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Sixteen edible gardens at schools, bushcare sites and private homes have signed up and more may join the Illawarra Edible Garden Trail, be held from Helensburgh to Woonona in November.

“The Trail started in the Blue Mountains by Susanne Rix in 2018 and has since spread to Sydney, the Central Coast and now the Illawarra,” said program manager Anna Jane Linke, aka AJ.

“Two sponsors, Gilly’s Kitchen Garden and Treemates, jumped on board early to seed fund the project. We couldn’t have done it without their help.”

AJ issued an edible garden call-out in our June issue and said the response has been fantastic. “It’s been awesome to see and we can’t wait to expand to Wollongong in 2024 and Windang in 2025!”

Food Fairness Illawarra, part of Healthy Cities Illawarra, will be hosting the Edible Garden Trail. Look out for the logo featuring a well-known local character, the original sticky beak.

AJ said, “We know the sulphur-crested cockatoo is a sore point amongst local gardeners, so it’s a playful reminder that gardening can test our resolve in more ways than one, but in the end it’s all about sharing and ‘losing’ a little here and there to the creatures that call the escarpment home too!

“Grant, one of our amazing committee members, drew the initial design and then we had the awesome Georgia from Leeway Studios translate it into a digital print.”

Gardeners are still welcome to sign up, AJ said.

“We’re looking for all types of growing spaces to showcase, from verge gardens to balcony gardens to big backyards.”

The Flame’s cover shoot took place at Gilly’s Kitchen Garden, the property at 35 Station Road owned by Otford local Claudia Walters. Thanks to the four key team members for taking the time to tell us a bit about themselves – and how edible gardening has changed their lives.

Anna Jane Linke, 30, is a Stanwell Tops horticulturist and the Illawarra Edible Garden Trail’s program manager.

I’m passionate about all things mother nature, conserving her diversity, advocating for her protection and experiencing her beauty. My appreciation for nature and the adventures it has to offer started from a young age growing up in the Snowy Mountains with my mum. I now live in an off-grid tiny home in the bush. I like to spend my time either in the surf or meandering through the escarpment on foot or bicycle.

Who taught you to grow food?

My mum introduced me to growing herbs and berries when I was young. It wasn’t until more recently that I’ve had the chance to experiment
a lot more in more own and in others gardens.

What was the first thing you grew and ate?

I think it was an eggplant… nothing is more rewarding than cooking with the produce you’ve grown yourself!

Home-grown dishes for me are often a bit of a pot luck, because I have a little bit of this and lots of that. Usually one veggie, like Zucchinis, comes on really strong for a couple weeks and I’m making every Zucchini recipe I can get my hands on! A particular favourite was a Zucchini soup I was making by grilling it and then blending it up with herbs and parmesan.

Please tell us about your own veggie garden.

I started with one veggie bed back in 2021, surrounded with a fence that did not hold up to the deer, sheep nor horses that I share the property with. It took a few demoralising crop losses to get serious. I did a flower farming course, which taught me lots about soil, climate, succession and companion planting, whilst I was trialling growing all varieties of edible things.

Now I have some proper fences surrounding three veggie and flower beds that provide a lot of leafy greens, beans, beautiful blossoms, garlic... it depends on the season, of course! I do have a heavy clay soil, that is on the acidic side, so despite my best efforts to continually amend the soil I am somewhat limited to what I can grow.

How has growing food changed your life?

In so many ways! I’m more connected with the seasons and observant of the weather. I find myself surrounded by passionate and knowledgeable people who care about soil, bugs, water, plants, which feels very aligned with my values to care for nature. Growing food has not only made me healthier and stronger, it gives my mind moments of much-needed downtime and mindfulness.

Edible Garden Trail committee member Claudia Walters, 60, is an Otford resident and the director Gilly’s Kitchen Garden.

