En route to the New Brighton Farmer’s Market, this week, I cycled past our neighbour’s pumpkin runners overtaking the grassy verge on our corner. His donations of pumpkin have resulted in some delicious pumpkin soup, right on schedule for a touch of autumn crispness in the air.
Our garden has produced lots of rocket but this week I decided a change in salad base is required and picked up 2 mini cos from Denise, who grows her range of fancy lettuces in the ground – not hydroponically – in Ballina. The Cooper’s Shoot tomato growers have such an array of multi-coloured and shaped capsicums, red, yellow and orange that I could not resist a great handful. They could almost adorn a jester’s hat! Our Eungella vegetable man and his lovely assistant Bonnie from Berlin, who greets us in Deutsch every week, still had a mountain of corn cobs, 3 for $2.50 and zucchinis. Top that off with Heartfelt multigrain sourdough bread, some limes and a punnet of olives from Grumpy Grandma at Summerland olives and my backpack was full.
Gaily I cycled home listening to the change in birdsong from parrots to butcherbirds, heralding the change of season. We have 2 white headed pigeons, nesting in the forest of next door’s garden. Their quiet whooo-hoo possibly signifying they are mating. We’ve chased away the juvenile brush turkeys from our newly mulched herb and vegetable beds and hope they don’t disturb the pigeons next door. The swamp bloodwood is flowering and the lorikeets are already drunk with nectar.
Come wandering 