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SUMMER GREEN NOTES |
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Summer citrus care
Garden
calendar
Coping
with the heat
Seed
survival strategies for summer
Houses Can Be Organic Too
Choosing fruit trees
Extending the harvest
Growing your own chook food
Organic weed strategies
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Summer is not
a favourite time of year for gardeners in very hot or humid
areas. Pests and weeds can spread in the blink of an eye,
transplanting is difficult and plants can easily suffer
moisture stress. Gardeners can suffer heat stress too, and
we all know how important it is to avoid potential skin
cancer problems. Gardening unfortunately is a high risk
hobby or profession in the summer, as only 20 minutes in the
sun can be too much. So the window of opportunity to be
outside can be a very short period at each end of the day.
One
alternative to consider is to reverse what gardeners have
always done in winter in very cold areas and that is to put
the garden to 'bed' for the season. To do this you would
water deeply (if at all possible) in late spring and then
heavily mulch the garden and plan to leave it alone until
the weather cools down. You can take advantage of overcast
days or summer storms to do a bit of weeding. It takes a bit
of discipline to avoid buying new seedlings or plants but it
has many advantages.
Gardeners in
warm areas areas can suffer from burn-out as there is no
downtime of year in the garden. Gardeners in cold areas
can sit by the fire and browse seed catalogues and look
forward with enthusiasm to getting into the garden in
spring (this probably sounds a bit rose-coloured glasses). For gardeners in warm areas winter and spring are a
major gardening times so by the time summer arrives with its
fruit fly and fungal problems, a break can be just what is
needed.
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SUMMER
CITRUS CARE |
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Citrus are hungry feeders and
many problems with poor fruit quality can be traced to poor
nutrition. The poorer the soil is, the more often organic
compost or fertiliser should be applied but the bare minimum
is 3 times a year. November and February are both important
months for fertilising citrus. A 1 yr-old tree will
need 4 - 8 kg of well-rotted animal manure, a mature tree will
need between 20-40 kg. A good alternative is to apply 750g
per tree of organically certified
Organic
Link.
Only apply fertiliser to moist ground then mulch well,
keeping the mulch and manure well clear of the trunk, to
avoid collar-rot. Never place fertiliser close to the trunk
or in heaps; spread it as evenly as possible to just past
the drip-line of the tree. Avoid fertilising during drought.
During dry weather citrus need a consistent supply of
moisture or fruit will be dry.
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Check the pH and correct
as required, add 300 - 400 g of lime to the m2 if the soil is
acid (ph below 6).
pH test kits
are easy to use and all gardeners should have one.
More information.....
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Citrus trees have a high
requirement for micro-nutrients; a regular monthly spray
with Natrakelp seaweed fertiliser will supply these trace
elements.
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Citrus Leaf Miner causes ugly distorted leaves with silvery trails in the leaf tissue, Meyer lemons are particularly susceptible.
Eco Oil
is an organically certified control, spray when new growth
is about 1 cm long, reapply every 2-3 weeks. January and
February are crucial times to spray.
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October and November are when
bronze orange bug
(Stink bugs) appear on citrus trees. The young ones are small
and greenish, the next stage are a bright orange and the adults look like large spiny cockroaches but they all cause damage to your citrus trees by sucking sap. Handpicking and dropping into a bucket of boiling water is possible on all but very large trees. Be very careful to protect your eyes and wear long sleeves to protect your arms, as the caustic fluid squirted by these insects can be very painful.
If necessary, spray with
Pyrethrum.
More information
on organic citrus care......
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GARDEN CALENDAR
Please note that the following information will vary from year to year depending on the present climatic factors. Information is primarily for climates with a dry cool winter and wet, humid, hot summers. In other areas adjust dates as needed.
The information is based on the southern hemisphere. |
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Understanding which
climate
zone you live in will help you choose
the best plants for your area and also the
correct sowing time.

