Growing Your Own Heirloom Vegetables: Bringing CO2 Down to Earth

Growing your own

Heirloom Vegetables Bringing C 0 2 down to earth

•M

KEY TO GROWING INSTRUCTIONS - ICONS >ee key to growing instructions (right)

ow to use this book

• VEGETABLE GARDEN - Seeds and bulbs PLANT TYPE I LIFE CYCLE

HA Hardy Annual: survives frost. Life cycle 4-12 months. TA Tender Annual: frost sensitive. HB Hardy biennial: life cycle 2 growing seasons

[ND YOUR CLIMATE COLOUR for igetables you can grow

p

H

n r

Hardy perennial. Perennial roots with annual flowers, (life cycle 2 years plus).

T P Tender perennial: dies in frosty areas.

Cool

Warm

Hot

>e the 'Growing Days map' on p43 to guide you your selection of vegetables and when to sow

SEED SOWING (see p44-45)

— S ° : Sow direct outside. sow ^ S': Sow as seedling into pots then transplant sow outside.

21T1.

Find your location on the map. This indicates e number of growing days in your region. We ve grouped the growing days into three broad mes represented by icons that are coloured blue, een or yellow. The number of growing days {ermines what vegetables you can grow and hen it is best to grow them. On p44-45 select the ilumn marked in your growing zone colour, and ant out your seeds in the months indicated for ch vegetable. Each individual vegetable entry ill display the climate colours and months of •wing appropriate for that vegetable.

Spacing of seeds / transplants.

_,„„ „ m/cm x

_, mlcm

Space between rows by plants

p sp ace b e , w e e n

Cool Tasmania

Warm Melb-Adel inland Below 150 days 150-240 days

TEMPERATURE GROWING DAYS Number days over 15°C

GROW months

GROW months

GROW months

Harvest days

DAYS TO HARVEST

Hot Bris. Perth, Sydney 240+ days

Days from sowing seed (including seedling stage).

FRUITING TREES & SHRUBS - Container grown plants GROWING ZONES

Cool

Growing Days X Cold Zone

IND YOUR CLIMATE COLOUR for uiting trees and shrubs you can grow ;ooi

Warm Warm Coastal

Inland

Areas

Hot

se the 'Cold Zone map' on p42 to ascertain what :es, shrubs, climbers and perennials you can grow your area. Find your location on the map, it will i covered by one of the four colours, blue, pink, een or yellow indicating different zones. Fruit ants will be permanent members of your garden id are likely to be acquired as young plants in >ts, or bare-rooted in winter in the case of some :ciduous trees, canes or shrubs.

equired sunlight icons are on the bottom section F the page.

Warm Warm

Hot

Coastal

Inland Sydney. M e l b , M | Mildura. Dubbo. Perth. Adol. T'woomba Brisbane Bega, Bunbury

G r o w i n g Days

1-150

150-240

150-240

240+

Cold Zones

9a.9b

10

9b

10,11,12

-7°C

!;ft| -rc

Frost icon Minimum Temperatures

HEIGHT AND WIDTH

J

PI -4°C

a$

-1°c

Height of mature plant " Width of mature plant

FOLIAGE

[ow do I grow fruit and vegetables? ;e the icon table (right) and on the inside of the ick cover for the symbols used for the type of ant, sowing method, spacing and harvest icons ir vegetables. The icons for fruiting trees and shrubs cover ost tolerance/intolerance, climate, height and idth of plant, type of foliage, harvest month and kely yield.

Tas, Ballaral, Orange. Canb

(Jjk

Evergreen

^

Deciduous

^

Semi-Deciduous

Harvest month

SEASON OF HARVEST

Yield

TOTAL PRODUCE

SUNLIGHT AND WATER REQUIREMENTS SUNLIGHT REQUIRED

^

Full sun Part sun or part shade

^

WATER Vegetables must be kept moist at alt times unless otherwise indicated in the text.

Shade only

4 4 4 Constantly moist soil 44 4

(Above 850mm rainfall)

Seasonal watering Drought tolerant

(Below 500mm rainfall)

Heirloom pumpkin display at 'Fork to Fork' cafe,

Heronswood

Growing your own

Heirloom Vegetables B r i n g i n g C 0 2 d o w n t o earth

Dedicated to Kent Whealey who rescued 25,000 heirloom varieties world wide through the Seed Savers Exchange.

vegetable Clive B l a z e y

Thank-you W e c o u l d not h a v e written this b o o k w i t h o u t the h e l p of D i g g e r ' s s t a f f , J a n e Varkulevicius, C a m i l l a L a z z a r , T i m S a n s o m , C a r o l i n e T r e v o r r o w , J a y n e A n d e r s o n , R e x E n n i s , L i s a R e m a t o , Talei K e n y o n , Phil S e y m o u r & L o u L a r r i e u . E a c h h a s c o n t r i b u t e d to the s u m total of k n o w l e d g e that this b o o k c o n t a i n s .

First p u b l i s h e d in A u s t r a l i a in 2 0 0 8 , by T h e D i g g e r ' s C l u b D r o m a n a , Vic., A u s t r a l i a Phone +61 03 5984 7900 Facsimile +61 0 3 5 9 8 7 2 3 9 8

© Clive Blazey All r i g h t s r e s e r v e d . N o part of this p u b l i c a t i o n m a y b e r e p r o d u c e d , s t o r e d in a retrieval s y s t e m , o r t r a n s m i t t e d in a n y f o r m o r by any means, including electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, w i t h o u t the p r i o r w r i t t e n p e r m i s s i o n of t h e P u b l i s h e r . Printer: B o o k b u i l d e r s D e s k t o p p u b l i s h i n g : J o h n P. ConP h o t o g r a p h s s u p p l i e d a n d o w n e d by T h e D i g g e r ' s C l u b , except where otherwise attributed. D i s t r i b u t e d by: B o o k s h o p s : U n i r e p s c / o University of N e w S o u t h Wales, S y d n e y , N S W 2 0 5 2 Ph: + 6 1 ( 0 2 ) 9 3 8 5 0 1 5 0 Mail O r d e r : T h e D i g g e r ' s C l u b - H e r o n s w o o d , 105 L a t r o b e Parade, D r o m a n a , V I C 3 9 3 6 Ph: + 6 1 (03) 5 9 8 4 7 9 0 0 d i g g e r s . c o m . a u N a t i o n a l Library of A u s t r a l i a C a t a l o g u i n g - i n - P u b l i c a t i o n entry A u t h o r : Blazey, Clive. Title:

G r o w i n g y o u r o w n h e i r l o o m v e g e t a b l e s : b r i n g i n g C 0 2 d o w n to earth / Clive Blazey.

ISBN:

9 7 8 0 6 4 6 4 9 2 7 6 6 (hbk.)

Notes:

I n c l u d e s index. Bibliography.

Subjects:

V e g e t a b l e s - H e i r l o o m varieties. Climatic changes.

Dewey Number:

635

O t h e r D i g g e r ' s titles:

T h e Australian F l o w e r G a r d e n , 2 0 0 1 T h e Australian Fruit and Vegetable G a r d e n , 2 0 0 6

N o Tasmanian old growth forests felled to make this paper FSC Certified Paper This book is printed on is FSC certified paper. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an international, non-profit organisation which was set up to ensure sound and sustainable forest management. It prevents the felling of old growth forests, protects watersheds and ensures harvesting of trees only if replanting replaces felled trees. Its guarantee is as sound and respected as an organic certification. The FSC certifies and labels forest products from paper to furniture using its chain of custody to ensure all wood products have been harvested sustainably. By choosing FSC certified paper or organic products you are supporting the best international practice.

CONTENTS BEING CLIMATE

POSITIVE

Bringing C 0 2 down to earth

6

Only a biodiverse world can adapt to change

8

Growing food in our cities

10

The story of heirloom seeds - what's new is old

12

ORGANIC

GARDENING

Know your soil

14

Soils - food for plants

16

Water, mulches and green manures

18

Pest control without pesticides

20

BEING

SELF-SUFFICIENT

The Mini Plot - Growing a year's supply in 40m 2

24

Convert your lawn into a food garden

26

Getting children started

28

Kitchen gardens should be decorative

30

How much water does the garden need?

