Innermost Gardens has a workshop series coming up on Thursday evenings and a few longer ones on Sundays  at the Mt Victoria site, end of Lawsons lane.  Most of the evening workshops will finish at 8 with a cup of tea and informal chats to follow.

Workshops,  6:30-8 pm Innermost Gardens Mt Victoria

Mar 1 Gardening with a black thumb – Sarah Adams

Mar 8 Composting and Nutrient Dense food – Grant Lyon

Mar 15 Fruit trees – Tim Packer

Mar 22 Container gardening – Richard Self

Mar 29 Preserving – Sally Edgar

April 5 Seed Saving – Matt Whiting and Margaret Earle

April 12 Intro the permaculture – Sarah Adams, Tim Packer, Richard Self

Weekends:

March 4^th 2:30- 4:30 Urban foraging we will finish this with a classic Maori Boil up! -  Nga

April 1^st  10:30 – 12:30 Kid gardening 5-10 yr olds- Sarah

April 1^st 2:30- 5:30 – Coastal Forage we will finish with a boil up of some of our coastal goodies!- Nga

Cost: $10 waged, $5 unwaged

Please book your place at InnermostGardens@gmail.com

This is an event for us to reflect on the year that was, and plan what we want to do in 2012.

We will finish at 5 with a pot luck, so bring something along to share.

Innermost Gardens AGM and Vision day Agenda Feb 12^th 2012

12                     Arrivals; hello’s and garden tour, what growing in the garden?

12:30              A review of 2011, what we achieved, what worked, what needs work?

1:00                 2012, what do we want to achieve? Brain storm of ideas.

•  Feedback from Tim on Chinampa proposal for southern field.
• Feedback from Sarah on Ecological recreation centre proposal

2:00                 Creating a plan and timeline of events for 2012

2:45                 Cuppa tea                  

3:15                Resources, What is needed to achieve our 2012 goals?

4:00               AGM Chairperson report, Treasurers’ report,

• Review of our Membership and the need for a membership drive.
• General elections

4:45                Overview of the day, any last comments

5:00                Pot luck dinner

“How secure is Wellington’s Food supply?” by Laura Beck from Harvest magazine, Dec
2010, Biodynamic Farming and Gardening Association of New Zealand.
A couple of years ago Frank van Steensel, Josje Neerincx and I embarked on a scoping study into Wellington’s food security (in relationto fresh produce). What we discovered confirmed what we had been feeling the tremors of for years but it was remarkable to be able to put a figure on the detail and to confirm clearly what had been happening on
our farms. What it reflects is the hollowing out of our farming and gardening sector and a weakening of the fabric of our rural communities and connections between the urban and their rural hinterland. What this speaks to me is that the nurturing of our growers has never been more important nor more vital for building resilience into our food supply,
cultural heath and sense of place and well being. Below is a synopsis of our research.
What we found is that Wellington imports up to 81% of its fresh produce from outside the region (the Wellington region being defined as, Waikanae across to Upper Hutt and down to the Cook Strait). This change has occurred in the last 30 years, where previously most, if not all, produce was sourced regionally.

The review revealed, alarmingly though not surprisingly, that all current official data sets were based solely on economic growth figures. This lack of depth in figures and commentary means that there is no basis for understanding the socio-economic drivers responsible for this regional dependency on food and disables a sound basis for strategic intervention as there is not the requisite information. Accordingly, the results of this
study come with the caveat that they are based somewhat on anecdotal information and that extrapolations used are skills and experience based. However the value of this study is in the identification of the trends and impacts.

Here’s a quick overview of what we found. Meat makes up one of the dominant parts of consumption. As an example, New Zealanders eat 34.9kg of poultry per annum. Poultry composes 39% of all meat consumed. Poultry is one of the main choices and therefore source of meat and protein for Wellington City. The Wellington Region produces
no poultry and is therefore totally dependent on external regions for one of its main protein sources. 7% (by value) of a Wellingtonian’s diet (excluding that of the service industry) is fruit and vegetables. The region is able to provide 21% of this demand but Wellington City is dependent on imports to provide the other 79%. Similar conclusions are drawn for Beef, Sheep and Pork with the majority of supply coming from outside the region.

