Soaring High

My memoirs now complete, I am working on the new rainbow.

Coastal limestone presents a problem

I haven’t yet been able to grow a decent root vegetable in my garden. I thought it was coastal limestone but I wonder if it is a mixture. I have tried a raised bin with potting mix but even here the ‘bugs’ eat them as they strike the surface. I’ve now managed to eradicate these, (they’re very fond of beer). I can’t say my garden has been a failure. It seems that the coastal limestone will grow scores of passion fruit. I put it down to this seeing no other reason. When I thought the vine must be exhausted I found another dozen, enough for all my friends as well.

This is not the limit to my blessings. A native tree from Queensland, the Macadamia, has also flourished with enough of the pendant nuts to satisfy the black cockies as well. It is now 5 meters and still growing in a small garden and this attracts the birds. It is the favourite nesting place for my favourite Willie Wagtail. I hear his call coming from there as soon as I come out onto the patio. Their friendliness to humans is a bonus when you do not feel in a position to keep a pet.

I gave up on the citrus trees. My orange died but the grapefruit hung on. No fruit! Stuart and I were discussing the possibility of taking it

out and planting something else but decided to leave it a year. When weeding underneath the following year, I felt something bong my head. Looking up, I discovered clusters of grapefruit and many flowers. We cannot eat them but our friends and family love them – and they keep coming! It seems the soil is very selective. We are having passion fruit every day for months now from a small plant I had also given up.