32

Hybrids, heirlooms or GM?

36

GARDENING

BASICS

Sowing seed successfully

38

Climate maps

42

Sow What When sowing calender

44

VEGETABLES TO

GROW

Cool soil - 1st planting

46

Cool soil - 2nd planting

56

Warm soil

66

Herbs

82

The gardens of Heronswood and St Erth

88

Index

90

Glossary

94

Bibliography

96

BEING CLIMATE POSITIVE

Bringing C0 2 down to earth It will astound most people to realise that a visit to the supermarket to buy food is a greater threat to our environment than all the pollution caused by coal fired power stations. Nearly 30% of the C 0 2 in our atmosphere is caused by us not growing our own food. Non-renewable energy is used to plough the fields, harvest and process the crop and take it to market. The fertilisers, pesticides and weed killers used to grow the crop are derived from oil. In fact 75% of the energy that is used to grow our food occurs once it has left the farm. The kitchen fridge uses more energy than the farm tractor. In some areas more energy is used to drive to the supermarket than is used on the farm. Up to 25% of the energy is consumed in wasteful packaging.

Biology is our ecological recycler. The globalisation of our food supply is a very bad idea that needs to be reversed. It transfers wealth to corporations at the expense of our environment. Cheap food delivers a trashed ecosystem. In a hot, dry, water-deficient continent, is it sensible to export 4 0 % of our water through the sale of meat and grains? Is it sensible that only 1% of our population grows food for us? Do we want corporations to use our food supply to increase their sales of chemicals? "When it comes to choosing the food 1 buy, organic is actually my fourth choice. I would choose local and seasonal products, particularly from farmer's markets, ahead of organically certified products, particularly if those products have travelled long distances. I feel that our diet needs a diversity of foods, all of which I would consider ahead of organically grown food," says organics expert Tim Marshall. In our race for efficiency, farms are getting so large that neighbours are kilometres away and have lost the sense of community. The producer driven farmer never sells directly to the consumer and is oblivious to their anxieties. How else can we explain that despite 70% of the population slating they don't want genetically engineered food, less than 200 growers will impose genetically engineered crops on our food

T H E IMPACT OF BOTTLED WATER

kitchen fridge t more energy •i the farm tractor Instead of buying fertilisers, which require Middle Eastern oil (and the wars that come from it) we could simply recycle the 4 7 % of green matter that goes to landfill by composting at home, and save all that money. Nourishing our soil would improve our health because we wouldn't be using fertilisers that pollute our streams and soil life, while our food would be free of pesticides. If this sounds like Utopia it is, and we have been there, before the supermarkets manipulated our lazy nature. Growing food is the foundation of our ecological education. Ecology is not some study of life that is remote from us - it is us. Eco is derived from the Greek word for "house" so ecology is the study of our home, our planet - not anyone else's - i t ' s ours! When we pollute the air or our rivers, we pollute our lungs and our bodies.

Many of our buying choices have extraordinary impacts on global wanning. Are you aware that an empty bottle of water costs as much to produce as a full container? This industry is valued at $35,000,000,000 and yet its direct water cost is probably less than $ 17,500. The rest of the cost goes into carbon-polluting transportation and bottling. When you pay $1.60 for a litre of bottled water at the supermarket you could have filled 2000 litres by tap for the same price. In America 90% of these bottles go to the tip. If we are serious about reducing global warming such absurd and avoidable consumer choices have to be reversed.

EXPLAINING THE CARBON CYCLE Plants, animals and microorganisms are largely composed of carbon. Plants process carbon from the atmosphere and in the presence of sunlight and water photosynthesise this into sugars for plant growth. The amount of "living carbon" found in trees and plants is about half the amount of decaying, decomposing carbon underground that we describe as organic matter. The oil and coal that we burn for energy are the concentrated stores of dead organic plants composted over millions of years. Before man burnt this energy the balance of recycling carbon from soil to plants to the atmosphere and back again was in equilibrium. By tilling our soils, burning nonrenewable fossil fuels, and paving over living soil we have increased atmospheric C 0 2 and caused climate change. By exposing soil microbes to the sun and adding fertilisers, Australian soils which are already low in organic matter have declined even further since agriculture started. We can solve climate change by planting trees, which takes decades, or by growing our own food organically and boosting the sequestration rate of carbon into soils. Raising the organic content of our soils is an immediate and easy solution to bringing C 0 2 down to earth. Allan Yeomans believes we only have to raise organic soil levels by 1.6% to reduce our atmospheric carbon and that can be done in much less time than it takes to establish forests. S I M P L I F I E D C A R B O N CYCLE Billion tonnes of carbon Annual* Store Atmosphere

766

Plants (living)

600

Below soil (decaying)

1500

+6.1 Decaying plants a n d a n i m a l s provide twice a s m u c h c a r b o n in soil t h a n in t h e a t m o s p h e r e

Source: Kansas State University

'99% of carbon is fixed in the Earth's crust and oceans, but we can control the annual increase of of 6.1 billion tonnes supply, such is the disconnection between supply and demand. Farmers are being encouraged to grow biofuels instead of food. As the price of fuel rises so does the cost of food. We now have the absurd notion of 'grain fed cars.' It has been estimated that it takes the same amount of grain to fill the tank of a 4WD SUV vehicle for one week as it does to feed one person for a whole year! When food is grown for us it tastes like crap - the only good food is food that goes bad! If we grew our own food at home as we used to generations ago, and as most people in China, India and the rest of the world do, our carbon emissions would drop immediately. Growing your own food at home saves water too - up to 89% less than when it is grown for you. Despite the reduction in block

sizes almost every suburban block has enough space to be self sufficient. It takes just ten square metres of space - about the same space as a parked suburban 4WD to grow a year's supply of vegetables for one person. In fact, even the tiniest front garden is large enough to feed the whole family and still leave room for the family car. Instead of filling our gardens with ornamentals we should replace them with edible plants. Avocados thrive where camellias grow while blueberries fruit in the same conditions as an azalea. We must learn to grow our own food again. Solving climate change and restoring our soils to good health is not a spectator sport.

II

BEING CLIMATE POSITIVE

Only a biodiverse world can adapt to climate change "Driven by energy from the sun, trees pump water from the water table through the roots, trunk and leaves up into the atmosphere through the process of evapotranspiration. This process translates into summer rainfall, helping to sustain crops. When the forests disappear, this rainfall declines and crop yields follow."

- Jim Amscombe, Hydrogeologist.

"Our species is the first to turn its food supply into one of the biggest threats to our health", writes Anne Lappe. In the short space of just one generation, powerful food corporations have turned the growing of food into an industrial system. Governments have deregulated our food system in the name of market fundamentalism, so that coiporations have turned our food supply into a threat to our health! Thirty four percent of the beef we eat in Australia is grain fed, so instead of grazing animals fed on grass powered by the sun, we eat animals fed on grains. These grains use 7-8 times as much energy to grow as the energy value of the food. Animals reach maturity much faster on a diet of grains but a diet so rich it is actually unhealthy for ruminant animals evolved to eat grass. This causes huge health problems for the cattle and sheep and then the consumers of those animals - us humans. Standing ankle deep in faeces with almost no exercise to build muscles while being forced to eat grains they were never designed to eat, puts the cattle under enormous stress. These feed lot cows now need to be fed antibiotics to keep them alive longer than 150 days.

