Kommuniti Edible Gardens in Kingsley, Western Australia | Community organisation

Kommuniti Edible Gardens

Locality: Kingsley, Western Australia

Phone: +61 411 468 337

Address: Wimbledon Drive 6026 Kingsley, WA, Australia

Website: http://kommunitihq.org

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24.01.2022 Oregano: Oregano would have to be one of my most favoured herbs, particularly Greek oregano, but there are so many more varieties to choose from, it’s well wor...th a look into. Oregano is one of those herbs that its flavour intensifies when dried, which is how I use it most often. Greek oregano has very pungent dried flower-tops that are most commonly used in Greek cooking, not so much the leaves. Oregano is a spreading perennial herb that grows wild in the Mediterranean hills and was originally used for its healing and antiseptic properties. Oregano is a versatile plant that can be grown in rockeries, garden beds, veggie patches or just in a pot. It is sometimes called ‘wild’ marjoram but shouldn’t be confused with the real marjoram (Origanum majorana). Oregano is closely related but has a larger leaf and stronger flavour. The most common way to get started is with a nursery plant or the division of a clump from a friend. They’ll also grow from cuttings if that’s your thing but it takes longer for a decent sized plant to develop. The regular oregano (Origanum vulgare) can be grown by seed too. Choose a full sun position that has good drainage and mix some compost and manure into the soil. Mulch well and water in with eco-seaweed. In regions with hot, dry summers, they’ll do best with a bit of shade in the afternoon, especially the golden varieties. Oregano is very good at adapting to its surroundings and can be quite drought tolerant once established. If you want lots of growth though, they’ll perform better with regular watering as they are shallow rooted. Container plants will also need to be watered and fed more frequently. Being a Mediterranean plant, oregano isn’t so keen on wet, humid summers. Give it extra good drainage and air circulation if trying to grow it in humid conditions. They respond well to being cut back so give them a haircut at the change of each season. Then tie together what you have cut off and hang it in a paper bag to dry in the garage - that way you will always have some dried for use in the kitchen. Companions: Oregano is particularly good for repelling cabbage moths and it can be planted between rows of Brassicas for this purpose. Also good around asparagus, basil, eggplant, tomatoes. For more information on edible gardening you can obtain a copy of my book Edible Gardens a practical guide or my NEW eBook of over a 100+ Plant profiles that will take your edible garden to the next level, (Please note the two books are very different one compliments the other) at www.craigcastree.com.au

24.01.2022 How do you like our super cute cuecumber trellis? Spring and summer is all about stakes, trellises, wire, string and ties to support the fat, juicy fruiting veg...gies - think tomatoes, cuecumbers, beans, even eggfruit. Sometimes the Farm seems like a star picket black hole, seriously, they are always on the shopping list! (If anyone needs to get rid of any we will take em! ). Last year our cuecumber crop was pretty epic but we grew just a single row per bed with one string dropping down for each plant. This system lets us get in twice as many plants. We will just have to see how tall they get . Hopefully they reach the top of the string, no higher, no shorter! #Northfreosocialfarm #freo #freostory #communitygardens #urbanfarming #socialfarming #communitygardens #farmtofork #northfreo #growitlocal #cuecumbers

21.01.2022 Fantastic day today in the garden for our first community workshop. Members and family of the Wanneroo Seniors joined us to learn about bale bed gardening. Ever...yone had a great time and our committee and volunteers did an amazing job despite a few minor challenges. I believe Nat has some additional pics to post later. See more

20.01.2022 BUSY BEE AND AGM Sunday 8 November from 9.00am with AGM after Busy Bee. We hope to have a load of mulch delivered prior to this date and will aim to spread the... mulch on the day. If the mulch arrives we will provide bacon and egg rolls to all that come along and help. I will confirm closer to the date as I will need numbers to cater. I hope to see you all there.

