Saffron Harvest!

This year I am growing (and selling on the website!) Saffron Corms. They are beginning to flower now, so I am harvesting the stamens which are then dried and used in many exotic culinary delights.

I was so excited to notice the pretty little lilac coloured flowers yesterday, as they seemed to appear from no where. Today, there were more of them so I took my trusty tweezers outside and carefully picked the bright red stamens ready for drying. The strength of the scent from the threads is so strong for something so tiny and fragile. I am really keen to find a special recipe in which to try to do them justice!......

Aside from harvesting Saffron, we have been very busy preparing for Agfest which is next week already! Our plants are ready, signage and advertising is under control, gazebos have been ordered....bring it on!

Rhubarb is a favourite perennial plant of mine; and we have a few huge clumps in the garden which we use often for rhubarb pies, crumbles and bakes. Last week, the kids were harvesting a few stalks for a crumble dessert when they noticed a little green friend. This is, I think, a Green and Gold Frog which are endangered in Tasmania. We are so lucky to have it live in our garden, and it shows how healthy and artificial chemical free our vegie patch must be!

Preparing for Agfest!

This May we are exhibiting at Agfest; Tasmania's biggest Agricultural Show. It is huge. Over 70000 people attend over 3 days. Most tend to wear the accepted Akubras, Stockmans coats, Blundstone boots and in some cases, gumboots. I intend to wrap myself in many, many layers of clothing because typically, the weather decides to turn nasty the very week of Agfest - and I will turn a nasty shade of blue depending on the temperature and wind chill factor......



Over the past 3 months, Matthew and I have been busy propagating huge volumes of plants in the hope that we may sell out over those 3 days.....not likely, but I am forever hopeful! In any case, we have to ensure we have enough stock to supply the website sales!

Anyone interested in this event can check it out at www.agfest.com.au. It really is worth a visit as it showcases some of the brilliant producers and small business owners Tassie has available.

I have resolved to 'blog' more often. The last time I posted anything was back in January; thats no way to run a blog is it! So, here is my latest edition - our fortnightly newsletter from our website at http://www.fourseasonsherbs.com.au/.

Here tis!

April Newsletter and Product Update

Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter, we hope you are enjoying the milder conditions of Autumn as we are in Tasmania!

Autumn is a fantastic time to establish a whole range of edible plants in the garden. Hardy perennials such as Rosemary, Sage, Thyme, Chives, Sweet Marjoram, Horseradish and French Sorrel will establish healthy well developed root systems before the chill of winter sets in and provide plenty of clippings to complement those hearty winter dishes!

Garlic (organically grown and sourced from Tassie of course!) is a great winter crop for the cooler regions - plant now to enjoy your own cloves by Christmas time. See our website for further planting details.
Saffron corms are available until the end of this month, then they will be available as potted corms (plants) for the remainder of the year (until sold out). We have planted some out already, and they are beginning to send up green strappy leaves and tiny flowers are starting to emerge from which we extract the stamens, or saffron threads.

Herb Collections are a fantastic and economical way to start or extend a herb garden with a theme! Try our new Thyme Collection, or the aptly named Winter Collection. Maybe a Complete Herb Tea Collection is more your cup of tea! Or the Mediterranean Collection for those is sunny, dry places. What ever you prefer, hopefully we have it covered in the Collections!

Gourmet Vegetables are just waiting to be planted out now - these include Asparagus plants (12 months old), Artichokes, Horseradish (try grating a small piece of root, mix with cream and a teaspoon of sugar, salt to taste and use a condiment to Roast Beef - you will never go back to the shop bought stuff again!!), Warrigal Greens (New Zealand Spinach) and French Sorrel are delicious lightly stir fried and tossed with olive oil, lemon juice and black pepper. Home grown is best!!!

Edible Produce plants are available year round however quantities vary we may run out of stock occasionally. Presently we have Fig trees ready to go (Brown Turkey variety which produces two crops a year and are absolutely delicious!), Chilean Guava - covered in tiny sweet red berries, Yellow Cherry Guava and Strawberry Cherry Guava, Rhubarb (Victoria and Crimson varieties - both good in crumble!), Alpine strawberries, Elderflower and Cape Gooseberries. Why not start or extend your mini orchards to include some of these productive plants?

New Herb Seed from our own gardens! We have been busy collecting hard to find seed from our own herb plants and have extended our herb seed range accordingly. These include Evening Primrose, Feverfew 'White Pom Pom', Winter Savory, Pink Winter Savory, Red Yarrow, Catmint, Catnip, Valerian, Tansy, Herb Robert, Borage White Flowering, Roman Chamomile, Feverfew and Sweet Annie seed. These varieties can be found on our website under the Companion Plants and Seeds Category.

New products are being listed all the time on our website - it keeps it interesting! Please check back often, and drop us a line if you have any queries or requests.

Happy Gardening!

Tara Springer

www.fourseasonsherbs.com.au