BRING CARBON D O W N T O EARTH Our forests are the lungs of the earth. One hectare of tall wet forest can store the equivalent of 5,500 tonnes of C 0 2 - which is equivalent to the annual emissions of 1,300 cars. fcvto moculture leguins store 40% less carbon 11 mi-logged forests

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P

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BIODIVERSITY - NATURE'S FAIL-SAFE "Biodiversity is the sum total of all the world's life forms, organisms and genes - it is Nature's fail-safe mechanism against extinction." Kenny Ausubel. Most of us think of biodiversity in terms of the animals we see and love, like the orange-bellied parrot or the great panda, and ignore the plants, insects and microbes that we can't see that in turn provide the habitat for those endangered animals. When we cut down old growth forests and turn them into wood chips we destroy a thousand years of biological activity that has reached a state of equilibrium. That old growth forest attracted rain and purified our water supply, maintained our carbon balance by recycling dead and decaying matter and provided a habitat for soil microbes, animals and plants. When we replace it with a monoculture of bluegums we lose rainfall, pure water, animals, plants and release carbon to the atmosphere. In fact, we lose our ecological inheritance (just to enhance the bottom line of one corporation), and this vandalism is endorsed by our governments! "Monoculture" and "biodiversity" are two words balanced almost equally in the weight of letters but hostile and destructive to each other in nature.

FACTORY FARMING MEAT - T H E AMERICAN WAY Almost all meat consumed in America, whether it is beef, chicken, turkey, pork, lamb or even salmon is derived from a grain-fed diet. Even milk and cheese is derived from corn since dairy cows don't eat grass anymore, since it is fed to dairy cows in feed lots. Hybrid or GE corn is planted four times as close as traditional corns and now provides yields of 10,000 lbs per acre, which is 9 times the yield o f 1920 cultivars (just 12001bs/acre). To produce these prodigious yields the munitions factories that used to turn oil into explosives during World War 2 switched to making fertiliser. Oil derived pesticides were also produced once the demand for poison gas ceased. Synthetic fertilisers replaced the natural organic processes, so instead of relying on carbon farming using the energy of the sun, Americans switched to fossil fuels to feed their crops which then feed their livestock. Americans arc now literally 'eating' oil. This corn crop is so extensively planted now, it uses 50% of all synthetic nitrogen fertilisers which is the most ecologically damaging way to grow food. At our current growth rate, 50% of Australian beef will be grain-fed and kangaroo meat may be the only grass-fed meat available. Today it is rare to find a farm with a diversity of animals, grains and poultry, that are grown in a sustainable way. When we farm as nature intended there is no waste problem, since one creature's waste becomes another's lunch. Pests and diseases should really

MECHANISM AGAINST EXTINCTION As the wood cutter and chipper destroy natural habitats, the hybrid plant breeder and molecular biologist destroy our horticultural inheritance upon which our food supply depends. Over 90% of our fruit and vegetable cultivars have disappeared in the last one hundred years. Out of 2500 tomato cultivars less than 10 genetically different tomato hybrids appear in supermarkets. Just ten apple varieties have replaced four thousand apple cultivars available in the 1850's. This collapse in biodiversity caused initially by the adaption of hybrids will accelerate dramatically if we allow genetic engineers to control our food supply. Already GM crops in the US - GM corn and GM soy are the dominant crops whilst GM canola plantings in Canada are 80% of acreage. Ninety percent of our eggs are in the White Leghorn basket, whilst 70% of our dairy herd are dependent on the genetics of Holstein cattle. With climate change and rising temperatures causing mass extinctions, we cannot afford for our food supply to be based on such a narrow genetic base. Survival of the fittest presumes a biodi verse world. That is nature's fail-safe mechanism against extinction.

be seen as a symptom - nature's explanation to the farmer that something is wrong. Instead of growing grain with artificial fertilisers and pesticides, grazing animals should feed on solar-powered grass. In the process of grazing, the animals exercise to build up muscle and their effluent becomes the food for the grasses in a continuous recycling system. Polyface Farm in Virginia USA, a truly Utopian farm, is not only highly productive but provides healthy food that has integrity. On this bio-diverse, mixed farm, cows, chickens, pigs, turkeys and rabbits are farmed on rotation using minimal fossil fuels and without fertilisers or pesticides. The cows are moved frequently to ensure the grass is still plentiful - not over grazed. Three days later chickens are brought in to eat the grubs that emerge from the cow pats so that 20% of the diet of chickens is either grass or insects. The chickens roost in a mobile - "egg mobile" - so they exercise, have plenty of fresh air and are truly 'free range'. Pigs nest in the shelter of the forest rather than in cages amongst their urine. On just 100 acres the farmer produces: • 30,000 dozen free range organic eggs • 10,000 free range chickens • 11,363kg of grass-fed beef • 11,363kg of free range organic pork • 800 stewing hens • 1000 turkeys • 500 rabbits If you can't produce dairy products at home, choose organically certified produce because it will be grassfed and solar powered guaranteeing no pesticides and fertilisers are used. Support your local farmers' market where you can talk to your farmer about the breed of the animal or the cultivar of the fruit and vegetable, while being certain you are buying local produce. It is estimated that 75% of C 0 2 pollution occurs after it leaves the farm gate. If you buy organic produce at fanners' markets you will cut emissions by up to 75%.

II

BEING CLIMATE POSITIVE

Growing food in our cities Cuba is the only country that has avoided the globalisation of our food supply and returned to growing their own food. The country is now as energy independent as it is politically independent. Cubans use 25 times less pesticides and their C 0 2 emissions are 14% of either Australia or the US. Instead of tractors they rely on animals to till the soil, reducing soil compaction and providing invaluable manure to replace imported fertilisers. The quality of food has improved and life expectancy of 77 years is equal to that of North Americans. Instead of eating imported high fat foods their fresh food and vegetable diet combined with greater exercise from gardening and cycling has created a state of well-being at a fraction of the price of American health spending.

to replace imported fertilisers and, within a period of three to four years, has boosted biological soil activity to a point where 80% of the nation's food is organically grown. If Americans grew their own food and severed their dependence on middle eastern oil would they need to fight the war in Iraq and fill the former Cuban jail o f G u a n t a n a m o Bay with terrorists?

C A N YOU AFFORD T O BUY NON-ORGANIC FOOD? Many people are scornful when the subject of organic food comes up. With our globalised distribution of food the C 0 2 pollution created is never paid for by the oil companies. The next generation will have to pay not just for the pollution from oil and coal fired power stations, but for deteriorating water supplies, eroding soils and the effect on their health from the consumption of so much pesticide. Organic systems of growing place an absolute ban on the use of synthetic fertilisers, pesticides and weedicides. Organic systems use less energy and take 2 - 3 years to reach soil health before the health benefits are expressed in the produce you buy. When you buy organic food you are paying for the real cost in the food - not some deferred liability. Cotton is the most pesticide-dependent crop in the world requiring $2.6 billion of chemical sprays each year. Some of those chemicals were being made in 1984 at Union Carbide's factory in Bhopal, India, where an explosion caused the death of 3,800 people. In the Philippines the health cost to farmers in medication and lost days through illness exceeds the original cost of pesticides that they use. In Essex in the UK the cost of removing pesticides from the water supply is 25% of the overall cost, and that isn't paid for by chemical companies but by the council.

•sy: The Power of unity: How Cuba ' e" ' , 2 0 0 8

10

The transition to a sustainable economy has required dramatic changes in behaviour. Being a Communist country and isolated from the US and the Western world initially required that it export sugar, citrus and rice in exchange for oil, tractors and fertilisers from Russia. When the USSR disintegrated in the 1990's it was unable to provide fuel for its tractors, cars and power utilities. Cubans immediately began growing food within Havana by occupying disused building sites and today the city of Havana produces 6 0 % of its own food. By recycling its green waste it was able

When you consider that we lose a greater percentage of our crops to pests today than fifty years ago, one wonders why we still buy non-organic food. The recent article in the consumer magazine Choice is particularly alarming: Supermarket strawberries have the highest levels of pesticides compared to any other fruit. Although these levels are regarded as being within acceptable levels by health authorities, they ignore the multiplier effects of a cocktail of pesticide applications. In Choice's survey only 22% of growers had fruit with only one pesticide, while 63% of growers had multiple residues

and 15% had a cocktail of four or more. Choice detected 150 different pesticides from 27 growers. The so called acceptable limits are based on the amount of pesticides consumed compared to the body weight of an average person. There are no warnings for children. Some of the pesticides used by growers are called systemics, which means they enter the sap stream and can't be washed off, turning the strawberry fruit into pesticide bombs. If your child is say one fifth of your body weight then the amount of pesticide consumed is five times as concentrated. If the strawberry your child is eating is one of those stacked with four pesticides, then you may be feeding your child with a dosage level 20 times over what our authorities said was safe! Instead of choosing organic food for the benefits of what it doesn't contain, you should consider buying it for what it does contain. A 20-40% increase in anti-oxidants is regularly reported to help cut the risk of cancer and heart disease. Organic milk has 6080% more nutrients than conventional milk. Organic systems are monitored and carefully regulated unlike the growing of non-organic food as the Choice article proved. The most immediate and dramatic way we can solve climate change and restore our biological systems to health is to start growing our own food organically. Organic soils are a greater store of carbon than either plants or the atmosphere, and are the most cost effective way of bringing CO2 down to earth.

