October 2005 . . .
Intro
Awards
New books
October in the Garden:
Drought
Busters – Six Fun Ways to Beat the Dry
The
Lure of Home-grown Veg
What
to Plant in October
What
we're guzzling from the orchard now
Jobs
for October
Jam
Jar Flowers
Home-made
Planter Pots
A Few Recipes
Rose Petal
Tarts
Very
Basic Shampoo
Sizzling Bath Bazookas
Scented Rubber Duckies
(Written with grubby fingers –I've scrubbed them but
they're still grubby - and a big bowl of asparagus and three blood oranges on
my desk, excuse the dribbles.)
Woke
up this morning to the sound of a thousand small birds cheeping - the
silvereyes are in the avocado trees, eating.
Spring
down here mean so much blossom you could almost float on the scent and the
thunk of falling limes and avocadoes. The avocadoes are 'overripe now' –
still firm because avocados don't ripen on the tree unless they've been pecked
by birds, but splitting at the bottom. Which means there's easy access for
silver eye beaks.
I've
no idea how many animals eat our avocadoes. There are always a lot more than we
and friends and family can eat, especially as even more seedlings are bearing
now, and we don't bother selling them any more. (Growing fruit is easy. It's
the picking, packing and selling which is a chore.)
It
took the wombats about fifteen years to learn to eat avocadoes. Wombats are
conservative. But finally one dreary drought year an adventurous wombat took a
biteŠ and then anotherŠ and somehow told all the others that, 'Hey, these are
good!
(I
don't know how wombats communicate things like 'Avocadoes taste good', 'Hey,
have you tried parsley root yet?'
- probably not with sounds, as wombats don't pay much attention to
sounds. Smells? The idea of
animals being able to say, 'Come home with me, mate, I know where you can get a
feed' seems a bit far-fetched. But one day Rikki the Wrestler, who had been
brought up from a baby but had 'gone bush' for eighteen months turned up again
at the back door, with three totally wild wombats – all waiting for their
dinner.
The
wild wombats looked a bit embarrassed, but there was no doubt they were waiting
for a feed. And I never have worked out how Rikki told them.
Anyhow,
back to avocadoes. These days the wombats eat the fruit the birds have knocked
off, and their coats have never looked so good – glossy with all that
avocado oil, and far less mange now they have so much good avocado protein when
the grass is in short supply.
The
wallabies love avocadoes too. They pick them up in their paws – wallabies
are good at gripping things, like my rose bushes or the passionfruit vines they
suck like spaghetti.
Possums
eat a few, but the fruit bats haven't bothered yet – either they don't
like avocado or they haven't discovered them. (Fruit bats like gum blossom best
and there is usually plenty of that here.)
But
I think it's the birds who enjoy the avocadoes most – even more than we
do. Not just the silvereyes but spinebills, rosellas, parrots, currawongs. (The
currawongs try to carry them back to their nests, which is hilarious, as they
flap, flap, flap for maybe two metres then drop them. Just hope you aren't
underneath when a currawong drops a giant avocado on your head.) Most of the
birds only eat avocado in spring when they're nesting. I suppose it's good for
them – certainly we are getting more and more birds living here or
spending summer here, with nests in most suitable bushes.
(Chooks
love avocado too – our hens get a lot of avocado in their diet, all the
ones that are too squishy for us to eat but perfect for chook beaks.) I just wish the lyrebirds would turn
vegetarian and eat some fruit instead of ripping up the garden for beetlesŠ
Come to think of it, the wedge-tailed eagles probably do nicely out of avocado
too – they get to eat the avocado-fed smaller birds.
PS The asparagus and oranges were delicious.
PPS You know it occurred to me last night that humans
aren't very good at thinking about what MIGHT be. Maybe that's why most
politicians can't cope with the idea of global warming – they think that
the world will always be as it is now. (If there is one lesson that history
teaches us, it's that things change.)
But
most people aren't very good about thinking about good changes either. Phone
still bung? Air still foul? Then start fighting.
Want
a garden of birds and wallabies and happiness that gives you and yours and the
animals as well everything you need? Then start planting.
Awards
No
new ones since last month's CBC Prize for 'To the Moon and Back'. (Bryan is
still rejoicing!) 'Pete the Sheep'
is still short-listed for the Koala Children's Choice – and thanks to
everyone who's voted for it!
New Books
Bruce
and I are working on the next picture book. I've sort of finished the text
– 'sort of' means that it'll be rewritten and rewritten as Bruce does the
illustrations and the team starts playing around with what words go on what
page.