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NOVEMBER
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Asparagus
will be finishing
the spring harvest of spears and the bed will now be
full of ferny fronds. Keep the plants well-mulched and
watered to keep the fronds actively growing as this will
feed the crown for the following year. Gardeners in
warmer areas often get a 2nd harvest in the wet season.
It is OK to harvest
spears at this time as long as they are a reasonable
size. Spears smaller than a pencil mean the crown is in
need of a good feed of compost or manure. -
Fruit fly is more active, traps should be replaced as
needed, all susceptible fruit should be bagged or
Eco-Naturalure regularly applied as a splash
bait. Fruit already stung should be destroyed, fruit
that has been stung often bleeds a clear sap, or
develops dimples. Only feed it to animals if they will
actually eat it. Never try to bury or compost affected
fruit.
More information..... -
Prune
grevilleas, by removing seed heads and cutting long shoots back by a third, to promote bushiness. They can safely be cut back hard, if they are too big for the space.
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Summer prune
mulberry for a second fruit crop; cut back new growth by a third.
Feed and
water passionfruits. -
Plant containerised
fruit
trees,
particularly tropical ones, before Christmas. Remember
to keep moist until well established. Remove flowers and
fruit from new fruit trees.
Protect
ripening fruit from birds, possums and fruit
bats. -
Daylilies and
irises can be divided after flowering finishes.
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Put
snail pellets out in containers close to young seedlings or use a
copper barrier as a collar around the seedlings.
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Codling moth traps should be
renewed.
More information.....
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DECEMBER
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Watch for aphids on soft shoots of
citrus and
roses, check for beneficial insects such as hoverflies and ladybeetle larvae before controlling them. If some of the aphids look like little brown balloons, they have been parasitised by a micro-wasp. Spray
Natrasoap as a least toxic control in the absence of predators. Tidy rose bushes by removing black spot-affected leaves using tongs.
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As
mangoes finish fruiting, thin out the canopy to improve air circulation and allow sunlight in. Feed with an organic fertiliser, mulch well. Getting mangoes to fruit consistently in SE QLD can be difficult, mangoes such as Kensington (Bowen) and Nam Dok are cold sensitive and may fail to form hermaphrodite flowers, instead they flower profusely but the flowers are male and so no fruit is formed. Mango cultivars Irwin, Sensation, Brooks or R2E2 are more cold tolerant and so are the best choice for SE QLD.
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Bananas
need regular removal of suckers to produce good-sized bunches. Each clump of bananas should be made up of a
mature plant, a half-grown plant and one sucker only. Preference in sucker selection should be given to those
with spear-shaped rather than round leaves. Fertilise with 1 kg of pelleted fowl manure per m2 in
December. Repeat in February, April and August, mulch well. Tidy the plant by removing yellowing, old leaves
to reduce fungal problems. When a bunch has fully developed, remove the flower bell. The flower bell drips
nectar and attracts possums and bats, it also uses nutrients better saved for the fruit.
Banana bags help fruit ripen and keep the birds away.
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Scale
are a pest that do damage out of all proportion to their size. Mid-summer is common time for scale to hatch and
crawlers to emerge. Frenetic ant activity can indicate scale-hatching periods. Spray
Natrasoap
or
Eco Oil
to kill all stages of scale insects. Banding trees with horticultural glue to keep ants out is also useful.
More information..... -
Keep
snail traps filled with
Multiguard pellets or beer to reduce damage to young seedlings. Slugs can a particular problem with the onset of the wet season.
More information.....-
Summer prune choko vines. Remember to start picking early, young tender fruit the size of large eggs are delicious and do not require peeling.
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Mulch,
mulch and more
mulch to retain precious moisture in the soil. Keep in
mind that light straw mulches can be fire hazard and do
not place close to the walls of buildings; consider
using pebble mulches instead.
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JANUARY
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Maintain
fruit fly
controls, destroy
spoiled fruit. -
Use
Natrakelp
seaweed fertiliser as a foliar spray to keep vegetables
healthy.