T H E MODERN (MONO-CULTURE) STRAWBERRY FARM Huge-shouldered unripe strawberries have replaced delicious, aromatic intensely flavoured strawberries. They may look the same but they are pumped so full of fertilisers and pesticides that they are a health hazard to our children.

The modern strawberry farm is the epitome of all that is wrong with modern horticulture. Highly fertile soils are heavily tilled and fumigated to destroy all living soil microbes. Plastic sheeting prevents the natural exchange of gases with the atmosphere. Unregulated pesticide and fungicide sprays are applied to this biologically dead soil to provide those fruits of deception to long distant supermarkets.

II

BEING CLIMATE POSITIVE

The story of heirloom seeds - what's new is old their favourite capsicums, eggplants and herbs with them. It was not until our exposure to the 25,000 varieties under cultivation at Seed Savers Exchange in the USA, that we realised the poverty of our vegetable inheritance. Varieties that have been grown for hundreds of years in America never reached our shores. American groups such as Seed Savers Exchange, who preserve our garden inheritance, are surprised heirloom seeds are a new introduction to Australia. For what's new is old. At the turn of the 20 ,h century most families grew their own vegetables and fruit - we knew what we were eating because we grew it ourselves. But as people moved from the country to the city, more and more began to buy food rather than grow it themselves. Specialised growers, who were marketorientated, sprang up close to the cities and

Plant selection goes hand in hand with population growth. When man first domesticated plants 8000 years ago he kept the earliest, the best yielding and the most disease-resistant strains for planting back the next season. This unbroken chain of evolutionary improvement has provided us with well-adapted regional strains of vegetables, now called garden heirlooms, which are incredibly productive, for all our culinary and cultural needs.

T H E POVERTY OF O U R ENGLISH INHERITANCE Depending upon our English forebears for culinary vegetables has given Australians one of the poorest inheritances a country could have. In 1885, William Robinson, a famous English gardener, wrote in the introduction to the classic Vilmorin book The Vegetable Garden: 'We are meat eaters because our fathers had little to eat... Men killed and cooked; there was little else worth eating. A few generations only have passed since our most common vegetables came from the c o n t i n e n t . . . The vegetable kingdom is usually represented by a mass of ill-smelling cabbage and sodden potato.' Fortunately, recent immigrants from Europe and Asia have enriched our choice, bringing seeds of

Heirloom pumpkins at Seetlsavers Exchange, Iowa

chose higher-yielding varieties for commercial sale. The profit motive became, for the first time, the major criterion for plant improvement. It was the advent of supermarkets and refrigeration after 1950 that swung the balance from consumerchosen strains to producer-driven ones. Out-of-season crops such as tomatoes, capsicums and melons were grown in wanner climates and shipped thousands of kilometres. New strains with tougher skins were bred to slow the ripening process and increase shelf life.

CAN WE TRUST OTHERS TO GROW FOOD FOR US? As our lives have become so hectic, we have entrusted the growing of our food to market gardeners and fanners. This change has destroyed the nutritional quality of our food, for example, fruit is picked unripe to extend supennarket shelf-life. Almost all the b e n y fruits such as strawbenies and melons are picked before sugars, vitamins and antioxidants develop. Fruit is now sprayed with anti-ripening chemicals and a survey found that what supermarkets euphemistically call "Fresh Food" could be 9 months old. Orchardists make much more profit by.pumping apples, grapes and tomatoes so full of water to boost weight, that flavour, nutrition and antioxidant levels are almost negligible. The quality of food diminishes proportionally to the time and distance from harvest. You may be surprised and alarmed to realise that 90% of the garlic we eat is imported. Our quarantine department insists that every bulb is fumigated with one of the world's deadliest chemicals - the poison Methyl Bromide. This chemical works like a biological nuclear bomb, it kills weeds, insects and bacteria etc, rendering soils sterile and lifeless. It is 45 times as destructive to the atmosphere's ozone layer as the already banned CFCs.

THE PROBLEM WITH HYBRIDS The new hybrid supermarket tomato, for instance, had to be both box and contents so flavour and freshness were sacrificed for shelf life and texture! Plant breeders convinced themselves that 'new equals improved', so the older standard varieties disappeared as new hybrids took over. In meeting the particular needs of supermarket vegetables, hybrids became so altered as to be almost useless for gardeners. Gardeners want early crops and late crops and continuity in between, but above all, tasty crops. Industrial agriculture wants crops that can be harvested all at once and shipped without loss over long distances.

Heirloom seeds were developed to provide food from the garden direct to the table. Fruit, vegetables and flowers are all inter-planted so that pests never get the upper hand. Vegetables are picked at peak ripeness, enhancing their flavour, nutrition and lifesaving anti-oxidants. Adapted to local conditions they could be collected and replanted, giving true to type continuously unifonn crops. They were open-pollinated, freely exchanged and available to all. They are a precious gift from our ancestors, encoded with thousands of generations of improvements. Today, only four per cent of the food grown in Australia comes from our own backyards. Economic rationalism has almost destroyed the wonderful biological diversity of our heirloom garden seeds. The food we buy might look the same as the food we grow, but it has unprecedented amounts of synthetic fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides. All these changes to our food have been forced upon us; we, as consumers, have never been consulted.

The proud boast of Modern Seed Company's latest hybrid supermarket tomato

The advent of genetically engineered food (GE) is a revolutionary change to our food that offers no nutritional improvement, but is designed specifically to increase the profitability and market power of global seed and chemical companies. Heirloom varieties are a gardener's inheritance. We don't need new varieties, because we have an inheritance 100 times as rich and diverse as the commercial market. Heirloom varieties are not fragile or exclusive, but available to all, and are capable of better yields and earlier crops than commercial hybrids. We encourage you to grow them and become part of a vital preservation campaign. You will be growing not only the tastiest vegetables in the healthiest way, but you will retain control of your food, which is as essential to us as pure air and clean water.

SEED PLEDGE Seeds are the basis on which our lives depend. We will promote their diversity andfree availability, andfight all attempts to own or destroy our inheritance of open pollinated heirloom seeds. We oppose genetically engineered seeds that promote the use of chemicals. We oppose patents and the control that confers over our food. We support sustainable agriculture.

II

ORGANIC GARDENING

Know your soil Australian soils are the least fertile of any soils on our planet. They arc very old and have low levels of organic matter and are particularly deficient in phosphorus. Our native plants and animals have adapted to this harsh environment in unusual and unique ways, but they have not provided our table with food, other than the macadamia. All our sources of fruit and vegetables come from overseas areas of higher soil fertility, and to grow them requires considerable enhancement of our soils.

IDEAL SOIL C O M P O S I T I O N Water

Minerals 45%

BASICS FOR G R O W T H To make growth a plant needs a continuous and uniform supply of sunlight, moisture, air and nutrients. Plants and animals and all living things are principally made up of carbon compounds. Understanding the carbon cycle is the basis of organic gardening. Plants photosynthcsise and convert carbon dioxide ( C 0 2 ) from the atmosphere into oxygen and organic matter. Animals and micro-organisms consume most of this using up the oxygen, and returning C 0 2 to the air in a recycling process. Before the advent of chemical fertilisers, crops were grown by recycling manure and wastes to replace nutrients lost in the growing process. With the discovery of fossil fuels (which are really very old deposits of carbon), tractors were used to plough our fields and fertilisers were synthesized from oil to replace the recycling process. When the Chinese, who maintained productive soils for 4000 years using organic methods, also adopted mechanised chemical agriculture, they too suffered serious soil degradation. It is now known that repeated cultivation and exposure of bare soil to the baking sun's rays, kills earthworms and other microbes which maintain the organic process.