All
of which will take about another year, so you'll see it in the shops Christmas
of next year, along with a special new edition of 'Diary of a Wombat'. We were
so entranced by the Italian edition – small and square and adorable
– that we wanted an Australian one just like it. So it's coming out for
Christmas '06 too, all boxed up with a velvet wombat that will look just like
the wombat in the book, not the vaguely bear-like creature that some toy
wombats turn into!
This
month's book release is 'Phredde and the Haunted Underpants' - the eighth and
last Phredde book, and the one that really tells all about Pru and Bruce ...
and what happens next! And what DO
phaeries do when they leave school.
Other
books this year include 'They Came in Viking Ships', which is about to be
released in the US, UK and Canada, and 'The Secret World of Wombats' which will
tell you all you didn't realise you wanted to know about why wombats bite each
other's bums, how they furnish their rooms underground and how to help an
orphaned wombat.
I've
just finished the next Whacky Family book too. The last one out was 'My Uncle Wal the Werewolf' (and
Stephen Michael King's werewolves are the most hilarious in the universe) and
the next, in January, will be 'My Gran the Gorilla' - and you thought YOUR gran
had hairy legs!)
Schedule for '05 and '06
I'm
still not accepting many invitations- things are going well health wise but I
still want to take things easy for a while. But the Monkey Baa Theatre's
schedule for Hitler's Daughter next year is out. I'm not sure which ones Bryan
and I will be going to yet- it's going to be hard to choose!
But anyway, here they are -
Hitler's Daughter coming soon to a theatre near you ...
Touring dates for Monkey Baa Theatre for
Young People Ltd
October in the Garden
Drought Busters – Six Fun Ways to Beat the Dry
Go for fragrance!
Fragrant
foliage is higher in scented oils - and scented oils are one of the ways plants
stop moisture evaporating from their leaves. Go for scented plants like kaffir
limes (use the leaves in cooking as well as the fruit), lemon verbena (the
lemoniest lemon scent around) and tomatoes (one sniff of tomato leaves and
you'll know why tomatoes are drought busters).
Go for shade.
Shady
trees keep your garden cool - and cool gardens need less water. Plant deciduous
trees that let sun in over winter. Trees also stay greener far longer than
lawns. Most visitors to our place exclaim how green our garden looks in summer-
the grass may be brown, but the forest of leaves gives an illusion of freshness
and moisture.
I
use fruit fly netting too – it shades the ground as well as keeping out
fruit fly or stopping the bower birds eating the broccoli seedlings. I drape it
over our vegie gardens when it's hot and dry. It protects them wonderfully.
Go for climbers
Climbers
mostly cover large areas - you may be the proud owner of two or even six square
metres of flowers and leaves all for one set of thirsty little bunch of roots.
Climbers are mostly very, very water effective!
Light up your garden!
Gardens
smell sweeter and are MUCH cooler at night – and at night you don't
notice dry grass and wilted shrubs either. Light yourself a garden room to use
at night. Light up your favourite tree so you can see it from the living room.
Use colour carefully
Some
flowers love the heat and dry - petunias, roses, geraniums and pelargoniums to
name a few. Keep a few bright pots by the front door or the front garden or by
the windows. Sometimes small bits of carefully placed colour are more effective
than lots of wilting shrubs or garden beds.
Add some structure
Walls,
stone steps, paving, raised garden beds, sculptures and giant ornamental pots
don't need watering!
The Lure
of Home-grown Veg
There
is something deeply satisfying about picking your own produce - plus it's
possibly the most healthy activity you can enjoy!
. it's great
exercise – and cheaper than
a gym!
. having your fingers in the soil is one of the best
stress busters ever;
. a good veg
patch can save up to literally thousands of dollars a year; and
. if you've
got a living larder out your back
door you eat more healthy veg.
If
you've never had a vegie garden before, this is a great time to start. Fill a
sunny spot - not next to a shady fence - with one punnet of silverbeet, another
of tomatoes, two zucchini plants, one pumpkin vine, all very well mulched, plus
a choko next to a fence it can climb all over or a sweet potato in hot areas.
None
of these are water guzzlers, though you'll need to keep them moist, especially
when they're small, and feed with soluble plant food once a week. You'll be
surprised at the masses of veg you'll get.
What to Plant in October
Hot climates
Food plants: Choko,
lemon grass, sweet potato and passionfruit vines, Jerusalem artichokes, paw paw
and Cape gooseberry seeds. Also the seeds of artichokes, basil, beans,
beetroot, capsicum, carrots, celery, celtuce, chicory, cucumbers, eggplant,
endive, fennel, tropical lettuce, melons, okra, parsley, peas, peanuts, pumpkin
(not in humid areas), radish, rosellas, sweet corn, tomatoes and salad greens like mizuna and mitsuba.
