January 2011

Well, we're all back into the swing of things at the co-op... Wyong has begun and Ourimbah folk are filtering back after holidays. Summer rain has finished some veggie crops early, or put a dent in the harvesting for a while, and washed away the biological controls farmers used instead of synthetic chemicals and caterpillars have been munching steadily!

This week we hope to have more of the scrumptious and nutritious local blueberries, picked the morning of the co-op, and activities coming up are the weekend Living Foods Workshop, picnic to Peacock Grove (FIG BD olive, oil and beef supplier), and later on, helping with the olive harvest there as well.

See you at the co-op (s)!

Farm Tours

An email has gone out to FIG members (contact us on fig.centralcoast@gmail.com if you did not see it or are not receiving weekly updates) advising of the upcoming Farm Tours and Picnic on Sunday 21st November.

We are very excited to be visiting both Tuckerflora Organic Farm and Beulah Organic Farm, which both supply FIG with fantastic produce throughout the year.

This activity is open to FIG members and their families, so if you are interested in coming along to visit two of our farms in the Mangrove Mountain and Somersby areas and to have a relaxing picnic in the fresh mountain air on one of the farms, please RSVP to the above email address with names, number of people attending and a contact phone number.

Updates, mid August

Just a quick update today...

Fingers crossed we'll have some paw paw and papaya on the extras table tomorrow, grown locally in a Permaculture back yard! Yum!!

Kel from Cooranbong is back with his lovely kale (as well as other produce of course, including those amazing purple radishes) so we have oodles of that tomorrow as well.

The first Aquaponics tour and talk went well and we look forward to the next one, on the 28th August. The kiwi wine is in the drums and is sitting there fermenting away for a few more weeks before being transferred to the stainless steel vat, and unfortunately the family day at the kiwi fruit vines was rained out and it seems we may not have another weekend spare to organise another date. We hope to have a picking day on a Monday and this will be announced to our members soon.

Please check out the recipe page (link in sidebar on the left) for a growing selection of recipes shared by FIG members and others. We're gathering together a recipe team who will cover recipes for both cooked and raw dishes and cooking tips for the produce you find in your FIG boxes.

That's all for today! See you at the co-op...

Co-op Events

We are very pleased to announce some events coming up in the near future for co-op members, starting with:

The first KIWI FRUIT WINE making session this Saturday, in a joint venture between FIG and the Firescreek Winery. This is the first of an ongoing process spanning at least eighteen months, so let us know if you would like to be part of the small team making occasional trips to the winery for the wine making process. RSVP a.s.a.p. to fig.centralcoast@gmail.com.

Next, a COMMUNITY HARVEST & PRUNING DAY will be held at the end of this month. Bring your families and a picnic, and enjoy a day amongst the vines at the Kiwi Fruit Farm.

When: 11am until 3pm, Saturday 31st July

Where: Ourimbah. Full details provided upon your RSVP.

What to bring: Picnic, seats or picnic rug, hats, gloves, water to drink. Whilst we will be picking the remaining fruit, the main focus will be on pruning, and a list of equipment to bring, if you have it, will be provided. Bring a bucket to take home some kiwi fruit!

RSVP: yes please! Send an email to fig.centralcoast@gmail.com.

Families who have attended this activity before have enjoyed it immensely. This will probably be our last community day at the vines this year, so please make time to come along if you're able, even for part of the day...


AQUACULTURE TOUR
2pm, Saturday 7th August
Please email your expression of interest for the tour of a local working Aquaculture system, both large and small, on the northern end of the Coast. There is a maximum limit on attendance at this event so we suggest our members respond quickly.

FARM TOUR
Details will be announced shortly for an early Spring Farm Tour for co-op members. Bring your families and a picnic lunch, meet the farmers and learn about how some of our food is grown. Enjoy a day in the fresh air up in the Mangrove Mountain region of the Central Coast...

That's all for today...