O P T I M U M SOILS The optimum conditions for growth occur when 50% of soil volume is available to be filled with both air (25%) and water (25%). This openness is the basis for providing ideal conditions for plant roots to penetrate and seek air, nutrients and water. The other 50% is composed of minerals, 45%, and 5% organic matter. Soil depths of 12cm can support a rudimentary vegetable garden but 20-40cm of good, open soil high in organic matter is preferred to grow healthy deeprooted fruits and vegetables.

14

matter 5%

NATURAL A N D O R G A N I C SOILS In natural systems such as virgin forests or permanent grasslands, recycling has been at the heart of sustainable organic soils for millions of years. Soil organic matter is really plant or animal residues in decomposition. Dead bodies of beetles, grubs, earthworms, bacteria, fungi and decomposing plants are consumed by millions of teeming earthworms and microbes. The earthworms alone can eat 100 tonnes of soil per hectare (10kg per square metre) and increase the nitrogen level by a factor of 5, phosphorus 7 and potassium 11. Earthworms also open up soils and improve root and water penetration - as well as providing plant nutrients in organic form. Under organic systems, instead of fertilising plants, soil micro-flora are fed first and the resulting product is incredibly rich soil which is capable of feeding plants and soil micro-flora for hundreds of years. Humus is the final result of decomposition and is the best slow-release fertiliser which remains in soils for thousands of years. Most soils have organic contents of less than 2%, but that 2% is enough to support human civilisation if carefully managed; or put in reverse, human civilisations collapse when the organic and fertility levels of soils collapse. John Jeavons, in his book ' H o w to Grow More Vegetables' states that organic soils have such capacity to hold moisture that optimum growth can be achieved with up to 75% less water than non-organic systems. Whilst plants can be grown without soil in high input hydroponic systems, these systems are totally dependent on nonrenewable sources of power and fertilisers. In the case of hydroponic tomatoes this is 20 times as much energy to produce as the food value.

RAISING C A R B O N / O R G A N I C LEVELS T O 5% Organic farmers achieve 5%-6% organic soil content by not just recycling manure and organic wastes, but by minimising the damaging effects of tillage, by growing green manure crops, and by mulching in summer to keep earthworms and soil micro-flora active. It has been estimated that 80-90% of the organic matter processed each year becomes available within 12 months and so the build up of organic matter is a slow process that takes not years, but decades.

SOIL TEXTURE Ideal garden soil contains up to 50% pore spaces, and half of the space is filled with water. Texture refers to the size of the mineral particles from which the soil is made, and the proportion of particles of each size - small (clay), medium (loam) and large (sand).

"Clay breaks your back and sand breaks you heart" Texture is important because it determines the spaces between particles of soil or pores. The best soils for gardening have a range of pore sizes, and continuous or connected pores that allow water, roots and organisms to move through the soil. This is best achieved in a soil that has some particles from each size class (otherwise known as a 'loam'). The small spaces trap water and provide habitat for microorganisms. The larger spaces allow free drainage and passages for roots, organisms and gas exchange.

CLAY Clay particles arc much smaller than sand and more regular, so they pack down tightly. Clay soils are 'heavy', and water is trapped in the smaller spaces. Clay soils need less frequent irrigation, and may become very boggy, ot dry and hard to penetrate.

SOIL STRUCTURE Soil particles are bound together by organic matter, plant roots, bacteria and fungi, to form larger clumps. Humus and the exudates of soil organisms arc ' g u m m y ' . They form the strongest and longestlasting bonds to hold soil particles together to form aggregates. The shape and size of these aggregates determine the 'structure' of soil. If there are continuous pores between the aggregates soil animals move around easily and water and oxygen move in and out of soil faster. The stability of the aggregates is important too. They have to stay together through winter and summer, during hard rain and under traffic. Tim M a r s h a l l

SAND Sand particles are large and irregular in shape. They fit together in an open structure with very wide spaces. Sandy soils therefore drain freely, and need watering more often.

SOIL STRUCTURE TEST • Place a handful of soil crumbs in a tumbler. • Carefully pour enough water into the glass to cover the soil. • A good, stable soil will hold together even when the crumbs are wet. • Poorly structured soil will fall apart.

Sand

Loam

Feels gritty between your fingers.

Wet sand can be rolled into a pencil-shape, but will not retain the shape.

Water disappears into sandy soil fast, and plants wilt quickly. Must water plants often.

Loam feels smooth & silky between your fingers.

Moist loam can be rolled into a pencil-shape and will retain the shape.

Water disappears into silty-loam soil quickly. Holds water better than sand.

Clay feels very smooth between your fingers.

Moist clay can be rolled into a pencil-shape, will retain the shape. With high-clay content the cylinder can be carefully rolled into a ring without breaking.

Water and nutrient holding capacity is high - can leave longer between watering.

II

ORGANIC GARDENING

Soils - food for plants FERTILISERS The word fertiliser is a misnomer for it means to feed rather than sexually fertilise plants. In the last century chemical fertilisers have replaced natural soil building processes. The recent over-use of fast acting fertilisers combined with repeated tilling has destroyed the organic buffers in our soils and our topsoils become eroded. Fortunately gardeners can

avoid fertilisers by using composts, mulches and green manures to feed the soil releasing nutrients slowly in time with the food needs of plants. It makes no difference to the plant whether it receives its major nutrients, nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) or potassium (K), as inorganic chemicals or organic manures and composts, but it makes a huge difference to the natural equilibrium of the soil.

Nitrogen(N), Phosphorous(P) Potassium(K) F E R T I L I S E R N E E D S O F VEGETABLES

grams / square metre Vegetable type

N

P

K

Leaf - cabbage/lettuce

13

4

11

Fruit - tomatoes/melons

9

4

11

Root - onions/carrots

13

4

18

Legumes - peas/beans

5

3

4

Potatoes

18

8

15

To convert to kg per hectare multiply by 10,000 ie 13 gram/metre = 130kg/hectare A P P L I C A T I O N RATES O F N U T R I E N T S Conventional

N%

P%

K%

Application

Standard chemical fertiliser (assuming no organic material applied)

5

8

4

100g/m

Citrus & fruit tree fertiliser

10

2

7

200-300g/tree Max. mature tree 3kg

Blood & bone

4.5

5.0

.2

100g/m

or add potassium sulphate 80g to 1 kg of blood & bone

4.1

4.6

3.8

handful of compost heap

Poultry manure (decomposed, no ammonia smell)

3.0

1.5

.8

300g/m s

Fish wastes

4

1

.8

300g/m 2

Seaweed

.5

.1

.1

1 -3kg/m 2

Lucerne hay

2.2

.3

1.0

1 -3kg/m 2

Garden compost

1.4

.3

.4

1 -3kg/m 2

Replace with organics

Organic sources of: 1st choice 2nd choice 3rd choice

16

Nitrogen Phosphorus Blood & b o n e Blood & b o n e Manure Manure Compost Compost L u c e r n e hay Worm c a s t i n g s P e a straw L e g u m e s ( p e a s , b e a n s , lucerne)

Potassium Wood a s h Granite d u s t Basalt dust Seaweed Sea grass Fern b r a n c h e s

The table left explains the NPK needs of plants and compares the nutrient levels of both chemical and organic sources of food. If your soils have good organic levels you probably won't need to add any standard fertiliser, but if not, the table shows how to replace chemical fertilisers with natural organic sources. Most chemical fertilisers release their nutrients over 2 months, whilst the growing period of most plants is at least 6 months. High organic soils slowly release nutrients over the whole growing period, often for decades. The primary puiposc is to initially feed the worms and microbes, so application rates for compost and manures, or lucerne hay, can be 2-3 times as high with none of the risk of damage that occurs with fast-acting soluble chemical fertilisers.