Although 20% of the milk for the Wellington Market is produced regionally it is processed and therefore supplied from Palmerston North and Auckland. Wellington depends on external regions to provide all milk and dairy products.
Egg production is based in the lower North Island but only 16% is consumed in the region and this only composes less than 1% (by value) of consumption.
The major factors for this change from internal to external supply is the rise in dominance of the Supermarket and export industry. There are two major Supermarket chains in the country which control up to 80% of all fresh produce supplied to the market. This effectively allows them to dictate to the market. They have a preference to work with larger
producers who can supply consistently large and continuous volume. In an industry where the profit margins are already tight it has created an environment where only the large can survive.

This has led to a significant trend in every production sector nationwide, that is, the consolidation and centralisation of specialist production into larger and fewer farms. Indeed Hort New Zealand’s advice to growers has been “Get bigger, get together or get out.” And we have seen this in action: over the last 30 years farms have become larger and fewer with less regional supply. In the early 90’s there were 172, now there are 35 in
the Wellington region.

Another significant factor was a change in transport regulations. Transport regulations prior to 1978 meant that most fruit and vegetables in NZ were produced and consumed within each region. The regulations favoured NZ Rail by prohibiting road transport of vegetables more than 50 kms. Then, there were wholesale food distributors in all regional
centres, now they exist only in Auckland, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin. Produce can now be shipped anywhere in NZ within 24 hours.
Increasing regulatory requirements, such as traceability and spray diaries, as well as fuel price increases which make local produce delivery runs uneconomic, are cited as reasons grower numbers and local sourcing have declined. Increase in land prices (and concurrent rateincreases), 4th generation family farmers choosing a different lifestyle are also contributing factors to the decline in grower numbers.

Major players in the wholesale market instituted a 15% commission for growers who supply less than $100,000 of product per annum. There is a 10% commission for those who supply over $100,000 of product per annum. This presents a barrier for smaller players to enter the market in an industry which has a tight profit margin. The increase in the import market that is supported by low tariffs and overseas farming subsidies
continues to tighten the competitiveness of the market where only the large players which have the economies of scale can compete.

One of the largest issues facing the production sector is the capital cost of expansion. With the demand to become larger and more specialised to achieve “economy of scale”, producers are investing in capital intensive expansion. This expansion demands either maintenance if not growth of production size to justify and fund the expansion, a race without an end.

This consolidation, centralisation, specialisation and growth of largescale production and supply creates a variety of impacts on Wellington City’s food security with regards to its locality and risk factors. The risk factors extend to include: peak oil; extreme weather events; climate change; and global economic instability. The current trend of production
and supply serve to exacerbate the impact of these risk factors and make
food security more vulnerable.

The reduction in grower numbers has resulted in a reduction in the range of produce planted by individual growers. While there has been a huge increase in the variety of crops grown compared to 15 years ago (e.g. cilantro, celeriac, aubergine), growers have become more specialised, planting only two to three crops each instead of the 10 to 20 lines of several decades ago. This movement to uniformity rules and high inputs are hiding the weakness of this poorly adapted system to local diversity in soils and climates. There is a focus on the supply side at the expense of the production where there is a shift from growing to the climate to growing to global demand. Consequently there has been
serious genetic degradation, where breeding, now orchestrated in the laboratory, not the land, has resulted in crops that are not suitable for regional production as they have been developed outside the region for global variety. These crops therefore require an increasing amount of agro-chemical inputs to support their maximum development as they are not developed for the region’s soil and climate.

Specialisation and genetic erosion (e.g. lack of functional diversity and therefore loss of ecosystems services) further enhances the susceptibility to pest and disease requiring again an increasing use of pesticides or other means of intervention. This increase of inputs results in greater pressure on the environment from increased fossil fuel and chemical use. In turn, regional authenticity and integrity are being ignored, creating a negative feedback loop for alienation between rural and urban, human and nature. An increasing amount of comprehensive studies are showing that this trend puts serious pressure on farm sustainability.

