Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

I have just made it through my 3 month probation period as an employee at BYAP and thought you may like to know how it has been going. Ok so I dont get normal Salary Packaging like a lot of people but Faye and Joel have always said that BYAP employees get fantastic Celery Packaging and they are right. My first day ended with a bag of Soap Nuts and a dozen fresh eggs
I leave for work each day with a smile on my face and it is still there by 5pm
I am meeting such lovely enthusiastic people everyday and probably talking too much
(I havn't been told yet )
Anyway, I am still learning so much and figured I should share my excitement, .

Fresh air, plants galore,fish peacefully swimming,frogs, chooks ,bug and birdlife
How embarrasing getting paid a wage for being in this atmosphere! (Oy! that doesn't mean I no longer want to be paid )

Nat has been such a great bloke to work with also. He has been very patient with me and shown me how everything works. He has taught me lots about fish and I always get a laugh.
"Nat, what is this plant" I ask. He tells me and I ask what is it used for? His standard reply," Umm, Cooking!"
"Yer I know that much but in what dishes?". I now know to ask Faye or Joel. I can now tell the time without a watch. I know when it is 1130 cos I can smell Nats sandwiches toasting

I was given two BYAP chooks the other day ,all processed ,and I made a lovely Hainanese Chicken for dinner. (I did have to erase from my memory that I had been feeding those chooks the day before. How easy it gets when you get older )

Part of my chores is to check each growbed for bugs and any old leaves that need to be removed> I put my hand in the Entertainer system and there is a horrible prickly plant in there. I thought to myself "that was a mean trick". I asked Nat what is that plant and he said it was Japanese Coriander. So I asked Faye the other day what the story was on the plant that smelt like coriander but was nice and prickly, "the Japanese plant" I said. I took her over to it and she said it wasnt Japanese anything but Perennial Coriander. Never heard of it!!
So I made it my mission to find out what could be made from this prickly plant. I love coriander but drives me mad as it is so temperamental and bolts just if you look at it sideways . Anyway, the prickly flower can be cut off and it encourages the other leaves to grow longer. The prickly part can be used to make a nice paste to go on as marinade, spread or dip so I decided I would cull some as well as some Black Pearl chili.
I had to confess at the end of the day that I had collected some produce.So the next day, I mentioned to Faye about the prickly coriander and Joel said ,"Yer, the Japanese Coriander" She said again that it was Perennial Coriander or saw leaf coriander. So from now on I think I shall just ask Faye about the plants.(I wont let on to the fellas that I dont trust their plant knowledge )

So this is what I came up with..
Perennial Coriander,Chili,my home grown garlic, ginger and sesame oil
Blended up in to paste like substance and I added finely grated parmesan and blended pine nuts.
The smell is magnificent. I didn't end up putting chili in it as I believe most dont like the heat. I will be taking it to work for a rating. If it is a hit I will have to harvest more than I did as it didnt make a great amount.

congrats on the job , hope you're not getting paid peanuts...
thanks for the info on the coriander I never knew there was such a plant either. Does BYAP sell them?

Only when Im monkeying around
We dont sell them at BYAP but I am making it my mission to find out where to get one. It is growing fantastically in the growbed and I cant believe I have been wasting so much money on coriander when this is going all year. I love coriander and this plant is full on with fragrance and taste but you have to get past the spikes I keep opening up the fridge(to top my wine up) and I get this fantastic fragrance

we got ours from Dawsons in Forrestfield, stuck it in the ground next to the normal coriander so I remember what it is.

What's wrong with peanuts? I reckon Sue would be thrilled if we sent her home with some
Great story Sue, keep up that enthusiasm. It is nice to be thanked at the end if the day for providing a job and it always goes both ways. You and Nat are treasured assets.

Thanks for the heads up, Freebz.
Faye, Im good with the idea of being paid in peanuts. Just got to convince my bank that it is all good!!
I would love to know if there is another job out there where you can thrill the boss by turning up for work with a container full of BSFL . Just been out the back and harvested some more.

On a side note, does BYAP sell BSFL?
I dare say a few of us would use that as an excuse to come visit...

Not that I can talk, I have been using my macro lens as an excuse to come visit and still havent stopped by

You're too easy to please Seamonkey.... Seems that there's no one here at the moment who'd not happy to be here...

Except maybe me, can I go home now....

If that XXXX Gold in the first photo is part of your Celery package... I'd be going to the union!

She likes the XXXX.. Unfortunately when having a drink here at work you just have to settle for little creatures or coopers, or something along those lines.. Though at the moment we've got a keg of Heiniken in the fridge care of a supplier...... I might be sleeping in the bus that night..

We don't sell BSF larvae yet, cause we haven't been able to keep them going before Sue came along. We can only try Werdna and keep you posted.
Here is a little something that Sue whipped up this morning, they were awesome. Thankyou so much Sue, and for the impeccable timing of their preparation.

Thanks for the photo post,Faye. I only have a dumb phone so cant post on the forum when Im not at home. Glad you all enjoyed the snack with stolen BYAP products. Joel was being polite, i am sure, as he had a few biscuits but not a fan of coriander. Lucky I didnt mix the chili in aswell
Hey Werdna, not a bad idea getting into BSFL production to sell
Mr Damage, I do enjoy xxxx but as Joel said, they only get the good stuff in at work. Little Creatures, Rogers. The first few weeks at work, I was giving Matsos Beer to the slugs in the growbed. I was mortified. Business must be booming

Aint nothing wrong with a drop of Coopers PA

That does look tasty seamonkey, but i am not a huge fan of coriander either. You should have mixed the chilli in for a laugh

That sounds like an awesome job - I am so jealous!!

I'm in furniture retail. It's not a bad job, just not as good as yours