Category Archives: Food

Spring Outdoor Movie & Pizza Night

Posted on September 21, 2012 by | Leave a comment

Hi Everyone,

Spring is here, so please join us for an Outdoor Movie and Pizza Night!

Peter and Debra have graciously offered their wonderful backyard, several acres devoted to growing vegetables, rearing animals, fish and creating sculptures. It’s a perfect opportunity to discuss all things related to sustainable food production. Here’s the plan:

  • 5 pm Open garden, come along and check out their veggies, aquaponics, bees, chooks, cow and more….
  • 6 pm Wood fired pizza. Dough provided, please bring toppings to share. Outdoor fire to keep us warm
  • 7 pm Movie screening of “Growing Change”.
  • 8 pm Short Q and A discussion arising from the movie: What can we do ourselves?
  • 8:30 pm Finish

When: Sunday 30 September
Cost: Gold coin donation
BYO: Pizza toppings to share, drinks & glasses, chair/rug, sturdy shoes (no high heels :), jacket if it’s cool.
Where: Hazelmere.

RSVP: As it’s at a private residence, please register with Eventbrite. We will then email out the address, with map closer to the date. Any problems, please call Peter on 0438 940 386.

No need to print the ticket, it’s just to help with tracking numbers.

Check out the trailer here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5e1QFWmywbo

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Planting out a spring garden at Rebecca and Andy’s place

Posted on August 27, 2012 by | Leave a comment

This month the Guildford Kitchen Gardeners are getting our hands dirty.  Rebecca and Andy have been wanting a vegie garden for a while, and have generously agreed to share putting it together with us.  If you’ve been wanting to set up a garden and haven’t known where to start, this is a great way to learn.

They’ve done all the hard work, so we’ll come in and help them finish it off, followed by afternoon tea, of course.

Please bring:  your gardening gloves and gardening tools, something for the sharing table if you have excess in your garden, some homemade yumminess to share for afternoon tea.  (these last two are not obligatory – if you’d like to bring something to share, please do but don’t feel obliged, we will have plenty).  Also, if you have a camp chair, you might want to have a sit down after all the hard work.

Here’s how it will work:

1.30:   Arrive and reacquaint with everyone
2pm:  Let’s get to work!  Rebecca has plans of what’s to be planted where, as well as seeds and seedlings.  We’ll be moving some soil, then planting seeds and seedlings.  There are also a couple of trees needing new homes.  Rebecca will have seeds and vegie seedlings, but would love donations if anyone has herb seedlings looking for a new home.
3.30:  Time for a well earned cuppa, biccie and a chat.
4pm: Done!

As we go, we’ll discuss soil health, companion planting, timing of planting various species, recipes and whatever else is of interest.

Please RSVP for address, to guildfordkitchengardeners@gmail.com.

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Bees 101

Posted on August 18, 2012 by | Leave a comment

The latest meet of the Kitchen Gardener’s Society was all about keeping bees in the backyard. It was a lovely day, and more than one bee arrived to try to feed on the lovely cupcakes someone brought. For those that couldn’t make it, here’s a few tips I picked up from our bee keeper pro Peter Vedeniapine.

Why keep bees?

Honey of course! But they can also provide wax, pollen and more. Plus they’re vital for pollination. And it also looks rather satisfying.

What gear you need

  • a bee hive (8 or 10 frame, full or shallow depth, 2 boxes minimum). Peter’s advice was to buy a flatpack from Guilfoyle’s (contact below) and build it yourself ~$180. Apparently Bees prefer the wooden frames, plus avoids plastic! Wire queen excluder is better.
  • a smoker (can pick them up second-hand)
  • Protective suit
  • hive tool (for levering out frames and opening waxed up boxes) + brush (for brushing bees off frames, can use a dust pan brush)

Where to get bees and how to start a hive

There are two main ways to start a hive. Collect a swarm of wild bees or buy a queen. Collecting a ready-made swarm sounds good and it’s free, but you have to keep in mind, they could be more aggressive than bred bees. If you purchase a queen from Guilfoyle’s or a breeder, you’ll also need to buy some frames of honey and brood cells to get them on their way. Or if you’re lucky, you might have a friend who could give them too you.

Purchase and hire of bee equipment, along with some advice available from Guilfoyle’s in Midland.

Hive Location

When choosing a spot for your hive, make sure the flight path (opening) wont be in the way of garden access. Ideally face the entrance NE, so the sun wakes them up. It can help to have some protection on the West face to keep them cool in summer, but not essential, bees are pretty hardy.

Pete’s tip

  • Get good quality equipment
  • Calm bees mean a happy bee keeper!

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Posted in Flora & Fauna, Food

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