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Keep an eye on
citrus for scale problems, the first sign is usually the appearance of Black Sooty Mould, a fungus that feeds on the excretions of scale and aphids, spray with
Natrasoap or
Eco Oil.
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Help
lavender survive the wet season by sprinkling a little lime or dolomite directly over the foliage and around the roots. Lavender can be difficult to grow in Queensland or sometimes shy about flowering, as it is not cold enough during winter for some types. We find the best varieties are either French lavender Lavendula dentata or Italian lavender Lavendula stoechas.
Lavendula stoechas is a weed in Victoria, so avoid
planting it there. In warmer, humid areas plant only in well-drained spots, such as under eaves, behind rock walls or in terracotta tubs.
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Take cuttings of evergreen shrubs such as mock orange, camellia
and gardenia.
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Control
caterpillars with Dipel
or Success; avoid planting highly susceptible vegetables at this time of year
at this
time of year in the subtropics and tropics, such as Chinese cabbage or broccoli.
Exclusion
nets such as PestGuard or Vege Net when used early will
keep the moths out and eliminate the need to spray. -
Train vines regularly, cut back long canes of wisteria and other vigorous climbers. Plant a new
passionfruit, as they only last a few years before succumbing to woody passion fruit virus.
Keep
passionfruit well-watered and feed with blood and bone. -
Prune
spring-flowering shrubs when flowering finishes.
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Prune
raspberry, currant
and
gooseberry
bushes.
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To keep
roses in good condition in subtropical areas, prune in January
and February, not winter. This removes any foliage infected with black spot, stops flowering and rests the bush during the period of high humidity. This gives a late autumn flush of flowers from March to July, which will hold on the bushes better. Lightly trim again in August. After pruning, fertilise with blood
and bone, mulch well with well-rotted animal manures and hay. Water during dry weather in the morning, giving a good soak. Avoid any overhead watering; aim to keep the leaves as dry as possible. Spray
Natrakelp
seaweed spray onto the leaves, in the afternoon, every 2 to 3 weeks. This raises the pH of the leaf surface and adds trace elements, improving disease resistance.
More information
on organic rose care...... -
Thin
apples and
pears, especially
‘Cox’s Orange Pippin’ and ‘Gravenstein’. Check for
codling moth damage. Keep an eye out for
Pear and
Cherry Slug,
spray with Success.
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Summer
prune
deciduous
fruit trees that
have finished cropping of any damaged or badly-placed
branches.
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Watch
apricots
for brown rot, remove any effected fruit.
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It can be useful to thin
grape
foliage if it is getting too dense as it will restrict
fruit ripening and increase the risk of fungal disease.
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COPING WITH THE HEAT |
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During spring as the weather warms up it can be hard to remember just how hot summer can be. Planning ahead will help you and your garden survive the summer heat in good condition.
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Try to reduce your water use
by mulching. Keep in mind that light straw or hay
mulches can be a high fire risk, so avoid using these in
fire-prone areas. Bark mulches are less flammable and
last longer but are not really suitable for the
vegetable garden. Up next to the walls of your house a
completely fire retardant mulch such as round pebbles
can be a good choice.
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Try to group plants together
that have similar water requirements. If water is in
short supply, plan to replace thirsty plants with those
that will cope with drier conditions.
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Avoid the use of
overhead sprinklers as there is a massive water loss to
evaporation. Keeping water off the leaves will help to
stop fungal diseases exploding in humid weather..
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Organic gardening practices such as composting and green
manuring build organic matter levels in the soil, which
greatly improves the soil’s ability to retain water.
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Work
Natra-Store
4 into the soil around fruit trees and shrubs.
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PLANTING GUIDE FOR SUMMER |
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Keep a diary and record your successes and failures.