Plants for beauty:
Seeds or seedlings of ageratum, alyssum, amaranthus, carnations,
celosia, coleus, cosmos, dichondra, echinops, erigeron, gaillardia, gazania,
gloxinia, gourds, hymenosporum,
impatiens, nasturtiums,
phlox and salvia.
Cold and Temperate:
Food garden: Seed potatoes, sweet potatoes, choko,
strawberries; seeds of artichokes, asparagus, basil, beans, beetroot, broccoli, burdock, cabbage, capsicum, carrots,
cauliflower, celery, celtuce, chicory, collards, coriander, corn salad,
cress, cucumbers, eggplant, endive, fennel, kale, kohl rabi, leeks, lettuce,
melons, okra, parsley, peanuts, pumpkin, radish, rosellas, salsify, scorzonera, sweet corn, tomatoes,
turnips, salad greens like mizuna and mitsuba, and zucchini.
Flower garden: Achillea, ageratum, alstromeria, alyssum,
amaranthus, aster, balsam, Bellis perennis, bells of Ireland, brachycome,
calendula, candytuft, Canterbury bells, carnation, celosia, clarkia, cleome, coleus, coreopsis, columbines,
cosmos, delphinium, dichondra, echinacea, echinops, erigeron, euphorbia,
foxglove, gaillardia, gazania, globe amaranth, gloxinia, godetia, gypsophila,
helichrysum, heliotrope, hellebores, honesty, lavender, marigolds,
nasturtium, petunia, phlox,
Flanders poppy, portulaca, rudbeckia, salpiglossis, salvia, scabious, sweet William, viola, zinnia and
snapdragons.
What we're guzzling from the orchard now:
Asparagus, asparagus, asparagus! Avocadoes, limes, lemons,
lemonade fruit, tangelos, cumquats, calamondins, tangelos, mandarins,
grapefruit, navel oranges, blood oranges, early strawberries, macadamias,
chestnuts, chilcayote melons, the first mulberries any day now and then the
cherries ...
Jobs for October
. MULCH! Now the weather has warmed up mulch EVERYTHING
(with the possible exception of the cat).
. Mow! Even if the grass hasn't grown much the weeds need
beheading.
. Deadhead bulbs
- snipping the old flowers off now before they form seeds will give you more
vigorous flowers next year.
. Feed summer bloomers and veg with liquid seaweed, but
only if the soil is moist. (Never feed plants in dry soil – you can burn
the roots.)
. Take hydrangea cuttings – cut off 30 cm pieces,
trim off the lower leaves, cut the other leaves in half (to reduce moisture
loss) and bury the ends about 10 cm deep. Keep in light shade till well
established.
. Train climbing rose shoots so they are as horizontal as
possible. If allowed to grow vertically they'll only bloom at the top, instead
of putting out masses of new shoots for roses all along the branch.
. Pinch the tops out of basil plants to stop them forming
flowers instead of leaves.
Jam Jar Flowers
BIG
bunches need BIG vases. But small, lax-stemmed flowers like petunias,
floribunda roses, a single bloom with a few green leaves - or one of those
lovable tiny bunches clutched in a kid's fist - need small vases.
Many kitchen rejects make great vases
for this type of bloom - old soy sauce bottles, mango pickle containers or even
those little cream jugs you never do get around to filling up with cream. Even
eggcups suit smaller flowers, like a nasturtium or two or a couple of daisies.
Home-made Planter Pots
One
of the most heartbreaking things for any gardener is taking a gorgeous looking
plant out of its pot, and finding a mass of roots all twisted together and
poking out of the base - in other words, your darling plant is root bound. And no matter how lovingly you try to
untangle it all, you know the plant will never do as well as one whose root
system was allowed to stretch and explore.
Even
seedlings in punnets often have the same problem –each little segment is
a mass of roots and they will never do as well as a seedling whose roots have
been allowed to grow unchecked.
Last
year was a real eye opener for me. I planted six varieties of carrots and six
varieties of beetroot, to see which ones did best at our place. And of course when I thinned them out I
couldn't bear to throw any away, could I?
So
the extra beetroot and carrots were carefully transplanted - and I do mean
carefully, and well watered and all the rest of it. The transplanted seedlings
grew beautifully too.
Then
at Christmas the bushfire gales swept across our garden - and suddenly every
transplanted little seedling wilted in the first hour of hot dry wind, while
those grown in situ stayed perky all through that whole hellish month.
