holy Land to pay their respects and remember the bravery of their fathers, and grandfathers.
In 1854, 673 soldiers charged into the North Valley above Balaclava in the Crimea inspiring the poem by Alfred Lord Tennyson, 'The Charge of the Light Brigade'. I love this poem - not because it glorifies war - but because it shows the tenacity of the human spirit against all the odds. Most of us understand that war is futile; but despite the impossible situation these men found themselves in, they determinedly followed their orders, and rode together alongside their mates into battle. Out of the Australians, amazingly only 33 were killed. Of the British at the Crimea, 113 were killed, many more were injured or missing, presumed captured.

'Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
"Forward the Light Brigade!
Charge for the guns!" he said.
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

"Forward, the Light Brigade!"
Was there a man dismayed?
Not though the soldier knew
Someone had blundered.
Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die.
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volleyed and thundered;
Stormed at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of hell
Rode the six hundred.

Flashed all their sabres bare,
Flashed as they turned in air
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
All the world wondered.
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right through the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reeled from the sabre-stroke
Shattered and sundered.
Then they rode back, but not,
Not the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volleyed and thundered;
Stormed at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell.
They that had fought so well
Came through the jaws of Death,
Back from the mouth of hell,
All that was left of them,
Left of six hundred.

When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wondered.
Honor the charge they made!
Honor the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred!

Best Ever Scones

Its worth picking up a copy of this month's 'delicious' magazine, as its got a free book of 'cafe' food recipes with it. You won't, however, find this recipe in there. As much as I'd love to try 'white fig & marsala cheesecake' amongst other gourmet stuff - I'm just a simple girl at heart. And an English one at that - so we make scones. For this recipe, you need:-
2 cups Self-raising flour, 1/2 tspn salt, 1 tspn baking powder/ 55 g butter (cut into small squares), 150ml milk, fresh whipped cream & jam to serve.
You:-
Preheat oven to 230 deg celcius. Lightly flour a baking sheet. I use my little food processor that I got off e-bay, so it makes it really quick to make. You simply add flour, salt & baking powder. Pulse to mix. Add butter & mix until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Pour in milk to make a soft dough. Turn out onto a floured surface; knead lightly. Flatten with your hand until 2cm thick and cut into rounds. Place on tray and bake 8-10 mins until well risen & golden. Split while warm and serve with jam & cream. If you brush the tops with milk & sprinkle with cinnamon before baking, you get that lovely golden colour.

Bougainvillea

The year after planting the bougainvillea and its climbed to the top of the fence and is a riot of colour. One is hot pink, the other lilac, and both look sensational. That's whats so great about Spring - just when you're starting to think that you've managed to kill everything living thing you planted last year (OK - I did lose a few things....) suddenly they burst into new growth and colour.