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Bushfoods Growing Well in Beverley

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Sustainable Agriculture

Perhaps most exciting, is the germination of the bush tomatoes, which Deb has being trying to achieve for the last two years. With the first 100 plants going in the ground in early November and another 900 to follow, there should be tomatoes galore at the end of the growing season.

Deb and Mark Kitai have been busy growing bushfood over the last few years with this summer looking to be the most productive. The desert limes planted in 2016 produced six fruit in their first year, but this year they are covered with flowers and even though the trees are small, the crop is looking to be significant. The quandong and sandalwood, seeds also planted last year, have started to germinate, with their acacia host trees looking to be big enough for Deb and Mark to start picking wattle seed for their bushfood enterprise in the next year or so. Perhaps most exciting, is the germination of the bush tomatoes, which Deb has being trying to achieve for the last two years. With the first 100 plants going in the ground in early November and another 900 to follow, there should be tomatoes galore at the end of the growing season.

Deb applied to become one of the Trials and Demonstration sites in 2015, as she had started to look into the bush food industry as a way of achieving an income from their small property located in Dale. Deb has slowly become addicted to growing things since starting this project, especially as she has now cracked how to germinate the difficult bush tomato seed. Infill seedlings of acacia host trees are also being grown to help utilise the area set aside for wattle seed, sandalwood and quandong production. Deb is keen to share her new knowledge with anyone looking at growing desert limes or bush tomatoes.