This
month we're picking the final few of last year's plantings - and the difference
between the transplanted seedlings and the ones that weren't disturbed is still
remarkable. The transplants are far smaller roots i.e. less carrot and less
beetroot for us to munch on, than the others.
It
just goes to show – plants grow INCREDIBLY
much better if their roots aren't disturbed, which is why I use planter pots
whenever I'm raising anything that will be transplanted.
A planter pot is one that is put into
the ground with its plant. You can
buy little biodegradable pots, but if you're an avid gardener this becomes
expensive – and, anyway, home-made planter pots are a great way to use up
at least some of your old newspaper.
Newspaper
plant pots are great. They are sturdy enough to keep plant and potting mix
together, but the base is fragile enough to be easily pushed away by growing
roots. I also find that the roots
of seedlings in planter pots tend to grow down to begin with rather than out
straight away, and deeper roots are a great way for plants to forage moisture
in dry times. Deep roots also help make plants more wind proof too. (My planter
pot giant sunflowers survived the winds last year too, while the self-sown ones
were a sad, fallen tangle on the ground.)
How to make a planter pot
Step 1. Find something to mould them over - old plastic
pots are ideal, but ice-cream containers and even coffee mugs can also be used.
Step 2. Cut
newspapers into LONG strips - the longer the better, as short bits can detach
themselves and blow away.
Step 3. Soak newspaper for about five minutes in water.
Step 4. Put
ONE sheet over the base of the pot, then wrap about three to six sheets around
the sides. Don't be too neat and don't worry if the paper goes over the top a
bit - all the better, as you can fold it back to make a lip to help pull the
pot away from the mould later.
Step 6. Leave
the pots to dry - one day should do it.
Step 7. Pull off the planter pot, fill with potting mix
and place in a box with the others. The planter pots do need to be placed together,
so that they'll help support each other and the pots won't unravel.
Step 8. Plant
your seeds or cuttings.
Step 9. When
you're ready to plant your pot, water it well with the hose, lift it up
carefully, tear away the base if it hasn't already broken and place the plant,
pot and all, in the hole. Water
wellŠ and wait.
Whether
it's a shrub or a cabbage, your planter-potted darlings will leap ahead of any
other transplants. And I suspect they'll survive a heck of a lot better in
storm, drought and wind too.
A Few Recipes
Rose Petal Tarts
The
Queen of Hearts she made some tarts, all on a summer's day... and I bet they
weren't those horrible hard jammy things you buy in supermarkets either.
The
most romantic tart I know is rose petal tart. No, don't shriek... roses
actually can taste delicious, which is why rose water used to be an ingredient
in so many lovely old-fashioned recipes, before artificial vanilla (may it
disappear into the nether regions of Hell forever) became cheap and popular.
(Never EVER put artificial vanilla into any home-made cakes or bickies. Your
good home cooking will just taste like something made six months ago and bought
in a packet.)
Back
to eating your roses. The better the rose smells, the better it will taste. The
texture of rose petals, on the other hand, isn't exactly appetising.
Swallowing
a rose petal is a bit like swallowing a slug that's been on a crash diet, sort
of tough and slimy at the same time.
Rose
petals tarts however keep all the flavour, colour and perfume of gorgeous
roses, but change the texture into something delectable. A good rose petal tart
is a bit like a custard tart should be but rarely is, and it tastes like a rose
garden smells. Well, to be perfectly honest, no it doesn't – I've never
found a rose that smells of baking pastry – but maybe you can pretend it does.
First
of all you need to go pick some preferably deep red, highly-perfumed
roses. My favourites are Papa
Meilland, Climbing Guinea or Mr Lincoln, but there are lots of others. And, yes, at a pinch you can use yellow
or pink or even white ones, but the tarts will look sort of wishy-washy instead
of reddish pink.
The roses need to be out of your garden
or at least from a very good friend's garden, so you can be sure they haven't
been sprayed with fungicides or pesticides in the past six weeks. Don't use florist's roses, because who
knows what they've been sprayed with ... well, actually, I have a very good
idea what they've been sprayed with, and believe me you don't want to go eating
it.
It
is also a good idea to pick out any bugs or bees or beetles as well as the odd
caterpillar, because although these may add an interesting crunch to the tarts,
not to mention extra protein, they definitely spoil the flavour.
Now
cut off the little white bitter bit at the base of each rose petal.
You
are now ready to make your rose petal tarts.
Ingredients
3-4 sheets of sweet shortcrust pastry (the exact amount
will depend on how deep your muffin tray is)
1 cup cream
1 tbsp rosewater (available at all good supermarkets)
2 eggs (preferably free range Australorp eggs, but that's
just because I love Australorps)
3 dessertspoons caster sugar
juice of 1 lime or lemon
Equipment: 1 non-stick muffin tray, blender, mixing bowl,
eggbeater or whisk, oven
Line
the muffin moulds with pastry. If it's not a non-stick tray you'll need to coat
it with butter or margarine and then dust on flour.