COMPOST Compost is composed of nitrogen, carbon, air and water, and its speed of decomposition is regulated by balancing these proportions. Good compost is never high in nitrogen levels. It is balanced and rich in a variety of slow-release nutrients. More importantly, it should be rich in a diversity of microbic species. While it can be made using technical science, it can also be very simply and easily produced. Worm farms produce excellent compost and are a particularly good source if you are unable to turn a heap yourself, or have limited space. Typically, the greater the variety of materials, the better the end product.

THE RECIPE FORA GOOD COMPOST 25% High-nitrogen material such as raw manure and green legumes. (See table) The presence of nitrogen enables the micro-organisms to break down high carbon materials like papers and cardboard. 35% Green plants with lower nitrogen levels such as annual weeds, soft prunings, fresh lawn clippings and green herbs like comfrey, borage, tansy, valerian,

nettle and chamomile. (Avoid diseased plants and perennial weeds.) 35% High-carbon material such as straw, woody mulch, dead leaves, and paper or cardboard. 5% Gritty material such as rock dusts, bone dust, fresh wood ash and compost from the last good batch. If you are going to turn compost you will need a heap of at least 1 metre by 1 metre to allow heat to build up. The temperature should reach about 55°C in the centre, and this will kill harmful organisms, weed seeds, and encourage beneficial ones. Turning the heap transfers material on the outside to the centre, effectively heat-treating the whole heap. As this process continues, the heap shrinks considerably. Add water if it dries out but never soak.

of microbic species, and contains predominantly pathogenic (disease type) organisms that are detrimental to soil and plants. When a compost heap smells bad it is telling us to turn it in order to allow in more air and also perhaps to add a little more woody material and a sprinkling of lime or dolomite. Good, well-aerated compost should be fluffy and crumbly and a very dark-brown chocolate colour rather than black. J a r o d Riicli

CARBON - NITROGEN MATERIALS Organic material with a carbon to nitrogen ratio greater than 20:1 will use up nitrogen in composting Sources of organic nitrogen

Poultry manure

5-15:1

Vegetable waste

10-20:1

Grass

Sometimes compost can become too wet, which also reduces its air content. Never add too much or too little water to compost; aim for a slightly damp consistency through the heap.

15-25:1

Consumers of organic nitrogen

Card board

500:1

200-700:1

Straw

40-150:1

Turning should be practised every one or two weeks, regardless of size, to prevent the compost becoming anaerobic. Anaerobic compost is compost that hasn't had enough air incorporated into it and therefore lacks oxygen. These 'composts' are more likely to be rotting vegetation than actual compost. A smell similar to vomit, sulphur, vinegar, or an ' o f f ' acidic smell, is an indicator. This lack of oxygen kills beneficial microbes and reduces the diversity

SOIL pH: A C I D I T Y & ALKALINITY Soil pH c a n affect plant growth, bacterial action, fungal growth a n d availability of nutrients. At either e x t r e m e of pH, nutrients c a n b e unavailable to plants. Adding fertilisers to t h e s e soils could b e a w a s t e of time a n d money, u n l e s s you a d j u s t the pH first. Simply correcting soil pH may help to m a k e nutrients available without the n e e d for fertiliser.

pH RANGE lemon grapefruit 1.3-2.4 3-3.3

p u r e water 7.0

Correcting acid soil (approximate guide) ammonia 10.6-11.5

ALKALINE 2.6 - 3.6 swampy p e a t soil

5.5-7.5 g a r d e n soil

8.8-10 limestone / chalky soils

6.0 - 7.5 is best for most garden plants

kg of limestone needed/hectare sand

s a n d y loam

clay

1 pH point

1000kg

2300kg

4000kg

per s q u a r e metre

100g

230g

400g

Correcting alkaline soil (approximate guide) kg of sulphur needed/hectare sand

s a n d y loam

clay

250kg 25g

500kg

1000kg

50g

100g

The pH scale ranges from 1 to 14 (as above)

1 pH point per s q u a r e m e t r e

1 is extremely acid, 14 is extremely alkaline.

An application of limestone or sulphur i n c r e a s e s exponentially b e y o n d the

A pH of 7 is neutral.

ideal pH r a n g e of 6-7.5.

Tim Marshall

II

ORGANIC GARDENING

Water, mulches and green manures WATER In a country as dry as Australia, many experts still maintain that over-watering kills more plants than water shortages. Avocados, for example, are particularly susceptible and plants die in a few days if air is flooded out of soils. So it is the flow of air, water and nutrients through the soil that is vital for plant growth. Too much is just as bad as too little, which is why good drainage is vital to the availability of water. Soils actually pull water like ink to blotting paper and the soils with the smallest particles, the clay soils, have the greatest pull and hold the most water. Earthworms feeding on compost raise organic levels, which also increases the water holding power of soils. By protecting the soil surface with mulching materials, ground covers or shade plants, the water reserve is held in place longer, ready for plants to take nutrients, air and water. Sandy soils hold only a quarter of the water of clay soils and a third that of organic loam. So if you have the misfortune to garden on a sandy soil you will need to apply loads of compost or up to 25% of the top 25cm soil surface with clay particles to successfully raise fruit and vegetables. The water in soils is reduced as plants suck up water through the roots and transpire water through the stomata holes on the underside of the leaves. On hot days this process is accelerated to cool the plant. When temperatures put too much pressure on soil water reserves, stomata close, supply of C 0 2 stops and

PENETRATION OF WATER O N DIFFERENT SOIL TYPES. Depth of soil wetted by 25mm of rain. Row

Row

plant growth stops. Lettuce bolt to seed, and fruit trees abort their fruit and leaves to survive, until water is available again. Always group plants with similar water requirements together. That is, don't plant capers that need little water with thirsty vegetables, as either the capers will be water-logged or the vegies will dry out.

CONSERVE WATER BY M U L C H I N G Mulching is a process of covering soils to optimise the temperature and availability of water for plant growth. For maximum benefit always mulch soils well before the onset of hot weather. Coarse particles of mulch (rather than fine) insulate the soil without grabbing precious water. If mulches pack down they absorb valuable water and prevent oxygen entering the soil. Straw, lucerne hay or leaves, with their open structure, are better than tightly packed grass clippings or manures. Always water the day before the onset of hot weather and ideally in the early morning to reduce the period of humidity that encourages the spread of disease. Water deeply to encourage roots to suck water deep down away from the surface.

WATER - D R I P VS SPRAY Drip irrigation is such an efficient way to apply water that it is the preferred system for growing most fruit and some vegetables. Water savings of 60-70% are usual because drippers apply water where it is needed rather than wasting it on paths etc. This also reduces the opportunity for weeds to get started. Debilitating diseases which can destroy whole crops thrive in the humidity caused by watering foliage from overhead sprinklers but drip irrigation reduces the threat because water is only applied to the root zone. Whilst drip irrigation does have blockage problems, modern filter and in-line drippers have reduced this to a minimum. But to get vegetable seeds germinated, overhead spray irrigation is necessary, precisely because it waters the whole surface area. To minimise competition from emerging weeds, fibrous weed mats can be spread over the soil and individual seedlings planted into easily cut holes. If your vegetable garden is small or the plantings are not based on straight rows then overhead sprinklers will be more practical provided you water in the coolest part of the morning to minimise the spread of disease.

18

RAISED BEDS In parts of Australia that have heavy bursts of rainfall gardeners will need to raise their garden beds to speed the drainage of surplus water. Soil temperatures are raised, germination is speeded up and it makes planting and weeding much easier.

WATER A N D FLAVOUR Almost all fruit and vegetables have better flavour when the plants are partially starved of water at picking time. Commercial growers however have a vested interest in flooding their citrus, tomatoes and peaches before picking to increase their weight and crop price. Consequently, the over-watered supermarket fruit, such as apples, become tasteless and have less nutrients and antioxidants than smaller, carefully grown produce.

