Kitchen Garden Guides

Monday, October 27, 2008

THE GREETING OF GAVIN!

Today Roger and I took the train out to see Gavin and Kim at Melton to explore the ongoing journey of The Greening of Gavin. You couldn't meet nicer people and entering the gate through the high brick wall is like stepping into a food-grower's secret garden. Melton, on the whole, is a dry place with barren front yards of dying grass and sparse trees. Not only is everything lush and healthy and bursting with life inside the gate but it is also so beautiful.... and I felt just as the children in the story "The Secret Garden" felt when they opened the gate and were awe-struck with what they found inside. Just goes to show what you can do with an ordinary block.....

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If you read Gavin's blog you will know that he has been suffering with a back problem for a year or so and yet what he has achieved here is amazing. His and his wife Kim's enthusiasm is highly infectious and finally I am actually looking forward to getting back into my garden and adopting some of Gavin's ideas, and others I have gained from my vegetable gardening friends all over the world and he certainly inspired Roger to get thinking on using some of his ideas too.

They have solar panels and produce an average of 75% of their electricity needs, as well as having lots of energy efficient appliances and water-saving methods. I think we could rightly say that Gavin has been greened, well and truly.

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Gavin cooked us a quiche with his own vegetables and eggs and made us an excellent loaf of bread. Kim made  a lovely salad and we had a great chat over lunch. Kim makes the labels for Gavin's preserves which fill a cupboard.... he even has pickled eggs!

Kim is very artistic and creative and their home and gardens reflect this.....I wish I could co-ordinate things like Kim has done!

Thanks Gavin for taking the day off work to be with us today and I look forward to keeping in touch with you and Kim and hopefully showing you around my place one day....when I smarten it up!

Next stop tomorrow....home!

1 comment:

Gavin said...

Hi Kate. Thanks for the very kind words. I never thought of it as a secret garden, but I suppose I am just used to it. It was our pleasure to have you and Roger over for the day.

It will be a day that Kim and I will talk about for a very long time. We are both looking forward to travelling to Adelaide in the very near future!

Gav