If there is one regret we have about living in Melbourne and not on the Tamar, it is ready access to just-picked, home-grown fruit and vegetables. While we have a good herb selection, our garden in Melbourne isn’t big enough for fruit and vegies and I am not sure we would be good at vegetable growing anyway.
Ever since I remember, my father had an extraordinary vegetable garden. Some of the vegetables he grew were ‘unheard of’ in those days and it would be years before they gained popularity in Australia. He also grew berries of various varieties but in the early days he didn’t grow his own fruit trees. In 1966, in moving to Windermere where Olive’s Cottage is today, he had more land. His garden grew to the size of a mini market garden and he also planted a small orchard. More on George’s garden later.
Some of his grandchildren caught the bug and now have extensive fruit and vegetable gardens of their own. One of my nephews, Todd, sent through some photos a few days ago of what he had picked from his garden that day: greengages (the most delicious plum of all), apricots, tomatoes, blueberries almost as big as cherry tomatoes, green beans, basil, eggplant and the odd chilli.
And he also included a photo of some new arrivals – some baby chicks. He breeds his own chooks both for eggs and for eating. When eaten, his chooks taste like, well, chicken!
