Leonie Mills with her fruit art, carved for children

Along with mentoring secondary students looking at a future in hospitality, chef and owner of Jack & Jill restaurant in Geelong Vic. Leonie Mills was eager to inspire and educate even younger palates to the delights of fresh fruit and vegetables. “I wanted something that was fun for primary groups so I’ve developed a program ‘Leonie’s Fruit Art for Kids’,” enthuses Leonie who generously gives of her time taking the program into local schools. With local fruiterer Harvey’s of Highton supplying the ingredients, Leonie’s buffet of imaginatively carved produce including watermelon sharks, fruit salad trains, rabbits, ducks and floral arrangements immediately grabs the youngsters’ attention and in no time they are excited to try the array of new taste sensations.

www.jackandjillrestaurant.com.au

Zucchini, pumpkin and cucumbers go into peat pots with potting mix

I’ve had great fun over the last few weeks planting seed and watching them come up. I love the fact that more and more now it is possible to buy organic seed. This means that not only are my plants grown organically, but they are organic right from the beginning. I would urge everyone to support the seed suppliers who sell organic seed. There are many small suppliers and  bigger suppliers who are now sourcing and selling Organic Seeds (see the list at the end of the article).

Yates now has a range of organic seed.

Seeds sown in punnets in seed raising mix

Diggers lists those seed that are organically certified, as do Green Harvest and now Yates have released a range of Organic seed too. I try to grow seed from a range of different suppliers, so those pictured come from a several sources. They are all good and all seem to sprout reliably.

I grow smaller seeds in punnets in seed raising mixture, and bigger ones like zucchini and pumpkins in potting mix, in individual small pots, often peat or coir (coconut husk). I like these pots because the seedlings go straight into the ground, pot and all, and this minimizes root disturbance. The trick with these is to make sure the whole pot and seedling is very wet before planting, and that the pot is completely buried under the soil. This stops the pot from drying out, which would kill the roots trying to grow through it.

Any plastic pots that are being reused need to be carefully cleaned. I wash them with a Eucalyptus based wool wash, mainly because I always have some and because the Eucalyptus oil is a strong antiseptic and fungicide that will kill any bacteria or fungi on the pots. I also carefully inspect the surfaces of my potting area to make sure that there are no slugs or snails hidded in any crevices, and then put copper bands around the legs of the tables to stop and slugs or snails making their way up to my tender seedlings and snacking on them for lunch. Finally each pot or punnet is carefully labelled.

The seedlings are pushing their way through

Gently touch the tops of the seedlings to stop them becoming leggy

I’ve had a great strike rate this year and have way too many seedlings for the spaces in the garden, but I’ll give some away (tomatoes, capsicum, cucumber, pumpkin and zucchini), plant some more thickly and then harvest every second or third when still small, leaving room for the others to reach full size (lettuce, mizuna, Chinese greens) and put the flowers into every corner I can find. For everything else I will find a grow bag or pot, fill it with soil, plant and hope for the best. It really is a lovely time of year, full of renewal and hope.

Tomato seedlings are coming through

These small green tops are a great way to water

These suppliers sell both organic and non-organic seeds. Generally organic seeds are labelled as such.

Diggers
Green Harvest
Greenpatch Organic Seeds
Southern Harvest
Yates

Plant two bean seeds close together

Beans are a very rewarding crop and relatively easy to grow. I love them because they don’t take up much space but within a few weeks you can harvest an abundance of crisp, flavoursome beans. Soak seeds overnight to increase the speed of germination. Just put the seeds you want to plant into a bowl and cover with water. The next morning, water the soil where you are going to put the beans and plant seeds two at a time pushing them about 4cm into the soil. I always plant two because often one will not grow. Cover with soil but don’t water as the soil and the seeds are already wet. If you don’t soak the seeds then you will need to water. Leave about 20cm between plants if they are dwarf forms, or 15cm if they are climbers.

Place a guard around each pair of seeds

The guard protects the young plants from snails

The bright red flowers of scarlet runner beans

Snails and slugs are a problem in my garden, and snails and slugs love breakfasting on beans, so as soon as the seeds go in I put a guard with copper tape on it around the spot I have planted each pair of beans. I use lengths of drainage pipe but pots with the bottom cut out work just as well. The copper tape comes in a roll with adhesive tape on the back so it is simple to put a complete ring of copper around the guard. The snail or slug touches the copper and gets a small electric shock, so it heads elsewhere for breakfast. Although the copper tape is not cheap, the guards last for years and can be used over and over again. Once the young bean seedlings appear, if both have grown, nip out the smaller one so that there is just one plant in each guard. I leave the guard around the base of the bean until the final bean is harvested.

You can grow beans in pots or garden beds, but wherever you put the climbing beans they will need support. Try tying a tripod of sticks together and planting one bean seed at the base of each. Or grow them up a fence, or an arch or even a old bed spring base. I always plant a few at the base of my corn plants (once the corn is growing well). You are only limited by your imagination. Some of my favourite climbing beans are pictured below.

My soil is acid so when I plant I add a handful of lime per square metre of soil,  once the beans are growing well I mulch with mushroom compost which is usually alkaline. I also water every couple of weeks with seaweed extract. In no time at all you will have a bountiful bean crop. And remember, when the crop has finished, don’t pull the beans from the soil, cut them at the base and leave the roots to enrich and add nitrogen, being a legume, beans add nitrogen to the soil.

Golden wax pole bean

Purple King beans

Lazy Housewife beans

Rising costs have combined with anxiety about food security to create a critical moment for people considering growing their own food. Right on cue is “Vegies A-Z”. It’s the third OG special (after Getting Started, $10.00, and Fruit, $10.00). Vegies A-Z combines new material with recent OG articles from reliable writers. My quibble with this third volume is that there is not more on soil preparation, which is crucial. Perhaps that’s in Getting Started? Perhaps the three volumes need to be read seriatum, and would make a great gift, possibly to yourself. PW is a major contributor. — AMS.
Note: There is more on soil preparation in Getting Started which is unfortunately currently out of print. A reprint is planned for later this year
Borrow a copy from your library, buy one from your local newsagent or go to the store on this website and buy a copy online