GREEN MANURES Green manuring is an organic process of growing plants to dig into the soil when they are still soft and sappy. This biomass is dug in like a manure to provide plant nutrients and carbon.

EXPLAINING CLEVER CLOVER Green manuring has been refined one step further with CSIRO's development of Clever Clover. Legumes use nitrogen from the air, convert it to plant protein and eventually release it to the soil in a form that the vegetable crops can use. Clever Clover are legumes that grow through the cold, wet weather, and being a self-perpetuating annual, die back in late spring. Not only do they provide nutrients for your garden beds, they die down and form a mulch in time for the planting of tomatoes and other summer crops. The dying roots provide valuable air pores for the roots of summer vegetables to grow into, creating a soil aeration without the harmful effects of digging. It saves on weeding, digging and spreading fertilisers provided the timing is right. If, for example, the subterranean clover does not die down when you want to plant out tomato seedlings or pumpkin seeds, simply solarise the clover by covering the area with clear plastic (25°C+ temperature) which will effectively burn o f f t h e foliage and roots without affecting the soil.

When to sow in garden beds Sow in autumn, in rows on garden beds. Space 20cm between rows at about 5 seeds per 2.5cm. In late spring Clever Clover dies down. Then in late summer/autumn the seeds of Clever Clover germinate to continue the cycle.

COMFREY In a climate as dry as Australia's it is vital to grow those deep-rooted plants that mine the soil for water

CS1R0 Clever Clover provides weed free mulch into which lettuce or tomatoes are planted.

and nutrients during those summer months when plant survival is threatened. Two plants stand out alfalfa lucerne and comfrey. Comfrey will out-produce even alfalfa yielding up to 100 tonnes of organic matter per acre (UC Davis, California). Its nitrogen content is so high it can replace manures when making garden compost. It is used by poultry farmers to improve laying and the colour of egg yolks, and the strength of eggshells. Its leaves are a rich source of potassium, nitrogen, silica and iron. It grows quickly and can be harvested up to 4 times a year. It is so tough that it can be cut with a lawn mower and collected with the bag attachment.

G R O W I N G YOUR O W N LUCERNE HAY The CSIRO has developed a complementary system whereby a deep-rooted, summer-active perennial legume can be grown alongside rows of vegetables or fruit trees to access water deep down and provide a highly nutritious biomass that can be cut to be spread as a mulch. Alfalfa lucerne has roots that can grow as deep as four metres and it will provide biomass/mulch for fruit or vegetable cropping systems. In these trials the lucerne was planted in alleys where access paths are. It was not watered and only occupied 50% of the area, but produced six tonnes of hay/hectare that contained 20g of nitrogen, I05g of phosphorus and 20g of potassium per square metre, which is enough to support any vegetable crop.

Alley cropping - along side crops Sow lucerne seed in spring at a rate of 10 seeds per 2.5cm. In summer, when the purple flowers reach 40cm high use hedge clippers or mow every 2 months. It is drought tolerant and provides fertiliser and free mulch each year while it smothers weeds, builds soil carbon and accesses water not usually available while eliminating transport costs.

ORGANIC GARDENING

Pest control without pesticides BLODIVERSE G A R D E N I N G Pest plagues are the end result of bad horticultural practices. Natural systems have an in-built control mechanism to keep pests within manageable levels based upon balance and biodiversity. In natural systems each pest has a predator that keeps populations in balance so that as populations increase so do the predators who feed on the pests. When natural habitats are destroyed to make way for agricultural crops or backyards, nesting places for birds or insects are destroyed, and a single pest gets an unnatural advantage, and inflicts damage to crops. However, by spraying with toxic chemicals, natural self-regulating predators are killed along with the pests, causing the need for further spraying. Fortunately gardeners can harness the benefits of biodiversity, so that pest problems rarely occur. By growing a combination of flowering perennials and

shrubs alongside our food plants, we establish a balanced advantage that commercial growers are yet to understand. At Heronswood we grow about 1000 different plants, which is 10-20 times as biodiverse as the surrounding native bush. This is our insurance policy against pest attack. We never grow large numbers of any single plants, as do commercial growers, and we have never needed to use toxic pesticides.

FLOWERS ARE N O T FRIVOLOUS Before agriculture was industrialised, flowering plants played a vital role in food production. The hedgerows that surrounded the fields were packed with plants that fed and sheltered an army of pest exterminators, pollinators and beneficial insects. The biodiversity of surviving hedgerows is legendary. It is said that they can be dated by how many species of plants and animals they support per metre. There are hedgerows with 1000 species per metre - they are a thousand years old. Home gardeners can mimic the biodiversity that supports a well-balanced ecosystem by planting out with shrubs, annuals and perennials that will attract this willing work force. Lacewings, ladybirds, parasitic wasps and hover flies are just a few of the insects that control pests such as aphids, caterpillars, mealy bugs and mites. Bees are invaluable for the pollination of flowers to produce fruit. It is said that the common honeybee is worth $8 billion dollars to the US economy, and all they ask for in return are flowers without pesticides. So flowers are not frivolous, they are as essential to the health of the garden as they are to the soul of the gardener.

INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT

O R G A N I C PEST C O N T R O L isect pests

Damage

\phid/Thrip

S a p sucking

Predators

Approved controls

Parasitic wasp

Take a holistic ecological approach to pest problems by following integrated pest management principles.

Derris dust, Pyrethrum, Insecticidal s o a p

Grow plants that provide nectar for the predatory insects that keep damaging insects under control. Most of these insects need high protein, high sugar foods in flowers that don't have deep pollen tubes. These can be found in the daisy family (Asteraceae), and the parsley family (Apiaceae). As most insect damage occurs in summer, summer flowering plants predominate.

Ladybird

Bacillus thuringiensis Dipel (BT)

ibbage moth

Larvae chew leaves

Parasitic wasp

Nematode

Root damage

Parasitic nematodes

Clean soil,

Marigolds,

Scale

Sap sucking

Parasitic wasp

White oil

Snails

Destroy seedlings

Ducks, chooks

Beertraps, Multiguard pellets Woodash

Fruit fly

Fruit

20

Naturalure

Spring flowering artichoke, calendula, marguerite daisies, gazania, feverfew, yarrow, gaillardia

Summer flowering shasta, cosmos, zinnia, aster, sunflower, salvia, gaura, Queen Anne's Lace, parsley, carrot, fennel, coriander, dill Ban toxic pesticides whatever the damage. Toxic pesticides kill bees, which are so valuable to a gardener because they actually fertilise the flowers that produce fruit and seed. Beware of Malathion, Carbaryl, Diazinon, Chlordane, Rogor and Meta-systox which are extremely toxic to bees. There are some pesticides that are both safe for people and nontoxic to bees, which are certified under organic growing standards. (See table - p20) Grow your own food at times when pests are absent. In the humid tropics disease problems can be extreme so tomatoes etc are grown through drier winter conditions. Broccoli and other members of the crucifer family are grown through cool weather before cabbage moth larvae appear. CROP

ROTATION

HOLISTIC

-

SOLUTIONS

Crop rotation is one of those eminently sensible policies that can be difficult to put into practice unless you have large areas of garden that can be left fallow for 6 months. Crop rotation theory revolves around separating vegetables into three categories and rotating those groupings to minimise nutrient depletion and pathogen build-up. Heavy feeders, which have high biomass and often shallow root systems deplete the soil and are followed by soil improvers that replace the nutrients used, and improve the soil ready for the planting of light feeders, the last of the cycle.

Heavy feeders Potatoes, com, broccoli, pumpkins, melons, leaf crops: lettuce, cabbage, silver beet.

Soil improvers Legumes that return nitrogen to the soil: Broad beans, peas, beans, clover, alfalfa. Sow these legumes to fix nitrogen:

Light feeders Root crops: Onions, beets, carrots, parsnip, parsley and capsicums and leeks.