The increase of supermarket purchasing has added to this alienation of consumers from producers. Trust and context are no longer obvious, resulting in buyer prejudice. Food issues presented at single factor levels cannot be judged in context resulting in poor perception of quality and more often than not, food scares (e.g. campylobacter and growth
hormones) that further enhance the alienation between the two groups.Through bulk and all season supply there is less emphasis on a region’s seasonal and unique local produce. This results in a loss of food culture and identity, increasing alienation of cities from their resourceful hinterland, reducing the natural, human and social capital. But, most
importantly there is a discernible lack of value placed on the people who grow food and even on the integrity of food itself. Food is valued for its aesthetic and shelf life, not for its nutrition, vitality or its potential to voice the landscape and therefore allowing us a more intimate connection with our environment.

If the market continues uninterrupted it is likely that the large players such as Fonterra, Tegel and supermarkets will maintain their market share if not grow it. This trend, combined with the lack of regional supply and growing concerns about the impact of climate change, peak oil, natural disasters and unpredictable global markets on regional
security and consequently food security, are accumulating factors that lead to significant insecurity of food supply to the region and Wellington City.

Genuine progress in this area would require a focus on diversification at every level of the supply chain (economic, social, cultural and environmental), a connection back to the Regional production capacity (soil and climate) and the development of regionally adapted crops and animals (diversity in varieties and genetics) which is based on ecosystems diversity and integrity. It also provides a broad basis for an authentic innovative food processing industry and food culture. It integrates food security as an integral part of environmental, social and economic accounting in an integrated and holistic fashion.
We can see that consumer demand is changing the tide with the explosion of farmers markets around the country and expansion in niche food markets. Recently Pak n Save were advertising themselves as a ‘farmer’s market, just inside’, that tells me that they’re concerned enough about the advance of the farmers market that they’ve started to
green wash themselves with the label.

I know I’m preaching to the converted on these issues but I think change at the soil level is where real meaningful change happens and to enable that we need to keep active, informed and engaged. To put a voice to these issues again and again, to be prepared to charge and to pay the cost of our food so our gardeners and farmers are given a bit of grace
and space to grow what they know their land needs to support their community and their environment. (by Laura Beck 2011).

This is one of the main reasons why we find it so important to grow local food for local people. Trying to fight against the trend!

Recently, we have been made aware of the “Food Bill” that is being worked upon by parliament. We hear different things about the impact it will have on our CSA, an interesting development that will most likely increase, rather then decrease the food growing developments in the Greater Wellington region. For more information on the impact of the Food Bill see this article. http://nzfoodsecurity.org/
The government’s own commentary on the bill is here. http://www.legislation.govt.nz/bill/government/2010/0160/latest/DLM3435700.html?search=ts_bill_food+bill_resel&p=1&sr=1

There will be delicious vegetarian Chinese treats, a bbq, games, great people and hopefully sunshine and music.

Innermost recently won a ‘Dynamic Community Learning award’ through ACE Adult Community Education and there will be a small award ceremony for this there.

Come and share a delightful afternoon up in the garden at Mt Victoria from 3pm onwards.
We will provide vegetarian catering, but if you are keen for the bbq we ask that you bring something along to contribute.

We would love to see you there!

The Innermost Crew

Comfrey has a series of taproots that extend deep down into the soil comfrey is able to extract and accumulate large quantities of potassium (around 7%) and to a lesser extent phosphorous (around 1%), calcium (around 3%), magnesium and other trace elements.

The comfrey leaves act as storage bins for the cache of extracted minerals. The resulting proportions of minerals stored make for a well-balanced, readily available form of fertiliser that’s ideal for many of our most popular crops such as potatoes,onions, tomatoes and citrus fruit.

The comfrey leaves themselves have so little fiber and so much protein, resulting in a carbon to nitrogen ratio of 14:1, that they will break down rapidly when harvested.

For this reason comfrey has been referred to as `Instant Compost’

I like this term because it gets you thinking of comfrey as an instant compost source and the ways in which you can use that compost.

