Volume 15/5 June 2015 ugcnews@gmail.com

The first day of winter saw the temperature plummet following on from the last day of Autumn where it was sunny and a

warm 25C – funny how it seemed Mother Nature had just turned the thermostat down on 1st June. Good weather

though for the winter vege that need a little chill that I am sure many of us have planted in our veggie patches.

Buck’s Farm in Chillingham was the setting for the May General Meeting and those present were treated to a most

interesting and informative presentation by Gerard (Buck) Buchanan who shared with us his hints and tips on leading a

long and healthy life using a variety of fruits and assorted plants he cultivates on his amazing property. Buck is a mine of

information and kept us enthralled with his stories and all had the opportunity to touch and taste some of the unique

bush foods and products he produces and sells at his shop. There was something for everyone it seemed and I was

particularly envious of the seedless fingerlimes only he grows on his property.

The Plot pic for this month is of one of the many Buddha’s Hand trees he has growing – and who knew you could grate

this amazing fruit over your salads to add extra zing, or break off a few ‘fingers’ and brew them up for a refreshing tea?

There must be something in the soil as he grows the biggest Buddha’s hands I have ever seen!

The June Food Group was hosted by Dave Perez, the Heads Greens Keeper at Cabarita Beach Sports Club and he

amazed us all with his innovative use of food scraps and recycling every day materials to create such fertile soil and

great chemical free greens. The positively astounding growth and health of the 3 year old citrus patch near the entrance

to the Club has us all amazed – just goes to show what you can do with what would normally go to waste.

This month’s bouquet goes to our newest committee member Bonnie Buzolic. Bonnie has made this month’s newsletter

possible (and giving Pam a well-deserved break whilst she and Keith enjoy a little time up North) and is also acting

Treasurer supporting Tony who is off at the end of this month for an operation that may see him out of action for some

time. Thanks Bonnie for being such a great all-rounder and for stepping into 2 such important roles – we all really

appreciate it!

mailto:UGCnews@gmail.com

Tropical Fruit World is the venue for our next General meeting on Saturday 27th June– see details further on in the

newsletter – please note the 1pm start time. And Club stalwart Barbara Waters will host the July Food Group meeting

on Tuesday 14th July in her lovely home in Murwillumbah.

I’m off to check on the veggie patch and give it some dynamic lifter to see it thru the next month.

Keep enjoying the beautiful weather.

Fran O’Hara

We scored a lovely afternoon out at Buck’s farm, which I for one knew nothing about. What a huge gem was lurking in

“them thar hills” and what a rough diamond and entertaining character Buck was, here seen showing off his enormous

(that’s a small one by his standards!) Buddha’s hands. He claims he has grown some that are bigger than a tomato

box…

We assembled in this rustic barn near the road side of

his property, which stretches for about 124 hectares up

the hill; Buck claims ridges are optimal sites for many

of his prolific fruiting trees. The shed is equipped with

tables, chairs, and power points and surrounded by

incredibly healthy looking and unusual (to me anyway)

fruit trees. OK, not the pawpaw tree you see

here…Before we arrived, Buck had set up an

impressive display of many of his fruits and the

products that he gets local manufacturers, often at a

cottage industry level and “local” meaning pretty close

(including Gold Coast) to make for him. Buck has built

up his business to the extent that he supplies many top

gourmet restaurants Australia-wide (even as far away

as WA) and regularly has eager chefs visiting his farm

to check out what’s available.

The secrets of his success include the fact that he has

always aimed to grow more tasty fruit than anyone else in Australia, is prepared to experiment for years to get it right, “is

not afraid” to work long hours, grows plants “where they want to be” (which he finds out be experimenting) and is

innovative and bursting with enthusiasm. His property is certified chemical free by AACCP but not organic because he

does use round-up, having found alternatives for weed control too costly. He uses no fertilizers on 90% of his plants but

does spray on trace elements for specific problems, believing that supplying them via the leaves is the most effective

approach. He sprays trace elements and neem for pest control early morning or late afternoon/evening, preferably the

latter for neem (which he grows himself of course) because “that’s when the pests come out”.