Vegetables:
Non-hearting
lettuce
(oak leaf, salad bowl, cos types) are more heat tolerant
than crisphead types (Great Lakes), try putting the lettuce
seed in the fridge for a few days before planting;
snake beans, French beans (but may be affected by Bean
fly), beetroot (pre-soak the seeds) okra, eggplant, capsicum
and chillies, cherry tomatoes, all the squash family
including gourds, pumpkin, rock melon, watermelon, cucumber,
zucchini or angled luffa as a mildew-resistant substitute,
sweet corn (remember to plant corn in a block at least 8
plants by 8 plants, corn planted in a long narrow row
usually fails to pollinate well, giving half empty cobs);
heat-tolerant greens including
Ceylon spinach,
kang kong, Brazilian spinach, mushroom plant and
Egyptian spinach, sweet potatoes. In cooler areas it is time
to start sowing winter brassicas.
Shrubs
and Trees:
Tropical trees need a high soil temperature to germinate. Plant now: tamarillo, paw paw,
pigeon pea, agati, tamarind, passion fruit.
Flowers
and
Herbs: Basil, dill, coriander, sweet alice, cosmos, marigolds, phlox, salvia, nasturtiums, snapdragons, verbena, statice, gomphrena, torenia, zinnia, aster, dahlia, phlox, portulaca, cosmos, sunflowers, cleome.
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REMEMBER: The best place to
store seed is in a sealed container in your fridge. Seed
stored in a hot garden shed or garage that can reach
temperatures greater than 40° in summer will simply die.
Seed stored open to the air where it can take up moisture
will lose viability.
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SEEDLING SURVIVAL STRATEGIES FOR THE SUMMER |
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As the days warm up, it becomes more
difficult to transplant seedlings successfully, particularly
tender ones, like lettuce. Ways to reduce transplant shock
include:
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Soak the seedlings for 24 hours prior
to transplanting in a weak
Natrakelp
seaweed solution.
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Use
Natra-Store
4 in seed raising mixes and apply to the soil before
transplanting to help seedlings establish well.
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Water the hole before planting, let
the water drain away. Then water the seedling after
planting. Spray seedlings morning and evening to keep
the area moist and raise the humidity. Many
seedlings need watering twice a day for
at least a week to help them become established.
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Always transplant late in the
afternoon.
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Cover seedlings with upturned pots or shadecloth in the hottest
part of the day. Covering seed rows with shadecloth
also improves germination.
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ORGANIC WEED CONTROL
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Although weeds are a serious nuisance to us gardeners, it is
worth remembering that they are also communicating
information about your soil conditions. As a rough guide:
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Large numbers of flat weeds such as dandelions and cat’s
ears indicate the soil is compacted.
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The presence
of reeds or rushes indicates poor drainage. Docks are
associated with wet or acid soils. Checking the pH and
adding lime may help with control.
Weeds concentrate elements, this is known as dynamic
accumulation. For example, an abundance of chickweed
Stellaria media indicates the soil is high in nitrogen.
Weeds also have an important role to play in protecting the
soil. If you look at a paddock full of Scotch thistle you
can either see a weed problem or thank nature for trying to
fix the overgrazed, compacted soil. Scotch thistle has
large, thick roots able to break through the compacted soil
and start to repair the problem.
Sometimes weeds are growing because nothing else can and
without the weeds the soil would wash or blow away. Weeds by
their nature often have strong, deep-mining roots that reach
nutrients deep down in the soil. Over time these nutrients
are returned to the surface by the annual process of growth
and decay of weeds.
Weeds are always
present but mainly become a nuisance when conditions allow
them to become invasive. There are, of course, many
exceptions to this where the weed species is just really
invasive and needs serious measures to control it.
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Effective Control
of Weeds
If time is too
short for weeding, at least try to prevent seeding by
cutting off the seedheads, brushcutting or slashing. Weed
seeds last for many years in the soil so this reduces the
future problem.
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By repeatedly
mowing or cutting weeds photosynthesis is slowed which
reduces the stored carbohydrates in the weed roots.
Cultivation may destroy weeds but more weeds will
germinate. Try to avoid ever letting a weed go to seed. If you don’t
have time to pull it out, at least remove the flowering
heads before seed is set. It is easier to mulch than to
weed, so always keep on-hand a mulch supply.