Bung
the rose petals into the blender with the cream, sugar and rosewater. Blend
till the petals are just a distant memory. Add the lemon/lime juice and eggs;
pour into the bowl and whip with the beater for about two minutes till frothy.
Pour
the mixture into the muffin moulds. The mixture should come about two thirds of
the way up each container.
Bake
at 200º C for about twenty minutes, or until the pastry is pale brown and the
filling set. (The time will vary depending on the size of each muffin
container.)
Remove
and eat either hot or cold, by themselves or with extra cream.
And
if you're the sort that sprinkles your beloved's bed with rose petals (and if
you do I hope you're the one that washes the sheets too – squashed rose
petals make a heck of a mess, and dried ones are even worseŠ they get stuck in
the most embarrassing places), you couldn't find anything better for a romantic
supper than rose petal tarts... except possibly two dozen Clyde River oysters
and profiteroles with rich runny chocolate sauce and whipped cream, but then
that's another story entirely.
And
if the Knave of Hearts ever comes sniffing through your kitchen, at least he'll
find something worth pinching ...
Some Good Smelling Things
Very Basic Shampoo
NB This shampoo is surprisingly good – well, it
surprised me anyway, as I didn't think a soap-based shampoo could be as good.
But it still isn't as good as the best of the commercial ones – though I
suspect it may be a lot better for your hair in the long run.
Ingredients:
Half a cup grated soap
four cups hot water
one teaspoon glycerine (available in most supermarkets)
a few drops of rosemary or lavender oil
NB Make sure oils are essential oils, not simply perfumed
oil.
Bring
the water to the boil, add the soap and stir till smooth. You may need to add more water. Take
off the heat and add the other ingredients.
THIS
SHAMPOO NEEDS A VINEGAR RINSE - or your hair will be dank and dull with soap
residue.
Vinegar rinse
Mix
one cup of vinegar with twelve cups water and rinse well.
Sizzling Bath Bazookas
These fizz wonderfully
Ingredients:
1 cup tartaric acid
1 cup bicarbonate of soda
half a cup powdered starch
2 teaspoons fragrant oil
Mix
into small balls and leave to set.
Drop two or three into a hot bath.
Note: If you need more liquid, use a little avocado or
apricot kernel oil drop by drop.
Scented Rubber Duckies
These are fun – even if you're grown up; and they
smell good too
Ingredients:
2 tbsps gelatine
1 tbsp shampoo
4 tbsps boiling water
half a teaspoon lavender, rose or other essential oil
1 drop ONLY food colouring
You also need: 1 duck shaped mould (or heart shaped
etc – I use cookie cutters)
Pour
boiling water onto gelatine in a bowl. Mix well, then IMMEDIATELY add other
ingredients before it cools. Place mould on a plate; pour mixture into it.
Leave to set.
If
it doesn't come out easily run a little hot water over it CAREFULLy so the
rubber duckie doesn't wash away.
To keep: Wrap in plastic wrap till needed.
To use: Take your rubber duckie into the shower or bath
with you, and use instead of soap.
NOTE: Once you've bathed with them, rubber duckies tend to
disintegrate. They are strictly a one bath animal.
Basic Perfume
Collecting
the scents of summer has been a human passion for at least 4,000 years. At its simplest you need:
1 good slug of vodka (or a cooking oil like safflower, or
canola if you don't want to use alcohol- but if you use oil your perfume will
be oily too, so make sure it doesn't stain clothes or anything else when you
use it.)
2 cups of something scented - roses, lavender flowers,
jasmine flowers, dried lemon or orange rind (not fresh unless you have passion
for interesting fungal growths) - anything that smells strong and good (it's
said that the only smell men really find sexy scent for men is cinnamon or
mixed spice, though I suspect roast lamb has its place as well, though not in
perfume.)
Cover
the scents with the alcohol or oil in a glass jar with the lid on. (Make sure
the jar doesn't smell of Vegemite or pickles or last week's mango
chutney.) Don't be too ambitious:
Arpège wasn't built in a day. Keep the recipe simple if you're a novice.
Leave
in a warm dark place for two hours or so.
Strain, sniff.
If
the perfume isn't strong enough – and unless you have used very strongly
scented blooms like lavender or jasmine, it won't be. Add more petals or leaves to the vodka and repeat three or
even ten times till you have a truly fragrant brew.