His favourite product is turmeric, which he munches on raw every day for general health and swears by it, having only

been inside a hospital once in many years and claiming to never get coughs and colds. However he did make himself

sick once – nose blocked difficulty breathing, head “like a drum” and now restricts himself more or less to the

recommended amount of quarter to half a teaspoon daily. He supplies this in capsules (which also contain black pepper,

to optimise its beneficial effects) for palatability but continues to eat it raw and straight out of the ground himself. It’s

good for muscular aches

and pains, arthritis,

swollen legs and blood

flow.

Other crops include a

variety of citrus, notably a

variety of native finger lime

he has bred up which are

lime green inside with

hardly any seeds, heaps

of flesh and super tasty.

They are apparently

loaded with vitamin C and

anti-oxidants. He also

grows cumquats. Lemon

aspen (a native), Meyer

lemons, Fino lemons and Kaffir limes (for both fruit and leaves). Products made from them include hair care products,

face washes and creams. An interesting citrus that I’d never heard of was a Japanese plant called yuzu. It is believed to

be a hybrid of sour mandarin and Ichang papeda (courtesy google). The oil in its skin is calming and relaxing and can

be put in the bath or used as a body spray.

He grows his mangos on dry, hard ridges, having discovered that provided he plants them well apart and cuts out their

middles to maximize the sun they get, they fruit abundantly every year for about two months and have great flavor. He

commented that mangos in gullies look healthier than his but have inferior fruit and fruit less often and less prolifically.

Other plants that do well on ridges where they get early morning and plenty of sun include avocados, finger limes,

cumquats and bananas.

All in all, Buck gave us an entertaining, informative talk; after which, unsurprisingly, many of us hurried down to this

shop to purchase some of his wonderful products.

Swap table Items on the swap table included red dragon

fruit, tomato seedlings that were claimed to

yield big cherry tomatoes (?!), various

bromeliads, green pawpaws, kale, black bean

seedlings, native violets, climbing foxglove

seedlings, chrysanthemums, chilli peppers,

cymbidium orchid bulbs, Vietnamese mint and

rosella jam. As usual, an awesome variety with

something for everybody. We were again

reminded to make a gold coin donation if we had not contributed to the swap table.

Q and A Q: What is this plant and is it a weed? A: Ageratum, and yes, get rid of it, it’s a weed here. Q: A bottle brush is blocking my view. Could I get away with giving it a crown lift? A: Probably not, get rid of it, they grow quickly so are easily replaced. Q: Has anyone got tree fern seedlings? A: I may have missed it but I don’t think anyone did. Q: When should I cut back my raspberries? A: Nellmary has never cut hers back and they continue to fruit. It was commented that they need frost to fruit. Q: How can I control my over-exuberant ginger, which is spreading prolifically? A: No-one seemed to have a good solution to this one. Q: Can I safely dig up/cut back day lilies now? A: Yes, they’re tough as. Fertilize any time. Q: Where can I get grevilleas as tube stock? A: Kingscliff Rainforest Nursery (in Cudgen). Trish Reynolds

After 28 years and more than 20,000 successful garden openings, raising more than $6m for charities and local causes,

Open Garden Australia is closing. As promised, Open Gardens Australia have put together a kit to help Garden Clubs,

Community and Charity Groups continue to hold successful events or garden openings. The kit is available at

http://www.opengarden.org.au/news-kit.html.