Comfrey leaves are commonly applied as a layer in the build process of compost piles, as an `activator’, employed to fuel the composting process.

Kay Baxter’s book, The Koanga Gardening Guide has a liquid fertiliser recipe based on comfrey. In a barrel pack it with comfrey leaves and then fill it up with water. Stir it daily and once the green leaves have disintegrated remove the fibrous stalks with a garden fork. The resulting liquid fertiliser is perfect for tomatoes and indeed many of your other gross feeders undiluted.

My own liquid fertiliser set up is fairly rudimentary but it works. I like to keep two on the go; one prepared a week before the other. This means during spring and summer I always have access to liquid fertiliser. Using Kay’s recipe I prepare mine in large plastic rubbish bins chalking the date prepared on each so I have an idea of when I can use them.

Stir it daily and after about a week you’ll notice a putrid smell coming from the liquid. This is a sign that the proteins from the comfrey leaves are beginning to break down. Continue stirring daily and after approximately 10 days, once the leaves have disintegrated, I extract my liquid fertliser from the rubbish bin with a nine-litre bucket and pour it wholesale over my garden beds. The remaining fibre, left at the bottom of the rubbish bin, is cycled through the compost heap.

Sometimes I find it just as convenient to work raw comfrey leaves in where I need it. I hand cut my comfrey with a machete and then run over the leaves with a lawn mower so I end up with an easily applied mulch amendment. If you do this be careful to cut well above the base of the leaf otherwise you may inadvertently end up transplanting sections of the crown root and you’ll end up with comfrey popping up all over the place.

Comfrey Orgins:

Common comfrey (Symphytum officinale) comes to us from the hedgerows of Europe and has a long and rich history more so as a medicinal herb than for its application in agriculture.

Perdanius Dioscorides, a Greek physician who practiced in ancient Rome during thetime of Nero, made the first documented record of a medicinal herb known as`Knitbone’ over 2000 years ago in Materia Medica, the precursor to all modern pharmacopeias, used as part of a poultice to close up wounds and as a tea in treating `bloodspitters’ and `hernias’

Over the years comfrey has been spoken of as an `old women’s remedy’ attributedwith a slew of astonishing cures of various maladies of the digestive system and in accelerating healing for wounds and broken bones, hence the name Knitbone.

I believe its healing qualities are largely attributed to a substance found in the roots and terminal buds of comfrey called Allantoin. Allantoin, first discovered in the allantois (part of a developing mammal embryo) and also excreted by maggots asthey debride wounds, is a cell proliferant.

We have comfrey planted at both gardens and use it to make liquid fertiliser using the recipe and we layer it in the compost over Summer. Its a great plant to have around, you just really do need to be sure its got a reasonable amount of space and that it can grow there for a while as it will keep coming back every if you try to dig it out.

There are 6 other journals and a whole lot of information accessible on Tim site. If you have a moment check it out: http://www.piginthemud.com/

Seedling need sunshine so grow them in a sunny spot. When you plant your seeds into seed trays it can be a good idea to put damp newspaper over the top of them until the seed sprouts. (you need to check each day as you will stunt the plant if the newspaper is still over the top when it starts growing.) The important thing is to keep your seed trays damp, a small amount of water each day is ideal.

When the seedlings are large enough to plant out 4-6 weeks later, it is a good idea to soak them for 10-20 minutes in a seaweed tea or we sometimes use biofeed compost tea, this help them to get over their ‘transplant’ shock, and gives them some extra nutrients for strong growth.

Vegetables need a minimum of 6 hours of sun and 8- 10 is ideal so chose a sunny spot to plant them.

To prepare the bed for a spring planting it’s a good idea to dig it lightly to aerate it after winter and mulch it with fresh compost. If you don’t have a compost bin at home, now is the time to start one. The compost from all your food scraps is invaluable for your vegetables once it’s been composted down. This is a great way to recycle.

When you plant your seedlings it is important to ‘firm’ them in, that means making sure the soil you place back around the stem is tightly compacted down. This help the seedling to have a better foundation and enables it to grow strong roots quickly.

