GREENS~LEAVES
The newsletter of the Dunedin Veggie Growers Club; issued monthly. Vol: 4.7.July 2011
Meetings are held on the second Monday each month at St Patrick’s Parish Centre, MacAndrew Rd, Sth. Dunedin starting at 7.00pm sharp (we ask you to arrive at 6.45pm to avoid a bottleneck )
Our next meeting is August 8th and the invited speaker is Steve McArthur on “Growing berries “
President: Margaret Scott (489 2030) msscott@xtra.co.nz Treasurer: Lynne McCrone (4781195)
Secretary: Carol Henderson (454 4625) hendersonic@xtra.co.nz
Winter finally arrives!
Waking up to snow this morning I was almost relieved to be experiencing some real winter weather but my chickens are not happy with it :(
Hopefully you are all keeping warm, enjoying the time to study the seed catalogues, gardening magazines and books, while thinking about what you will grow this coming season.
The Midwinter Potluck Dinner was a great success with nearly 30 of us enjoying the company and a wide range of delicious food !
The seed-identifying quiz was a bit more difficult but we did have a winning table who all got to pick a prize from the basket. Carolyne Smith won the secret seat prize and yet another table won the most “gardening years” competition.The vege-table decorations made by a friend of Margaret Scott’s were fabulous and I am sorry to say I forgot my camera so there are no photos from me. If anyone does have some photos of them or the potluck please send them in and I can include them in the next newsletter.
The between courses entertainment of an excerpt from Michael Pollan’s “Botany of Desire” dealing with apples was just the right length to give us room for dessert....a big thankyou to all who came for making it a success and I look forward to the next one!! :)
August 8th Meeting;
The August meeting will follow our usual format but we may have the sales table out in the foyer to free up more room for seating.
Veg. of the month talk – Parsnip by ….Unconfirmed
BrainsTrust/Open Forum – hosted by Margaret and Dennis
Invited speaker - Steve McArthur on “Growing berries”
Competition – 1 x Parsnip
Announcements and Supper
Open Garden
Dennis has kindly offered to show us around his garden and greenhouse on the 14th August at 2pm. The address is 14 Panmure Ave., Calton Hill. Phone -4876043.
Omission
I forgot to mention in the last newsletter that John Streekstra had given me Superior Minerals in Mosgiel as the name of the supplier he gets his garden minerals from. This is to be found on Factory Rd, Mosgiel and the phone number is 4047721.
Planting…..August is it!
The official time to start planting seeds is here :)
Of course this is not an exact science and some allowances have to be made for the individual conditions in your garden. My own garden is still mostly in shade at his time of year but I do plant seeds in trays and have them in the sheltered area out the front until the back has warmed up a bit.
In trays; Cabbage, Asian greens, Chicory, Kale, Lettuce, Spinach, Peas, Celery, Celeriac, Onion.
In the ground; Asparagus crowns, Broad beans, Carrot, Garlic, Early Potatoes, Shallots, Onion sets, Jerusalem Artichoke, Rhubarb and, in the last two weeks of August, Radish and Turnip.
In the greenhouse; Corn, Cucumber, Pumpkin, Tomato, Zucchini which all need a bit of TLC and guaranteed warmth.
Two planting guides, one by Jason Ross (of Sutherland nurseries) and the other from The Star, will be at the meeting for you to have a look at. The differences between them are quite interesting
Moon Planting times…
Most prolific for sowing and planting all that produce above ground is August 4th to 12th.
Good for all root crops , especially carrots, onions, potatoes etc. is 18th and 19th, followed by 25th and 26th when swedes can also be planted.
(These dates from Organic NZ magazine)
Library
Please bring back your library books so that others can have a turn. It seems to be sensible to limit the lending time to one month, or two if you forget! A reminder will be put in the newsletter each month to jog memories.
If anyone is interested in being the “librarian” please let any of the committee know :)
Jerusalem Artichoke and Silverbeet Tart
(Recipe from Wed. 27th July ODT by Alison Lambert)
Serves 4-6
500g shortcrust pastry
Filling
600g Jerusalem artichokes , peeled and cut in
½ cm rounds.
250g silverbeet, washed and drained.
4 Tbsp olive oil
½ tsp fresh rosemary leaves finely chopped
Juice of ½ a lemon
1 garlic clove, crushed
175ml cream
70g crème fraiche or sour cream
2 medium eggs
150g cheese( feta , cheddar or gruyere), broken into pieces
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Lightly oil a 23cm loose-bottomed tin
Line the tine with the pastry without stretching and allowing an overhang to be trimmed later.
Prick the base with a fork and rest in the fridge for at least 30 mins.
Preheat oven to 170degC
Bake the pastry case blind by lining it with greaseproof paper and filling with rice or dried beans. Bake for 35 mins, remove the paper and bake for another 5 mins.
Make filling while case is baking by putting the prepared artichokes into a pot of cold, slightly salted water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 10-15 mins until tender. Drain and leave to cool.
Separate the silverbeet leave from the stalks. Roughly cut both but keep separate as they take different times to cook. Heat the oil in a large frying pan and fry for 2 mins, add the leaves and rosemary and continue to cook for 6-8 mins. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice seasoning and garlic.
Whisk together the cream, sour cream and eggs with a pinch of salt and pepper. Spread the artichokes over the base of the pastry shell, scatter over the silverbeet and finally place bits of cheese around the tart. Pour the custard over top and bake for 15 mins, cover with foil and bake for a further 30-40 mins or until filling is set. Remove the tart from the oven and allow to cool slightly before breaking or cutting off the overhanging pastry.
Serve warm.
Internet Interests
These videos are very informative and thought provoking….
https://www.youtube.com/user/PermacultureNet
My snowy garden!
…and in contrast a shot of the beautiful display of colourful lettuce in the vegetable garden at Wisley from my holiday last year…just to remind us of how lovely they can look growing fast in the sunshine
Bank Account details…
For those who would like to pay their subs via internet banking the Club bank account number is;
Westpac 030905 0515906 00
Dunedin Horticultural Society
An invitation was extended to all members for the AGM of the Dunedin Horticultural Society to boost their membership and provide a link for kindred gardening groups. Unfortunately this was held in our winter recess and the date has passed. The invitation will be available to view at the meeting and interested members may write their name on the back as we may be able to attend future meetings.
Looking forward to our first meeting of the season and hope to see you all there :)
Carol Henderson
Newsletter Editor
No comments:
Post a Comment