Following on from last month’s discussion on WD40, Dot advocates the use of `Start Ya Bastard’... While WD40 does have an amazing range of uses, I was suggesting it more for a specific use – that of evicting firmly attached ticks. I spent 13 years at Tyalgum doing bush regen work, much of it trying to find ways to prevent an almost daily encounter with the wee beasties. There was everything from a homeopathic remedy to make me less attractive, to tying a `scarf’ of kerosene impregnated material around my neck, as well as the obvious insect repellent. At the same time, I covered every part of me possible with clothing, even to wearing an old pair of pantyhose over my head! Constantly going through the process of extracting them was an extra, almost daily chore I could have well done without. The `magic’ ingredient of `Start Ya Bastard’ & the reason it’s so effective on ticks is ETHER. Ether is an anaesthetic. Therefore they’re instantly knocked out (one would hope permanently)! Other remedies that make them let go, apparently gives them time to inject more of their itch inducing poison before

lessening their hold. For those who wish to support home-grown goods, `Start Ya Bastard’ is an Aussie product (as is RP7) while WD40 is not. And of course `Start Ya Bastard’ does help start sluggish implements as well. Dot Francis

http://www.opengarden.org.au/news-kit.html

It was a small group of us who gathered at Cabarita Sports Club for Dave Perez’ talk, but those of us who went were fascinated by what he had to say. Dave is the club’s greenkeeper and when the club was threatened with closure due to financial plight, he took up the challenge and reversed the club’s fortunes. How? He decided to create a chemical-free, totally sustainable environment and six year’s down the track his hard work is paying off in spades, not only with the club, but with the wider community as a whole. Dave’s principles include: Recycling absolutely everything on site. Working with each sector of the club he gathers waste from the kitchen (egg shells and onion skins are separated out for him); waste paper from the office, coffee grounds from the barista and rainwater from the roofs. This is all mixed with the grass clippings and prunings from the club’s gardens and bowling greens. Utilising the bokashi system. Find out more about this from the internet or watch this space for news of Dave’s workshops starting in September through his company Soil Rescue. Everything is composted, which is done in several different ways. Worm farms play an important role in providing leachate for use on the gardens; general compost is made in large wire bins; and finally a refined compost using earthworms as the diggers is built up at the end stage. Four tons of compost is produced annually. Dave believes firmly in weed teas and has an area set aside for growing nettles, yarrow and African marigold. He prefers to chop the weeds off at the base and leave the roots in the ground to stabilise the soil and add nutrients as they break down. The clippings contain essential minerals and so all go into the weed tea. Dave’s compost bins are filled with alternate layers of green material (i.e. fresh material) and brown (i.e. that which was once living but is now dead. He says that if a compost heap smells there is something wrong. Usually it’s a matter of adding more carboniferous material like shredded paper, but a handful of lime is also good. It’s important to keep the bins off the ground to aid drainage. Dave is gradually replacing the ornamental plants around the club with endemic species. He has a three-year old citrus orchard which looks like it’s been there for years, and one section of the car park is shaded with bushtucker species, which a path of midyim berries alongside which bowlers can pick on their way to the greens. In another section a variety of coffee which grows well on the coast will provide visitors with a chance to sample the unique Caba cappucino in due course. In amongst all these are companion plants such as comfrey, nasturtium and chillies, all of which are made into teas. Chilli tea is used as a pesticide. It’s best to apply pesticide on a day that is still and dry. Good soil management is key to minimising or eliminating pests and

diseases e.g. a wet soil encourages fungus while a dry sandy soil is the ideal environment for bacteria. Dave operates using the moon calendar as this offers the best programme for his work schedule. He also includes some elements of biodynamics. The end result of all this labour (provided by Dave, his assistant Tony and an apprentice) is an exceptional example of a fully sustainable commercial system on a grand scale. Not only does this save money, but it also ensures trouble free-bowling greens to the standard that professional players expect. The gardens surrounding the club are lush and lovely, and the environment is healthy and productive. When the club was approached to sponsor the local dune care team,

instead of donating money Dave suggested that they establish a propagating shed on the property so they no longer have to spend money on plants. That’s a plan that is worth so much more than money. Dave cheerfully told me he could talk for hours about his pet topic but time limited us to only the bare facts. Hopefully we will have an opportunity to attend (or perhaps even host) one of his workshops in the latter part of the year.