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Be prepared
to cultivate again and then seed with a weed-suppressive
cover crop such as cowpea.

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Over time, in
suitable areas, trees and shrubs can be used to shade
out weeds.
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Some weeds,
such as blackberries can be controlled by animals.
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Mulch, mulch
and more mulch. Spreading wet newspaper or cardboard
under the mulch will significantly reduce the
germination of weeds. Large weedy areas can be dealt with effectively by
'sheet mulching'. This gets rid of grass and weeds
without back strain. Use a mower or brushcutter to cut
down the tall growth. Then spread a generous
distribution of organic fertiliser. Cover the area with
wet newspaper (about 10 sheets thick) as your
biodegradable weed mat. Take care to overlap the sheets
well to avoid gaps in your coverage. Soak the newspaper
first; wetting it after placing it on the ground doesn’t
work well. Then top off with a thick layer of mulch, so
the paper is well covered. Over 8-12 weeks the grass
will decompose and you will have a weed-free garden area
ready to plant.
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Try the
least-toxic herbicide product called
Go Natural Organic Herbicide.
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Uses of Weeds
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Prior to
seeding weeds are useful additions to compost heaps
because of the diverse range of nutrients they contain.
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If a lush,
green crop of weeds is slashed or cultivated before
seeding it will provide the same benefits as a green
manure.
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Weeds provide
nectar to bees and beneficial insects.
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Wild Harvesting
It is a common sight in many countries to see people out in
the countryside harvesting fresh greens. These fresh, tasty
greens are often present in Australian gardens where they
are simply regarded as nuisance weeds. If you decide to try
this make sure you select plants well away from busy roads
and in areas you feel confident have not been sprayed with
herbicides. These so-called weeds are often much higher in
vitamins and minerals than common vegetables such as lettuce
or silverbeet.
Urtica dioica Use the young leaves for
tea, or as a spinach substitute.
Fat hen
Chenopodium album
Purslane
Portulaca oleracea
Eat this raw
or cooked as it is extremely high in omega-3 fatty
acids.
Dandelion
Taraxacum officinale
Don’t confuse this with the
common Cat’s ear. True dandelions only have 1 flower per
stalk.
Chickweed
Stellaria media
This is a
very common weed in vegetable gardens and is a good
addition to salads. Do not confuse it with the nasty and
inedible tropical chickweed which has a white sap.
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HOUSES CAN BE ORGANIC TOO |
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Act now to prevent the summer invasion of cockroaches, flies
and clothes moths!
Cockroaches and silverfish can be controlled with Roach
Prufe, a boric acid based product for least toxic control.
You can apply it as a fine dust under the fridge and behind
the stove. Alternatively Dead End Cockroach Mats can be used
under stoves or fridges. Sticky Cockroach Traps identify
where the cockroaches are hiding and reduce their numbers.
It is helpful to store food and compost in airtight
containers, sweep floors regularly, store rubbish in
well-sealed bins, fix leaking taps and use a caulking gun to
fill cracks and crevices.
Flies
are a warm weather problem and have a nasty habit of
spreading germs including salmonella and gastroenteritis
onto food and food preparation surfaces:
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Install flyscreens on all windows and doors
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Keep
all food in airtight containers
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Reduce breeding sites by never putting meat scraps into
compost heaps and keep garbage bins tightly sealed
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Install an easy way to bury all pet droppings
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Wipe
door and window edges with an aromatic oil as a
repellent; try citronella, cloves, peppermint or
lavender
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Efekto Fly Traps are an excellent choice outdoors on
acreage with cattle and horses.
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Clothes
moths like warm weather and high humidity. Most of the
damage is done to bedding and clothing during storage in the
warmer months. Unlike other moths, clothes moths are not
attracted to the light but prefer dark crevices to hide in.