19.01.2022 Starting Now! Allan Connolly #Kommuniti #KommunitiEdibleGardens

15.01.2022 On Monday we're doing a webinar with Carbon Sync - an organisation which trains farmers to draw down carbon from the atmosphere and store it in the soil permane...ntly. They do this with regenerative agriculture techniques that are customised for each farmer and their unique ecosystems. Join us on Zoom! Link and more info here: New Economy Builders #10 : Carbon Sync - Teaching Farmers Regenerative Practices

09.01.2022 Strawberries: Strawberries are low-growing, leafy plants, between 12-15cm (about 6 inches) high and will spread to about 50-100cm (20-40 inches). They have fi...ve petalled flowers, usually white or sometimes pink or red. The flowers are followed by delicious red fruits, which have their seeds on the outside. The Alpine strawberries are the smallest and one of the most aromatic things I have ever tasted; this little fruit packs a big punch in flavour. Red Gauntlet and Tioga are some older, reliable, commercial varieties, of which Tioga is sweeter and Red Gauntlet less flavoursome. Sweetheart produces a heavy crop with small, sweet fruit. The Albion strawberry is a more recent variety which is day neutral - that is, flower buds commence with less regard to day length than for other varieties. This enables more continuous fruit production. The Albion strawberry has a very sweet flavour, so is ideal for desserts. Runners or seeds? Strawberry plants can be grown from either seeds or runners. Seeds: Growing from seed is time consuming as the plant can take up to 2 years to fruit. The seed is small, fiddly to handle and germinate and can be hard to find. However, for those who like a challenge, after chilling the seed for 2-4 weeks in a closed container in the freezer, plant the seed in a good seed raising mix in small punnets or containers. Sieve some of the seed raising mix over them to lightly cover, and then keep moist. Seedlings can take up to 2 months to appear. Transplant to a larger pot when around 3 leaves have formed. The seed is usually started in spring or autumn. The easiest strawberry to grow from seed is the tiny Alpine strawberry and its seed is available from many suppliers.I have also heard of people picking the seed off the outside of strawberries with a toothpick and attempting to sprout plants from this seed. However, I have no experience with this method, and I think life is too short to be raising strawberries by seed! Runners: The alternative way of growing strawberry plants is from runners or established plants (which have themselves been started from runners). A ‘runner’ is a long shoot sent out from the original strawberry plant, which can itself establish a new plant once it touches the ground. Runners are available from around mid-May onwards and should be purchased as ‘virus free’ to prevent receiving a diseased plant. Runners have little or no leaves and consist of a ‘crown’ and root system. They are the strawberry plants’ dormant stage. Select runners which are moist, as this is an indication that they have been properly stored in a cool room before sale. Runners with dry roots may not establish. Plant as soon as possible after you purchase them, keeping moist until you do. Watch out for the formation of a grey, furry mould - wash off if some of this forms or, if badly affected, discard the runner and start afresh. Plant the runner with the roots under the soil level and the crown sitting on top of the soil. Do not double back the roots when planting - if they are too long, simply trim to around 10 cm. Plant them 30-35cm apart. Strawberries should be lifted out of the ground or pots every so often, I prefer each year at the end of autumn and be broken down into individual crowns again and the old leaves be cut off and the roots pruned back. If they are in pots, I change the potting mix, and if in the soil - particularly if you have grown them in a block or rows - plant mustard after them and plant the cut back crowns somewhere else. The mustard will fumigate the soil where they were landed and you could, the following season, plant them back in the bed after the mustard comes out. If you are wondering how to cut them back, check out the link to my YouTube channel there is an instructional video there to show you - https://youtu.be/WpyVeihvcP4 Strawberries like well-drained soil with plenty of humus. To prepare your bed, dig in some compost before planting and possibly use a liquid fertiliser during the growing season. Well-fed strawberries taste better. To protect the fruit from moulds, use some form of mulch around the plants. Straw, pine needles, or black plastic are all suitable. Mulch will also help suppress weeds. Protect your plants with some sort of netting or bird scarer or you will lose most of your crop. I prefer netting; remember ‘no nets = no fruit’ in my book! Pests: Slugs, birds, lizards and all manner of critters enjoy eating strawberries. This can be a constant battle. Netting will prevent birds, as will growing in hanging baskets or containers on walls where birds cannot easily perch. Nets will also deter possums. Birds can be tricked by growing the white strawberry (more about coloured strawberries below), so they don’t know it’s ripe. To protect them either use rolled oats scattered sparingly or a pet friendly snail bait. Culinary: Well what can I tell you that you don’t already know? They go well with balsamic vinegar and basil. They make great strawberry wine and liqueur. Strawberries, avocado and feta salad is worth a try. There are so many more I would be here for a week. It’s worth thinking about them in savoury dishes as well as sweet. For more information on edible gardening you can obtain a copy of my book Edible Gardens a practical guide or my NEW eBook of over a 100+ Plant profiles that will take your edible garden to the next level, (Please note the two books are very different one compliments the other) at www.craigcastree.com.au