The rest of the meeting was fairly brief as we were all gagging for a cuppa. Everyone’s gardens seemed to be growing well, and those of us who were lamenting the amount of weeds in them have now done a 360° turnaround and will treasure them in future for their mineral and tea-brewing potential thanks to Dave’s advice. Specifically:

Sue and Hartmut had attended a meeting of the Mt Tambourine Sustainable Gardens Society Inc and heard guest speaker Phil Ryan talk about his organic methods.

Sue Yarrow has two bathtubs of water chestnuts ready to harvest. Martin is about to harvest his ginger. Fran asked whether one can freeze passionfruit whole. Answer: yes, and lemons too.

Julia Hancock

Annual membership fees are due by 1 July 2015. UGC members will continue to get

the many benefits of membership at great value. Fees remain $20 for those receiving an

emailed newsletter and $25 for those receiving a mailed copy.

As promised, a simplified Renewing Member Form has been prepared. It gives members the option of just ticking (√) a

box if there has been no change to contact details.

Don’t forget, if you want your name on the annual contact list circulated to members, tick (√) the ‘yes’ box in Section 6 -

Agreement to Share Contact Details. No tick or a tick in the “no” box will mean your name is not included on the list.

A copy of the form is attached to the newsletter.

Jenny Kidd - Vice President & Membership Secretary

AGM The new Committee will be voted in at the July AGM so if you are interested in

becoming a committee member please get your nomination form in by 10 July

2015. At the end of the newsletter you will find a nomination form for the 2015/16

Committee as well as a piece on roles and responsibilities of each of the positions..

July Food Group The next food group meeting will be held on Tuesday 14 July at 9.30am at the

home of Barb Waters, 7/1 Samuel Court, Murwillumbah. Bring something for the

swap table, goodies for morning tea, chair and mug.

June General Meeting – Tropical Fruit World (NB: 1pm start time) Names and numbers needed by Friday June 19th please – last chance to put your name down to come along.

Our General Meeting on Saturday 27th June is being hosted by Tropical Fruit World and we need to get an idea of names and

numbers for payment purposes.

Normal entrance fee is $45 per person ($35 concession) and we are getting a great

discounted rate of $14 per person on the day. This fee includes the 1.20pm Fruit Show

and Tasting as well as the 2pm Plantation Safari where we will tour the plantation by

tractor train through the orchards where more than 500 varieties of tropical and exotic

fruits are grown.

The Club will subsidise entry for Club members by paying half the fee so you only have to

pay $7. Visitors, friends, family members, kids are all welcome to come however will be subject to the full $14 fee (children under 4

are free). All money will be payable either before or on the day.

We will need final numbers by Friday June 19th so if you haven’t put your name down on the list and wish to come along please let

Fran O’Hara know via email to franohara590@gmail.com or give her a call on 02 6677 6266 to let her know names and number of

people attending.

Our regular meeting and afternoon tea will be held after the Plantation Safari on the lush grounds near the fruit market so bring all

the usual things like chairs, hats, cups and afternoon tea to share.

Don’t forget to bring along a few dollars as they have a great shop and also sell plants to add to your collection.

Please note the start time of this meeting is 1pm sharp and the park closes at 4pm..

August Bus Trip We have arranged a day long bus trip for our club outing on Saturday 29th August.

We will leave Murwillumbah at 8.30am for Mullumbimby Community Garden where we will have morning tea and be shown around

the garden. At about 11.30 we will go to a local park on the Brunswick River and have a picnic lunch. At approx. 12.30 we will

travel to Crystal Gardens about 30 minutes south of Mullumbimby and wander around the gardens there for several hours (Stupa,

mandala, lovely gardens and pools, café and crystal and book shop). At 3 to 3.30 we will depart back to Murwillumbah arriving 4.30

to 5 pm.

The cost of this trip including morning tea and entry fees and bus will be $25 for members and $36 for non-members, based on 30

people.

What you will need to bring: Walking shoes Hat Picnic lunch Money for coffee or tea (or crystals and books) at Crystal Castle if you want. Please note that we are

not permitted to take food and drink into Crystal Castle.

