Getting 'certified'

After nearly 20 years of growing our trees organically, we have decided to become officially certifed as an organic farm, with the BFA. The reason for the formality is that we are now have the potential to produce a large crop of mangosteens. We posted the application yesterday - it took us about 3 months to assemble all the information that they required, and then a JP had to witness the 20 page application.

What happens next? We wait for the inspector to arrive and check us out, in the next 4-6 weeks.

Will being certified make a difference to selling our crop? Probably not as the mangosteen customer is not likely to care too much if they are grown with chemicals and sprays or not.

Hopefully there will be a niche organic market which will clamour for our fruit and will appreciate the efforts we have taken. But don't hold your breath.

http://www.bfa.com.au/

A Mangosteen Milestone

Twenty years ago we had a dream to start a mangosteen orchard at Cape Tribulation. We knew very little about Mangosteens at the time, but we thought this is the 'project' for us. It has taken 20 years, but this week was a big milestone for us. On Sunday we picked and packed our first trays of our own Mangosteens and sent them to Sydney. Our eleven trays departed on Sunday night from Mareeba by truck, and are wedged into a small space crowded out by huge palettes of lychees, pawpaw, and longans.

Who knows how much the market will pay us for them - watch this space. We are hoping for $15 a kg. Then we have to take out the freight, packaging and wholesaling costs - our guess is $3 kg. So we might receive a return of $12 a kg. Keep your finger crossed for us. Time to start picking again for the next truck departing on Thursday.

Last year we did have a crop of about 500 kg, but we were overseas and arranged for a picking and packing company to do it for us. This is the first time we have actually got our hands dirty.

Counting mangosteens, and forever slashing

It's official - we have 353 mangosteens! I have just spent the afternoon walking around the 'commercial' part of our farm, counting our trees. Every year we plant new mangosteens in the gaps where other trees have died. So we are never quite sure how many mangosteens we actually have.

The planting season - April/May is about to start. We have another 100 mangosteens ready to go in. I am walking around the orchard looking for spaces to squeeze in some more - every nook will have another mangosteen if it will fit. Some of the wild rocky areas which we have never cleared in 20 years are now on the agenda.

'Cape Trib for a Day' package

We have a lot of people drive all the way up to Cape Trib from Cairns or Port Douglas, just to do the fruit tasting. It's a pity to come all that way and not get the most out of the day at Cape Trib. So we are putting a day package together, with Masons Tours and Dragonfly Gallery Cafe, so that it will be possible to have a full day organised for you:

‘Cape Trib for a Day’ -$85 - Self drive package
Experience the best that Cape Tribulation has to offer and make the most of your day. One phone call is all it takes.

The package includes:
• A 2 hour guided rainforest walk with local guides from Masons Tours
• Lunch at Dragonfly—a gallery café with rainforest ambience
• Exotic fruit tasting and farm tour with us
• Time to explore the beaches and boardwalks

DRIVING TIMETABLE
From Cairns /Port Douglas
7.30 Depart Cairns
8.30 Depart Port Douglas
10.15 Arrive at Masons Shop
10.30 Guided rainforest walk
12.30 Lunch at Dragonfly
2.00 Fruit Tasting at farm
3.30 Visit Cape Trib Beach and Dubiji boardwalk
4.30 Depart Cape Trib
6.00 Arrive Port Douglas
7.00 Arrive Cairns

Stripey Possum Visits

In all my time at Cape Trib, I have only seen a stripey possum twice. The first time we were camping under the blackbean a few months after we arrived in 1989, and the stripey came down the trunk of the black bean tree right in front of our noses. The second time was a stripey in a banana bunch a few years later, eating the banana and making a scratching sound on the plastic bag covering the bananas. They are nocturnal and I tend not roam at night.

Then just a few days ago there was a loud 'chirring' sound coming from the gazebo around 8 pm. The dogs were alert and went over to investigate. So did I. In the dark there was nothing to be seen, but a very loud noise was coming from behind a leaf. It sounded like it was upset and annoyed whatever it was. Digby arrived with the torch and low and behold - a very small stripey possum looking up at us. We watched it as it stood up and then in a bowlegged hop it raced acros the driveway and up the mango tree. Digby grabbed for the camera but of course it was gone. We think that it might have lost its balance and fallen out of the tree and was winded - took a few minutes to recover and was making a fuss.

My third siting and I was thrilled!

You can see a photo of a stripey at http://www.daintreecoast.com/rainforest1.htm

Back home and ready for the 2007 season

We spent february in Melbourne. The planned 8 day walk was aborted 16 hours before we were due to start walking when I tripped and fell in the main street at Apollo Bay and landed on my kneecap on the pavement. Two weeks later and it is still not fixed, though at least I am mobile. We changed plans and headed off with our new sea kayaks that we bought while we were in Melbourne and started the drive home with some paddling along the way.

We are now home. The cape has had over one metre of rainfall while we have been gone, and we are madly trying to cut the grass ready for guests and fruit tasters.

What fruit is around at the moment - loads! Salaks, mangosteens, abius, soursop, passionfruit, santols, matisias, guavas, breadfruit.

CLOSED for FEBRUARY

We are taking the month of February off, so the farm will not be open. We will still be responding to emails, but not frequently, so have patience. We intend to walk the Great Ocean Walk in south west Victoria - 8 days hiking along a spectacular coastline and carrying packs. The website is at http://www.greatoceanwalk.com.au if you interested.