Growing my own food has given me a second family of beautiful people who care deeply about our community and our planet. Mum and dad used to spend weekends out in the veggie patch while my brother and I sat glued to the TV as kids. Now it’s my turn. Having started growing late in life, I’m busting to share this new-found joy.

That’s why I started the gardening and cooking school at Gilly’s Kitchen Garden. It’s early days yet, but I’ve found my tribe, and, having worked in community my whole life, the Illawarra Edible Garden Trail feels like a natural next step.

Having chooks is my favourite part of the garden. I love the way the girls follow me around, clucking and scratching, finding bugs or dust bathing. Plus I love the look on kids’ faces when they open up the nest box and find some eggs!

My favourite dish is my Nonna’s tortilla. It’s a really simple recipe with sliced potato and finely chopped garlic (heaps of it). Shallow fry the lot in a pan with some olive oil and then add the mixture to fresh, whisked and well-seasoned, home-grown eggs. Back in the fry pan till a delicious golden brown on one side, flip the tortilla (a tad tricky but part of the fun) and it’s done. Wonderful memories of hovering in the kitchen while she made it and sitting around the dinner table waiting for my slice!

Otford local Grant Lubyckij, 31, is a productive garden tutor, Edible Garden Trail team member & creative consultant

Growing our own food makes us so joyful! Every time we have the opportunity to put something home-grown on the table we just feel so chuffed, it really is the best feeling.

It means we are connected to the place we live, the seasons and cycles of the natural world are observed so much more intimately. It makes us grateful for the rain, instead of complaining about the weather. Growing our own food is humbling and, from what we’ve found, meets a primal desire to know where your food comes from. It has enabled us to meet people in our community through local crop swaps, gardening programs and workshops and really brings a sense of connection socially that would be very much missed if we weren’t digging around in the soil together.

We live in a shady place under the rainforest canopy, so growing food is hard, but we have a beautiful flock of 18 chooks and five ducks who keep our kitchen full of farm fresh eggs every day!

What is your favourite home-grown dish?

Homemade pasta! We get out our pasta machine, roll and knead our dough made from flour, salt and our lovely ladies’ fresh eggs. Then pass it through the machine to create long flat sheets, which are versatile and can be used for lasagne, ravioli or passed through the machine again with the fettuccine or spaghetti attachment to make homemade noodles! It tastes so fresh and the texture is so delicate and soft… all it needs is salt and pepper, a drizzle of olive oil, fresh herbs, voila!

Zan Schmidt, 33, is an Otford ecologist and part of the Illawarra Edible Garden Trail team

The first time I had a decent productive veggie garden was during Covid and it was a real godsend for my mental health. It is always amazing to be so hands-on and tactile in the garden, and there is so much learning at every stage. From the weird and wonderful shapes of different seeds, to how the same plant grows differently at opposite corners of the garden bed. And then watching the plants grow and eating what you’ve grown is the best!

Having our own garden gives us access to super-fresh food – especially greens and herbs which wilt easily – and allows us to discover and eat new things… like yacon, gifted to us by a gardener we met in Milton. It has also led to amazing community, new friends, and cool events like the garden trail!

I have lived in numerous Illawarra neighbourhoods and found that my current home in Otford presents the most learning opportunities (read challenges) for growing – with an abundance of wildlife and largely shady growing space. So far greens like lettuce, mizuna and mustard greens grow best, and surprisingly celery.

Favourite home-grown dish?

My go-to recipes are pickles (you can seriously pickle anything) or pesto. Pesto is great for greens and herbs, and again can be made with almost any greens – from kale to radish tops. For pesto, use a food processor and add your greens, fresh garlic, lemon, salt, pepper, olive oil, any nuts you like (I like walnuts) and parmesan cheese (optional). I don’t follow a strict recipe, but adjust according to taste.

The Illawarra Edible Garden Trail will be on 11 and 12 November, 10am-3pm, at gardens from Helensburgh to Woonona. Tickets via Eventbrite, $5 to $25. More info: gardentrail@foodfairnessillawarra.org.au