Money for raffles. Over the next few meetings you will be asked to indicate interest in joining this trip. We will need to receive final numbers and

payment a few weeks before the trip date, so early to mid-August. Mic Julien

Twin Towns and District Garden club Inc 2015 Annual Flower and Garden Expo Will be held on Saturday 12 September at Tweed Heads Civic Centre, 8.30am-2.30pm, entry $3. There is a wonderful display,

stalls, workshops, plant sales and a raffle.

Global Care ConXions Food Market This service exists to provide quality parcels at affordable prices. Wholesale stock is also available. Open Fridays 1-3pm, 19 Prince

Street, Murwillumbah, www.conxionschurch@inc.org.au

These recipes have been tried and tested at recent meetings.

Enjoy!

Jill Schiller’s Spinach, olive, roast capsicum and feta muffins Ingredients

1 cup SR flour 75 gm finally shredded spinach

1/8 cup plain flour 1 egg

1/2 tsp smoked paprika 3/4 cup mixed natural yoghurt and milk - about half / half.

black pepper 50 gm roast capsicum or sun dried tomatoes

fresh oregano or thyme 50 gm chopped black olives

50gm butter melted 75 gm chopped feta

Method

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Spray muffin tin with oil and dust with flour.

Sift the flours and paprika into a bowl and season with pepper. Add herds.

Beat together the butter, spinach, egg and yoghurt/milk mix. Add to the flour.

Stir through the capsicum, olives and feta. spoon mixture into the muffin tray.

Bake for 20-25 mins, until brown and risen. Loose with knife.

Leave in the tin for 5 mins before removing and eating.

http://www.conxionschurch@inc.org.au/

Jenny Kidd’s Pecan and Sour Cream Coffee Cake Ingredients

Streusel Cake

½ cup packed brown sugar 2 cup plain flour

¼ cup plain flour 1 Tbsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp salt

3 Tbsp butter,melted ½ tsp baking soda

¾ cup chopped pecans ¼ tsp ground allspice

½ cup butter, melted

1 ¼ cup sugar

1 ½ cup sour cream

2 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

Method

Preheat the oven to 175OC.

To make streusel

Mix brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon and stir in the melted butter until evenly combined. Stir in the pecans and set aside

To make cake

Sift flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda and allspice together.

In a separate bowl, whisk the melted butter, sugar, sour cream, eggs and vanilla. Stir this mixture into the flour mixture

until evenly blended.

Spread half of the batter into a greased cake pan. Sprinkle over half of the streusel mix. Top with remaining batter, then

remaining streusel.

Bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until a tester inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. Cool in the pan before

slicing. It is simple to make, great with tea or coffee and keeps for up to 3 days at room temperature when well wrapped

Beans in their many forms are such an everyday part of our diet that they can often be taken for granted. Although the term is

generally applied to either the unripe varieties with edible soft pods or the dried seeds themselves, the family they belong to

includes plants such as peas and chickpeas, lentils, lupins and soy.

For much of its history, Europe had access to only a single species of what we would class as a bean today, the broad or fava

bean. Gathered wild in the foothills of the Himalayas and Afghanistan in prehistory, they were little larger than a fingernail but in

time became a part of the diet of many cultures. Broad beans have been found entombed with pharaohs and their high protein

content and ability to fix nitrogen in the soil ensured they became an important crop to early civilizations.

Cultivated fields of beans were observed by Columbus in the Bahamas with the discovery of the New World, and it was noted that

many species had been domesticated by the indigenous peoples of both continents for Millennia.

