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CLICK HERE to read why Tamandco Farm promotes the keeping of pure bred poultry
Vegies
Our
chooks play a significant role in our vegie garden as they provide valuable manure, till the earth and clear the site in preparation
for planting. During the growing seasons, any weeds or spent plants are simply tossed over the fence into the chook
run for them to enjoy.
The fence around the garden beds assists to keep
the animals out when it is planted, or to keep the chooks in when they are carrying out their 'chook tractor' duties.
The fence in between the chook run and the vegie garden
contains a trap door which can be either opened or closed. By utilising the chooks in this way, their manure is deposited exactly where we want it, saving us time and effort.
We don't need to cart weeds off site as they are simply tossed in for the chooks to deal with, and the tedious job of clearing
the bed prior to planting is carried out for us.
There
are 2 gardens which are spelled and top dressed with compost in between their growing seasons. Within each area, the
beds are rotated to avoid exhausting the ground and to reduce the likelyhood of pests.
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| Spring - October 2004 |
Seedlings are often popped in wherever they will fit. Usually that's where another
crop's just been harvested. We try to follow the rules of companion planting and crop rotation, however with such
a small area, this is not always possible. Regardless, we always manage to get heaps of produce, our only failures to
date being the brassicas which are continually at the mercy of the white cabbage butterfly.
In the past, we have planted the curcubits within the confines of
the garden, allowing them to grow through the chicken wire and out into the paddock. Protected from livestock by an
electric tape, they can ramble on to their merry way, however this season, we will instead be planting them out in the
actual paddock to avoid damaging the new chicken wire.
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| Summer - March 2005 |
Orchard
We have dedicated a quarter of an acre to our home orchard and have
collected a basic selection of fruit trees including citrus, stone fruit, apples, pairs, mulberries, figs and avocados.
Although we would've loved to have secured old heritage varieties, cost and availability played a big role in what we
eventually ended up with. As a result, a few of our trees were sourced as freebies from friends, some were bought as
a quick fix to replace failed attempts, and a couple of others were just things which we've always wanted to grow.
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Preserving
In the past we have been forced to give away or throw out (meaning give to the chooks) kilos
of perfectly good produce because of the overabundance supply ripening simultaneously. It has then been necessary
to purchase these same fruits and vegetables when unavailable and out of season, defeating the whole purpose of growing our
own produce. Although in the past, we have attempted to blanch and freeze as much as possible, our freezer is only capable
of accomadating so much. There had to be a better way.
When a friend announced earlier this year that she'd purchased a stack of Fowlers Vacola jars
on eBay for $15.00, it suddenly occurred that this could be the solution to our feast or famine problems. We set about
trying to obtain jars and browsed through eBay adds regularly.
We also scoured the op shops and managed to buy 10 #20s for $10 which I later found out
was too expensive! Apparently the unspoken rule of thumb is .50c each. Hmmmm..... Found another
4 in another op shop, and yes, .50c each. Great. Then we remembered a local bloke who's rather an avid collector.
Actually he's a hoarder and he's got a junkyard not far from here also in the Yarra Valley. So we arranged to pay him
a visit and ended up buying almost 100 jars for $15.00. Okay, so they needed a bit of a clean up, actually they were
rather disgusting, some complete with mummified fruit, and one box with quite an assortment of 1940's Australian coins, no
doubt in circulation as the time the jars were last used.
Next thing was to purchase a steriliser. Being new to this whole preserving business,
we had no idea what to look for so started scouring eBay for something suitable. We ended up buying a Simple Natural
Preserving Kit by Fowlers Vacola for $65.00. This was quite a bargain as they retail for just under $120.00. We
arranged pickup from Glen Waverley only to discover that another 70+ jars, and a few accessories were also included.
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| Summer - March 2005 |
Since then, we have collected over 300 jars and have
almost completed our collection of standard jar sizes. We make every attempt to to keep the jars sorted and labelled in their respective boxes so they are
easy to get to when required. We've also managed to accumulate a terrific list of authentic Fowlers Vacola items including
bottle tongs, peach pitting spoon, pear corer, bottle opener, packing stick, stainless steel thermometer, cherry pipper, plus
a full assortment of sizes 2, 3 & 4 stainless steel lids, rubber rings and clips. We now have the full set of Fowlers
Vacola accessories and currently have our sights set on purchasing with some very useful looking equipment from
Green Living Australia. There are still over 100 unwashed jars out in the garage, plus an old thermostatically controlled electric steriliser
in need of a new element. With our orchard now planted, we're confident for our first bumper crop of fruit and
our next glut of tomatoes.
Our goal is to eventually is to install
a wood stove in the garage on which to process our produce. This way, we will be spending nothing by way of electricity
usage as all of our firewood is sourced locally at no cost. We are also keen to try out our pressure cooker
to process low acid fruits and vegetables, but at this stage, still need a little more guidance in this field.
By preserving and storing our fruit and
vegetable produce, we are on our way to achieve self sufficiency, independence and a sustainable lifestyle.
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