Biodiversity is nature \ fail safe mechanism against extinction. crops in the same soil. However it is also true that if you have a biodiverse garden and follow the principles of organic soil reproduction you will eliminate 90% of pest problems.

SUMMARY ORGANIC GARDENING AND CLIMATIC CHANGE As atmospheric C 0 2 levels rise, so do air temperatures. Using the organic growing process we extract C 0 2 as surely as if we turned off the power or drove fuelefficient cars. As Tim Marshall says, "Organic matter made from the remains of once living things in and on the soil, in various stales of decay, contains a larger store of carbon than living plants. When the huge numbers of micro-organisms, which are also at least 50% carbon, are added, the soil store becomes much larger than the vegetation. " If gardeners andfarmers grew all our food organically we would cut our CO: emissions by up to 25%, which would stabilise climate change as well as dramatically improve our health. By gardening organically we would not only eliminate the need for pesticides, but save thousands of lives lost by handling toxic chemicals."

Last, but not least, crop rotation does reduce the build up of pathogens caused by

I M P R O V I N G SOILS W I T H

LEGUMES

Vegetable garden production beds

Adjoining beds or fruit orchard

Spring

Broad beans climbing p e a s in May-Aug, harvest Oct-Nov

Sow lucerne

Autumn

Clever Clover

Sow Clever Clover

Summer

Climbing beans Sow in Oct-Nov, harvest in April

BEING SELF-SUFFICIENT

BEING SELF-SUFFICIENT

The Mini-plot - a year's supply in 40m Growing your own vegetables is the single most important step to a sustainable, healthy life. When vegetables are grown at home they are fresh and free of chemicals, eliminating food miles and cutting C 0 2 emissions by up to 30%. It takes a few hours of work a week. In just 40 square metres you can grow 472kg of vegetables which is enough for four people. So just 10m 2 will feed one person (see yields opposite).

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W H E R E T O START Vegetables need plenty of sun in order to grow, so choose a spot in your garden that receives at least 6 hours of sun per day. Make sure that you can water it easily so that your vegetables will be succulent and productive. You will need only 22,800L of annual supplementary water, which can be produced by a 7000L tank.

PREPARE YOUR SOIL Healthy, organic food draws its goodness from the soil, so make sure your soil is brimming with vitality, with generous quantities of well rotted manure. Prepare your beds well by removing weeds and digging the area to break up the soil. This means that direct-sown seeds make contact with fine, moist soil for quick germination. Digging over the soil should take no more than a weekend's work.

C R O P ROTATION To minimise nutrition depletion, rotate soil improvers after heavy and light feeders. Dig in compost and blood and bone, then apply mulch after harvest to boost organic matter, worm activity and fertility. Don't plant the same vegetables in the same place two seasons running. By changing what you grow where, you will prevent pests and diseases building up in the soil.

CROP

HARVEST MONTH

YIELD (APPROX.)

Greens - Heavy feeders, apply compost, blood & bone (100 grams per metre) or follow with soil improvers Lettuce

Nov Feb - Apr

99 plants = 20kg

Cabbage

Jul - Sep

33 plants = 53kg

Broccoli

Jul - Sep

25 plants = 25kg

Silverbeet

Jul - Aug

10 plants = 5kg

Fruits - Heavy feeders, repeat

above

Tomato

Jan - Apr

5 plants = 75kg

Capsicum

Feb - Apr

5 plants = 10kg

Cucumber

Dec - Feb

2 plants = 10kg

Zucchini

Dec - Feb

2 plants = 10kg

Pumpkin

Mar - Apr

2 plants = 6kg

Strawberry

Nov - Dec Mar - Apr

33 plants = 16kg

Sweet corn

Jan - Feb

50 plants = 35kg

Potato

Jan - Feb

33 plants = 50kg

Pods/Seeds - Soil improvers, puts nitrogen back into soil Pea

May - Sep

200 plants = 10kg

Broad bean

Jun - Sep

100 plants = 20kg

Beans

Feb - Apr

132 plants = 50kg

Roots - Light feeders, apply compost, blood & bone or follow with soil improvers Carrot

Nov - Jan

100 plants = 20kg

Parsnip

May - Jul

66 plants = 12kg

Beetroot

Nov - Dec

100 plants = 20kg

Onion

Sep - Oct

100 plants = 25kg

Garlic

Dec - Jan

20 plants = 600g Total = 472.6 kg

II

BEING SELF-SUFFICIENT

Convert your lawn into a food garden In an area no bigger than a domestic front yard any gardener can grow a year's supply of fruit and vegetables. All you need is a space 12 metres across and 9 metres deep to provide 254 kilos of fruit and vegetables. This mini-orchard can provide all the apples, oranges, avocados, peaches and pears to allow everyone to be self-sufficient. In fact, each tree will produce 2 to 4 times expected typical consumption, so that family and friends can share in chemical-free D I G G E R ' S DIG UP Y O U R LAWN

PLOT

Vegetables to produce Harvest period

Approx. crop yield

Row length Repeat sowing (RS)

Mar-Aug

8kg/m

8.5m

Lettuce 10kg

Every month

0.6kg/m

16.6m (RS 1.4 monthly)

Broccoli 10kg

Every month

Tomato 25kg

Mar-June

10kg/plant

2.5m

Mar-Oct

18kg/plant

1.0m

Total vegetables 162kg Heavy feeders Potatoes 68 kg

Pumpkin 15kg

10m (RS 2m/5 sowings)

Light feeders Carrot 10kg

Oct-May

5.0m

Onion 4kg

Jan-July

4.0m

food. The cost of being self-sufficient is less than $250 to cover 10 packets of seeds, 24 strawberries, 15 raspberries and 5 fruit trees. To help you get started we have drawn up plans of the mini-orchard including mini-plot vegetable beds (pg 24-25). The 1 2 x 9 metre garden could be started in the front or backyard provided the garden gets more than half a day's sun and the fruit trees don't shade the tilled vegetable beds. Each bed is 10 metres long by 1 metre wide, which could be used to grow 3 rows of lettuce spaced at 30cm apart. The plan allows a 60cm spacing between the beds as a path and kneeling point to weed or pick strawberries. Our fruit selections are based on choosing single selections of self-fertile fruit on dwarf root stock, and could be changed, remembering that you will need to plant two pears to ensure cross-pollination. Two pears can be planted at 1 metre spacings to save space and ensure cross-pollination. We have also chosen a fruit selection for gardeners in either frosty winter or frost-free climates. Avocados will take a few degrees of frost and suit plantings in all capital cities and coastal areas, (except Canberra and Hobart). In areas of heavy frost (CZ 9a), orange and avocado could be replaced by an apricot and nectarine.

Soil Improvers Beans Climbing 10kg

Jan-Mar

5.6kg/m

1.8m

P e a s Climbing 10kg

Sep-Dec

1,3kg/m

7.6m

Strawberries 12kg

Dec-Feb

0.5kg/plant

4.8m

Cane berries 10kg

Dec-Mar

2kg/m

5.0m

Rockmelon 10kg

Mar-May

11 kg/bush

Fruit - in dug beds

Fruit - Trees

Area required

Apples 12kg

Feb-Jan

27kg/tree

Oranges 12kg

May-Sep

65kg/tree

P e a c h e s 12kg

Dec-Mar

13kg/tree

Pears 12kg

Feb-Aug

13kg/tree

Avocados 12kg

All Year

50kg/tree

Yields are a guide only based on Digger's vegetable trials, or Royal Horticultural Society published data. Soils with low fertility or poor cultural practices would reduce yields.

C O N S U M P T I O N OF FRUIT & VEGETABLES K G / P E R S O N Starch (potatoes?) Australia India China

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics 2002

Meat

FRUIT TREES FOR FROSTY WINTERS CZ 9B Self-fertile Apple Macintosh Pear: Nashi Beurre Bosc/Williams Peach Anzac

Harvest

y< Mar-Apr Partial cross Feb-Mar pollination Dec-Jan •

or Nectarine Goldmine

Feb

or Apricot Moorpark

Jan-Feb

Orange Washington dwarf

May-Sep

Avocado Hass