I have been growing one of these species for the past few years here in Tyalgum, and it is

strangely known as the Madagascar bean despite its Mesoamerican origins. It is, in fact, a

tropical lima bean and unlike the annual types of legume we are more familiar with, this

variety lives for years and develops a substantial woody trunk. It does require some type of

support for the first couple of seasons until established but effectively grows on a trellis or

even a single wire strand. The most robust specimen I have seen is currently colonizing a

barbed wire fence, fortunately with no cattle in the adjoining property. One of my self-seeded

beans has become an interesting ground cover and the lime green leaves a useful weed

suppressant. The beans themselves are quite beautiful with swirls of maroon over a creamy

white background and are a pleasure to harvest, the pods being easily shelled to reveal the

smooth, cool, glossy seeds. They can be put aside to dry for winter soups or casseroles, and

they are also tasty fresh, served cold after being cooked as a side dish with a little salad

dressing added. Tolerant of heavy or damp soils, they thrive in our local climate and there are

several packets available in the seed box this season.

Philip Wilson.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed to this newsletter. Please remember the deadline for contributions: the Friday following the Food Group meeting

Thanks to Kym Marston, proprietor of Print Spot, for our printing.

Uki Garden Club Committee

Duties and Responsibilities of Committee Positions

President

Provides leadership and inspiration and maintains a good working relationship with the Committee and all club members. Needs good communication and interpersonal skills. Has responsibility for agendas and convening meetings including General monthly meetings and Committee meetings. Organises cards for members as required (eg thank you, sympathy and get well). Has ownership of Drop Box account including arranging access for new Committee members and removing access for members no longer on Committee. Also has responsibility for ensuring supplies in tea and coffee box are maintained, topped up and clean.

Vice President

To assist and work closely with President and Committee and stand in for President when required. Maintains the Club ‘Useful Box’ and ensures all material contained within the box is up to date and in good supply.

Vice President also acts as the Membership Secretary and is responsible for receiving membership applications, the preparation of Welcome packs and name badges and maintaining the membership records. The Membership Secretary is responsible for emailing details of new members to the Newsletter Editor as well as any changes required in order to keep the Club email list current. The Membership Secretary assists in the distribution of newsletters to members via post. Membership Secretary will also act as the UGC’s Good Will Officer.

Secretary

Requires good organisational skills, ensuring the Club meets record keeping obligations in terms of minutes of General and Committee meetings. Organises annual meeting calendar for both General and Food Group meetings including guest speakers. Responsible for taking accurate minutes of General and Committee meetings and for distributing minutes to the Committee. Should have good letter writing skills as they are responsible for the Club’s correspondence. Responsible for clearing the Club PO Box. Also responsible for maintaining the Club’s records and correspondence in/out folder.

Treasurer

Must have good knowledge of book keeping including GST obligations and maintaining records electronically. Is responsible for the prompt receipting and banking of monies received and payment of Club accounts. Ensures accurate books are maintained and reconciled. Is responsible for preparation and presentation of monthly financial reports and of the annual report, including submission of accounts to the Office of Fair Trading.

Committee members

The Club also has 4 non-office bearer positions on Committee. These positions exist to give a broader opinion base representing the general membership and to assist in the running of the group. Specific tasks for committee members include:

Meet and greet of members at meetings

Circulation of raffle prize tickets at meetings and purchase of additional ticket books when required

Organises raffle prizes for each meeting

Taking of General Meeting notes for inclusion in the Club newsletter

Within the non-office bearer positions are the positions of Club Librarian and Newsletter Editor.

Uki Garden Club

Executive Committee

Nomination Form 2015/6

Any financial member may nominate one or more persons for any position on the committee or nominate themselves.

The nominee must also be a financial member of the club.

All nominations must be received by the Secretary by 10 July 2015 via:

Handing to a current committee member; or

Scanned, signed copy emailed to ugcnews@gmail.com or;

By post to:

Secretary Uki Garden Club PO Box 580 Murwillumbah NSW 2484

Position Nominee Nominee’s Signature of acceptance and confirmation of current financial membership.

President

Vice President

Treasurer

Secretary

Ordinary Member

Ordinary Member

Ordinary Member

I am a financial member of the Uki Garden Club and nominate the above person/s for the executive committee for 2015/6

Name of Proposer …………………….…..Signature of Proposer ………………...........…Date …./.…./….

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