January 2011

Being on the coast with family while our local community in Brisbane was experiencing significant flooding, we were feeling quite disconnected. With access and food supply problems back home, we decided to stay put, but wanted to help some way. A Food Connect Facebook request for helping Bev and Geoff Buckley at Mount Tamborine provided us with the perfect opportunity to do just that.

We had a very enjoyable day getting our hands dirty and helping Bev dig out sodden rhubarb so that the roots could be planted again – rain upon rain had left Bev and Geoff with ruined crops and lots of work. The kids had a ball playing in the rich red mud full of juicy worms (with their buckets and spades – we were more prepared for the beach than the farm), sitting under a tree to draw, lunching by the creek, swimming in the water hole, and riding in a little trailer behind Bev on the ride-on mower. Caitlin was chuffed that Bev gave her a bouquet of flowers, and we all loved Leighton’s rhubarb crumble for dessert that night! It was such a great way for us city folk to experience a farm – getting to know our farmers and learning of the challenges they face providing the food for our table while being of some practical assistance.

The rich red mud on the farm was preferable to the grey muck we were cleaning up at Caitlin’s school back in Brisbane later in the week – with the bonus that our young kids could be with us having fun rather than us needing to organise someone to look after them. So while we didn’t do much mud-shovelling at home, we could help out on the food supply front and are now keen to be involved in some more ‘farming bees’.

Cheerio,
Rachel & Leighton, Riverhills subscribers