Published since 1986
JUNE, 2020
Winter warmth and heating
www.farmernews.com.au
Water management and irrigation PAGE 11
End of financial year specials PAGE 12
PAGE 14
From little things big things grow The success story that is Peninsula Wildflower By EMMA OLIVER
SMALL ON ACREAGE BIG ON FLAVOUR NUTRIENT dense and bursting with vitality, Heirloom Naturally is a small market garden in Mansfield growing vegetables big on flavour. Using a method referred to as biologically intensive, this small acreage farm also punches well above its weight in relation to yield, with owner Simone Boyd only planting seasonal crops that flourish on her 20 acre property. Turn to page 2 for the story.
DAWN Allen is head flower forager and florist in a magical garden abundant with native Australian and South African wildflowers, the most diverse variety that the Mornington Peninsula has to offer. These gnarly native plants are decades old, a labour of love by a gentleman called Bob Zacharin who envisaged a retirement from medicine selling wildflowers from his Boneo farm gate. Of the 50 acre property Bob planted out eight acres, with a selection of suitable and rare varieties of banksias, proteas and leucadendrons. His tireless and thorough research ensured a garden where year-round there were always some varieties in bloom. “Bob absolutely loved
his garden,” Dawn said. “He planted some really unusual varieties, and also a bit of everything with most of the originals still here.” Surrounded by a cypress tree windbreak, Bob created a protected micro-climate for his garden, and quite happy with their location many of these native wildflowers have flourished way past their lifespan. It is a magical playground for a florist, spoilt by the ability to wander the garden, pick to order and create as the very nature of the flowers dictate. “Commercial flower gardens often plant, harvest and then replace every few years, with an emphasis on creating blooms that are straight and perfect for florists,” Dawn said. “But this garden is too old, it doesn’t do that. “The flowers are
unusual - they are not perfect. “But within that, they are perfectly imperfect. “They suit each purpose and bring their character to the arrangement determining the direction the bouquet goes in - wild, individual one-offs. “Here at Peninsula Wildflower our team are floral artists with the flowers leading the design and each bloom becoming the inspiration. “It is also reliant on how the flowers grow on the day, and from here we will go out and harvest the best blooms. “For brides we offer a garden pick range which is whatever is in the garden at the time. “They don’t know what flowers they are going to get, but they completely embrace this simple sustainable option. ■ Continued pages 16-17
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