Photo Courtesy of John Eaton.
Photo Courtesy of John Eaton.
Photo Courtesy of John Eaton.
Kadjina Fruit & Vegetable Garden...
as experienced by John Eaton, ICV Volunteer
The Kadjina community requested a volunteer to transfer skills required to set up a Fruit and Vegetable Garden.
The garden was being established to provide fresh produce for this small and remote community, 2.5 hours south of the Fitzroy Crossing.
Volunteer John Eaton was chosen for the project, and his experience is an inspiration to other volunteers.
The Beginning
The community noted my interest in sustainable permaculture gardening methods and a few weeks later I was on my way to my first ICV project…on a plane to Broome.
The trip
Once in Broome, we drove well into the night…we turned onto a dirt road, crossed the Fitzroy River and travelled beside the St George Ranges until we reached the community of Kadjina.
“What I awoke to the next day was some of the most stunning scenery imaginable”.
The project
The project began by assembling the mulcher and establishing vegetable seed raising. There was some experimentation with the local soil and manure before the right mix was found.
The community had already established a fenced area for the garden including shade house, water supply etc, so the next steps were the garden design and layout, composting and mulching, water reticulation, and tree planting.
Having planted the vegetable seeds in the first few days of the project, by the end of my two week initial visit, we had seedlings emerging—tomatoes, lettuce, capsicum, radish, chilli etc. We also had a good patch of corn established. Finally we added fruit trees—Lemon, Orange, Mandarin, Mango, Fig, Avocado etc.
The Community
“One of the most gratifying aspects of the project was the ‘whole of community’ interest”.
Firstly, late on day two one of the families on their ‘sunset walk’ with the kids and dogs, dropped by to see how we were progressing. The following day the primary school kids arrived with their teacher to donate paper and cardboard material to supply mulch for the garden.
Later in the week the small band of High School students and their teacher made the garden part of their studies of measurement and planning.
On my follow-up trip this interest was extended with the older kids volunteering for ‘hands on’ involvement in the establishment and maintenance of the garden.
This same group of kids built a ‘chook dome’ for the next phase of the project—introducing chickens to the garden to reduce pests, provide fertiliser, and of course for eggs.
While the achievement of the basic outcomes of the project was gratifying, the personal rewards were many.
Apart from just experiencing this beautiful and unique part of Australia, it was a privilege to work with the community from the young kids to the elders who were welcoming, and willing to share some of their stories with me and include me in their activities.
“I trust I transferred some skills to the community, they certainly transferred an unforgettable experience to me”.
My thanks to ICV for this opportunity and to all the Kadjina community and school staff.
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