THE MURRAY

The famous fig leaf

Young date palm

Fig cuttings ready to be repotted

Dried figs, dates, apricots and sultanas are popular fruits. These fruits are grown in warm temperate climates.

This large attractive orange tree in Melbourne produces a heavy crop of ripe fruit each winter.

Citrus blossoms are very attractive and produce a very pleasant fragrance

Our family moved to South Australia in the early nineteen sixties and to a very different world. No more carefree days - everyone had work to do.

Golden Harvest

My teenage years were spent in the arid horticultural districts that rely on irrigation water obtained from the Murray River. We cultivated apricots, grapes and citrus crops and as we got older our responsibilities increased.

School holidays meant cutting and drying apricots. This was done by hand using a small curved knife, and for about a month during the summer holidays we sliced and slopped our way through buckets of sometimes over ripe fruit to be placed on drying trays. Plenty of band aids were kept at hand as everyone would cut a finger sooner or later. Quick reflexes and steady hands were needed in order to achieve a satisfactory quota of at least 40 trays each day.

Stacks of trays would be treated with sulphur fumes and the bright golden fruit was laid out in the sun to dry. Provided this process was not interrupted by stormy weather or dust storms we would collect the shriveled and leathery fruit to be scraped into bins after three or four days.

Late Summer Harvest

Late summer saw the grape harvest beginning with small black currants used for drying. Following the currants, other grape varieties that could be dried or used for wine production were harvested until late autumn. During these times we hand loaded buckets of grapes onto open topped trucks. I often had to throw back the empty tins from upon the truck, running the gauntlet of bees gorging on grape juice. Doing this job barefoot meant several bee stings were in order, sharp jabs followed by the scent of their venom, one of life’s little hazards.

Busy And Easy Weekends

As a sixteen year old I worked weekends for a citrus grower, scoring the unpopular task of removing fruit missed during harvest. Old fruit is a source of pest and disease infestations and should not be left on the trees. This job meant climbing under the trees then up through the canopy in order to reach fruit that could not be reached by the pickers. First dried twigs needed to be broken, next a path upwards into the canopy had to be found. Here exists a cool hidden world dominated by smooth brown branches, dappled light and an oxygen rich atmosphere. Apart from numerous scratches, it was an opportunity to escape the summer heat.

Evening Duty

Irrigation was an unsophisticated affair. In most cases water was channeled down furrows between crop rows. This process required supervision to ensure an adequate spread of water, on many occasions I would be out late in the evening checking its progress. Stars and planets shone brightly appearing much closer in the desert sky. Shooting stars blazed and a sense of wonder soon pervaded these still cold nights. Should there be a full moon it was a bonus, no need for torches. The moonlight was so bright it cast eerie shadows along the base of fruit trees and vines. All the while we were accompanied by the gentle sound of trickling water and the sound of dogs barking in the distance.