One Couple Tells How A Bit Of Hard Work Turned Ordinary Soil Into A Productive Fruit And Vegetable Garden
![The Fertile Acre](https://magarticles.magzter.com/articles/8091/353083/5d1f3e91165ed/The-Fertile-Acre.jpg)
In the township of Lethbridge, northwest of Geelong on the Midland Highway, is Bert and Sue Moritz’ fi veacre property, of which a full acre is given over to vegetables. Sue, a retired nurse, and Bert, a former primary school teacher, were both born in Rotterdam in the Netherlands but have spent most of their lives in this area of Victoria.
Bert hails from rural Lara, east of Lethbridge, and got interested in gardening when he was “knee-high to a grasshopper”. A family friend had a mini-market and used to discard carrots that were too long or skinny. “Why don’t you replant them?” Bert asked. Too many of them, was the reply. Besides, they didn’t sell.
So Bert collected the rejected carrots, planted them in his own yard and they fl ourished. “That was 60 years ago,” he smiles. “Now they sell thin carrots.” He went on to work at Lara Plant Farm before becoming a teacher.
Sue grew up not far away in Bacchus Marsh Road where her parents grew beans and rhubarb. One of her grandparents ran a fruit and vegetable store in Holland but she can’t recall any other details.
When the couple moved to Lethbridge intent on growing fruit and vegies, they found the ground hard and compacted by the horses the former owner kept.
“We had to put in loads of mushroom compost and horse poo,” says Sue.
“Rice hulls are good for soil conditioning — you dig them into the ground in preparation for growing vegetables.
“The pear tree was the fi rst tree we planted on the property.”
They also installed a tap and the fi rst of six water tanks, rotary-hoed the soil, put down mulch and planted. “Everything grows on fl at land,” says Sue.
IN A COUNTRY GARDEN
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Denne historien er fra July - August 2019-utgaven av Good Organic Gardening.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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![Glamour girls](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/8091/814504/61c409ab4dc93/crp_Glamour-girls.jpg)
Glamour girls
EVERYONE LOVES A HARDWORKING ISA BROWN BUT GET A LOAD OF THESE CHIC CHICKENS AND FEATHERED FASHIONISTAS
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FRIED VEG
IT’S POSSIBLE TO ENJOY A FRY-UP IN A DELICIOUSLY HEALTHY WAY BY TURNING TO SOME FRY-FRIENDLY PLANTS
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BEYOND BIG RED
TOMATOES COME IN ALL SHAPES, SIZES AND COLOURS, SO NOW’S THE TIME TO EXPLORE THEIR INFINITE VARIETY
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EVEN MORE TROPPO
ANOTHER SENSATIONAL SIX TO CONSIDER FOR YOUR GARDEN — OR YOUR FRUIT SALAD
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LET'S STALK RHUBARB
JUST AS TOMATO IS A FRUIT USED AS A VEGETABLE, RHUBARB IS A VEGETABLE COMMONLY CONSUMED AS A DESSERT
![FOOD OF THE GODS](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/8091/814504/61c4058e00ced/crp_FOOD-OF-THE-GODS.jpg)
FOOD OF THE GODS
THE FLESHY FRUIT OF THE FICUS WAS MUHAMMAD’S FAVOURITE AND BUDDHA FOUND ENLIGHTENMENT UNDER A FIG TREE
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MAKING GOOD BETTER
THE IRREPRESSIBLE TV PRESENTER WRITES ABOUT HOW SHE, WITH HUSBAND ANTON AND DAUGHTER FRIDA, TURNED A STEEP HOBART BLOCK INTO A PRODUCTIVE GARDEN
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True lily
MANY PLANTS ARE CALLED LILIES BUT IT’S THE MEMBERS OF THE GENUS LILIUM THAT ARE THE REAL DEAL
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SALTY BUDS
THE CAPER BUSH PRODUCES TWO DISTINCT BUT EQUALLY DELICIOUS, TANGY MORSELS: CAPERS AND CAPERBERRIES
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Ducks on duty
BUSY, VIGILANT, HARD ON GARDEN PESTS AND GENEROUS LAYERS — YOU’VE GOTTA LOVE A DUCK!