It is the larvae (caterpillars) that do the actual damage
but although it appears that they feed on wool and other
natural fibres, what they are really eating is the human
residue left on the clothes. The larvae are unable to fully
develop on completely clean fabric; they need the proteins,
mineral salts and Vitamin B complex found in dirt, sweat and
food particles. So the secret to non-toxic control is a
combination of washing, tightly sealed storage containers,
regular vacuuming of cupboards and wardrobes and pheromone
traps such as the Clothes Moth Traps. Avoid completely
chemical controls such as naphthalene (mothballs) and
paradichlorobenzene (PDB) as they are highly toxic. Even
camphor carries a risk, particularly to children. |
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CHOOSING FRUIT TREES |
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Planting a long-lived fruit tree is an investment in the future; it will benefit your children and even your grandchildren, sometimes though it can be a waste of money, time and effort. Avoid trees with hard, compressed potting mix that has no give in it, it has been in the pot too long and is packed full of roots. If possible slide the plant partly out of its container, to see if the roots are circling the outside and clearly visible. If so, it is root bound and should be avoided. Cutting of the root-bound roots before planting rarely solves the problem. These are trees that will disappoint you by just sitting there, making little growth.
Grafted trees generally give better quality fruit than seedlings, choose a tree with a well-healed graft union, with no sign of decay at the graft area. Avoid trees that are sprouting below the graft or suckering from the roots. Try to buy your trees from a nursery that has a high turnover of stock and that specialises in fruit trees.
Species selection is important, avoid frost tender species if your area regularly receives frost, these include Jakfruit, Abiu, Pummelo, Rambutan (grow in tropics only), Panama Cherry, Lychee, Mangosteen (grow in tropics only), Sapodilla and some Lillypillies. Some fruit trees will survive frost once they are a few years old. These need either luck i.e. a couple of warm winters in a row or good frost protection for those critical early years. Good varieties for SE QLD are listed in brackets, where known. These include Avocado, Custard Apple, Mango, Macadamia, Ice Cream Bean, Carambola 5 Corner Fruit (Fwang Tung, 11.1, B111, Thai Knient), Tamarind, Bananas and Pawpaws. Fruit trees that generally are hardy and will do well with adequate soil improvement and irrigation include Citrus, Guava, Persimmon (Fuyu), Tropical Apples (Anna, Golden Dorset)
and Pears, Nashi Pears, White Sapote (Dade), Longan (only late varieties will set fruit in SE QLD, these include Biew Kiew, Haew, and Chompoo), Acerola, Jaboticaba, Grumichama, Malabar Chestnut, Pecan, Peach, Nectarine, Kiwifruit, Loquat, Blueberry (Gulf Coast) and Passionfruit. Trees that are tough, drought tolerant and frost hardy include Japanese Raisin, Carob, Olive, Stone Pine, Bunya, Strawberry Guava, Mulberry, and Pomegranate. An extended article on
Fruit
Trees for Small Gardens
is available.
Challenges to growing organic fruit include fruit fly and problems with birds, bats and possums. Unless you are a well-organised gardener, willing to spend a lot of time with control measures for fruit fly, such as trapping, spraying and exclusion avoid planting the following fruit trees: the most fruit fly-prone are Peaches, Nectarines, followed by Guavas, Persimmons, Carambolas, Casimiroas and Mangoes. Fruit fly will also sting Lemonade and Meyer lemons, but leave the thicker-skinned lemons such as Eureka and Lisbon alone.
More information on
organic citrus care......