07.01.2022 There are many ways that we can change the world for the better, and taking care of ourselves and of our needs is one of them. Just by growing our own salads or... herbs, or by harvesting apples from a nearby tree, we are reducing our reliance on chemical agriculture and on the industrial food system in general. One lettuce picked from your garden means that a different lettuce, raised in a monoculture with fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides, irrigation, desiccants, huge farm machinery, plastic packaging, transport, refrigeration and supermarket distribution centres didn't have to be purchased. And your lettuce will taste better, too Share below if you're out in the garden this week and loving it. #permacultureillustrator #gardeningismytherapy #homegrownveggies

05.01.2022 Elderflower: Elderflower, S. canadensis is also known as the North American elder and has been reclassified to a subspecies of S. nigra, along with the European... or black elder. S.nigra is popularly cultivated in Europe and because the two varieties are so similar, the American elder is not cultivated commercially. As well as forming part of the edible garden, it can also be used as a feature plant in the garden. It grows 3 - 4m high. The dark green, compound leaves are pinnate or bipinnate with leaflets arranged opposite around the stem, creating an overall length of up to 30 cm or more. Each leaflet has serrated edges, is quite large and may measure 3-12cm long by 2-6cm wide. The fragrant white flowers are large and bloom in inflorescences or clusters, about 30 cm in width. These are followed by the blue berry-like fruits, but the plant may have both flowers and fruit for several weeks. There are many uses for the fruit of the elderflower plant, as both a food and a health supplement. The many varieties of elder have been used all over the world for many centuries. Native Americans valued elderflower as a medicinal herb and used it to treat many conditions. Other uses included repelling insects and creation of a black dye from the bark. Elderflower, or elderberry, is a vigorous, soft leafed deciduous shrub that can grow from 3-4 meters. The elderberry plant is quite adaptable to Australian conditions and will grow in most soil types, including wet soils. This plant likes full sun but is happy to grow in part shade as well. After flowering, the fruit appears in late summer and the stems may droop under the weight of hundreds of small berries. Choose your position carefully, as this multi-stemmed plant suckers upwards and spreads. You may choose to grow it in a pot for this reason or use a root barrier in the garden. Elderberry has a long history of medicinal use and although the American elderflower plant is not widely cultivated, research has indicated that there is great potential in its general health benefits. Elderberries have been found to have a high concentration of compounds known for their antioxidant activity and have greater potential health benefits than blueberries and cranberries. In addition, they have a much higher content of Vitamins A, C and B6 than other berries. The traditional uses of elderflower plants involved the whole plant, with teas and tinctures made from the bark and fruit used for many ailments. Caution is recommended using the raw plant products due to potential toxicity. However, elderflower has been used for a wide array of complaints such as stomach ache, constipation, diarrhoea and acts as a laxative and diuretic. However, most commonly the plant has been used as a topical application to treat fungal and bacterial infections, bruises, skin conditions, and as an anti-inflammatory application for wounds. Traditional uses also include for sore throats, coughs, and respiratory infections, where it is thought to reduce swelling of mucous membranes. A tea to assist with cold and flu can be made by steeping 3-5grams of dried elderflower in one cup of boiling water for 10-15 minutes. Strain the flowers off and then drink three times daily. It also combines well with peppermint and yarrow to make the popular blend YEP tea for colds and flu. Pests: Aphids, Scale are the most common pests. Caution: Elderberry has a bitter taste when uncooked and must NOT be used in its raw state. Uncooked berries and other parts of the elder family of plants contain cyanide inducing glycosides and can be extremely toxic. Caution is advised before using raw or dried fruits. Culinary: both the flowers and berries have a wide array of culinary uses. The flowers can be covered in batter and made into fritters, soaked in water to make a drink or dried flowers can be used to make a pleasant tea. The fruits are popularly cooked or made into syrups for pies, jams, jellies, sauces, and other desserts. They can also be added to other food, such as bread rolls once made into syrup. Wine, beer and other drinks may also be made from the berries and the flowers used as decoration in desserts. For more information on edible gardening you can obtain a copy of my book Edible Gardens a practical guide or my NEW eBook of over a 100+ Plant profiles that will take your edible garden to the next level, (Please note the two books are very different one compliments the other) at www.craigcastree.com.au