As the weather is always topsy turvey at this time of year, putting the cut off tops of large juice or milk bottles over them, works like a mini glasshouse and concentrates the sun that they receive. With milk bottles you can cut the top of the handle and put a stick down through it to stop the bottle blowing away. You need to lift these when you are watering to ensure that they still get water regularly.

If you only have space for some containers the vegetables that do best in containers are: Tomatoes, eggplants, capsicums, beans, salad greens and herbs.

To grow Capsicums, eggplants, and chillis successfully in Wellington these really need to be under a cloche throughout their growing life as they need a lot of heat to grow well. If you have a small tunnel house to grow these and lots of sunshine you can get some great crops from these. We have been making tunnel houses out of bamboo and recycled plastic from the Sustainability Trust – check out our facebook page for images.

Carrots, beetroot, radishes, pumpkins, zucchinis and potatoes can be directly sown into your garden in Spring, we have had more success with this in early November when it is a bit warmer.

Happy Gardening. With a little bit of attention it is amazing how much food you can grow in just a small amount of space. Have fun and enjoy eating all your fresh veges!

The trees are part of the ‘edible park’ we are creating on the northern field. We are putting in a large open circle area with seating around it over the summer. The trees we planted yesterday arc out from this central circle. They face the north east and we have planted them to step up in height so that all the trees get sunlight. On the edge of the circle we have citrus trees: lemons, limes and mandarins, as these are smaller trees we planted them closer together, with about 2.5m spacing, behind the citrus we have apples spaced at 3m and behind that the bigger trees, plums and nashi’s spaced at 4m. It is really exciting to get some trees up on the site as these will provide plenty of fruit for the community to share in over the next few years.

We dug the holes a few weeks ago, they needed to be quite deep so we could get all the underground goodness that we could into them. In each hole we put seaweed, compost, topsoil and fertilisers. It is said that trees need 84 elements to be healthy and that seaweed can provide the bulk of these. The extra nutrients we added were agri lime for calcium, rock solid fertiliser for amongst other things for phosphate and silica, paramagnetic dust and then a plant accessible nitrogen fertiliser.

All of the nutrients we gave the plants are important. In very simple terms some of the key ones we added are:

Calcium: Its role in plants is similar to that in people, it helps them grow and promotes good structure.

Phosphate: Stimulates good root development in the plant.

Silica: Promotes strength in the leaves and stems of the plant and helps fruit to last longer off the tree

Nitrogen: Amongst other things helps plants use the carbohydrates available in the soil to gain the energy, it is important for good plant formation and functioning. Though nitrogen is often present in our soils providing it in a form that is easily useable by the plant
is important.

The compost we used was made on the site last year, it had a lot of  white mycelium growth as we put a heap of branches and wood chips in it when we made it. This is great as more fungal compost is good for planting trees in.

All of the elements and minerals we added stimulate the soil biology this will promote the growth of healthy and nutritious fruit trees.

When we planted the trees we trimmed the roots – seems to wrong to do that but it enables the tree to grow more roots and for the roots to penetrate more fully into the ground, this way the tree makes a more complete attachment to the earth, it is possible to plant a tree and have its root grow round into them selves and form a ball, this
means it will be easily pushed over. To prevent this we trimmed the roots to about 10 cm. This will help the tree roots to grow out into the soil sorrounding it. We planted each tree with its largest root to the south as when trees grow they align themselves with the magnetic field in the earth, this means that the strongest root faces south, the trees will have done this in the nursery so by doing this we were putting it in facing the same way as it grew.

On September 18th time we will be planting an understory, lots of flowers and plants to further support the growth of our trees. September 3rd we will be getting the vege garden ready for the beginning of Spring. Be great to see you there.

For further tree planting info check
out this link: http://www.koanga.org.nz/articles/how-plant-fruit-trees

The following Saturday August 27th 10-2pm we will be back in the Newtown garden.

http://www.newswire.co.nz/2011/08/urban-gardeners-get-together-to-work-together/