An extended article on
Fruit
Trees for Small Gardens is available. |
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EXTENDING THE HARVEST
Eating less familiar parts of a food plant extends the harvest and gives us a better return for our effort. |
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BANANA BUD AND STEM
The flower bud or bell of a banana is widely used as a vegetable throughout SE Asia. Certain varieties, such as plantain banana, produce a better-flavoured bud but they are all edible. Pull the outer leaf sheathes off together with the blossoms until the pinkish-white heart is revealed. Use an oiled knife to cut the bud lengthwise into four. Pulling the hard centre from each stamen is fiddly but worth the effort. The bud is then chopped and blanched. It can be used in a salad, with a coconut milk dressing or vinaigrette or cooked in soup. The flavour is reminiscent of artichoke. In Indonesia I have eaten the chopped inside stem of banana stem in soup, it has a texture similar to celery. To prepare, the outer layers of the stem or trunk are discarded, the tender heart is sliced and soaked in a basin of salted water for several hours. This procedure draws the sap into strands, which can easily be pulled away and discarded. |
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OKRA SEED
Harvest okra pods to eat when small, no bigger than your thumbs. If they get too big, allow the pods to mature and harvest the seeds, which can be roasted as a coffee substitute. |
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PAWPAW (PAPAYA)
When eating ripe pawpaw, save the seeds and add to soups as a spice. Using green pawpaw fruit extends your harvest; it can be used in salad, fritters, and soup or baked as you would pumpkin. To make the salad the pawpaw should be green skinned, the flesh should be almost white with no trace of orange colour. |
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Green Pawpaw Salad
Peel pawpaw and shred the flesh or grate into long fine strands. Use a mortar and pestle to pound the garlic, shallots and chillies to a paste. Add fish sauce and sugar, then add the pawpaw shreds and pound lightly. Turn into a bowl, add lime juice and toss. Sprinkle with peanuts. |
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GRAPE VINE LEAVES
Dolmades are a seasonal treat to make when the young tender leaves appear on the grapevine. To use, blanch them in simmering water for 5 seconds to soften. They can also be frozen after blanching for later use.
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Dolmades
Filling:
Trim stems completely from vine leaves. Place vine leaves, vein-side up (shiny side down) on board; place 2 teaspoons of cooked filling in the middle, fold sides in and roll up firmly. Line a heavy base saucepan with slices of lemon, then pack the rolls in. Pour over the combined lemon juice, water and oil. Cover with more slices of lemon and place a heavy plate on top. Put the lid on and simmer over a low heat for 1 hour. Cool in the saucepan.
Filling: Heat the oil in a fry pan (that has a lid), add onion, cook, stirring until soft. Add pine nuts, lightly brown. Add rice and currants and stir 2 minutes. Add water, cover and cook over low heat, for 10-15 minutes or until the water is absorbed and the rice is tender. Stir in parsley, salt and freshly ground pepper. |
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CHOKO SHOOTS
and LEAVES
The tender shoots can be steamed and served like asparagus. The young leaves can be cooked like spinach. The tender young leaves of pumpkin can also be eaten.
CITRUS PEEL
Save the skins of your home-grown oranges and dry in the oven or next to the wood heater in winter. Store in a jar and add to herbal tea mixtures. Our favourite dried herb tea is a mix of lemongrass, rosella, lemon verbena and citrus peel.
ZUCCHINI FLOWERS
Zucchinis produce both male and female flowers so it makes good sense to eat the male flowers, as they wont produce a fruit anyway. The female flowers can be distinguished by the swelling of the fruit behind the flower whereas the male flower will only have a thin stalk with no swelling. Wash the flowers, dry carefully and check for insects. The flowers can be dipped in a light batter or just fried in olive oil as they are. They can also be filled before frying with a little grated cheese, a savoury rice mixture or a zucchini puree. The oil can be flavoured with garlic by first frying several cloves in it, removing the cloves and then cooking the flowers.
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GROWING YOUR OWN CHOOK FOOD
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It
is to your advantage to grow some food for the chooks as
this will reduce feed bills and also provide the chickens
with a
healthy, varied diet. The chickens will be happier provided
with both shade and entertainment.
More information........
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Read the Autumn Newsletter
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DISCLAIMER:
No liability will be accepted by Green Harvest, its owners or employees
as to the accuracy of any information. No responsibility will be taken
for damage to property or persons due to information given about a
product or technique. No responsibility will be taken for the loss of a
crop or income due to information given about a product or technique.
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Green Harvest
No part of this website may be reproduced without permission of the owner
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