Boonah Show 2022

Our best results yet

We really upped the anti this time. The recent weather events had destroyed half of my papaya tree though a freak “tornado like storm” as the newspapers called it, and half due to black spot caused by the severely wet conditions. We were able to still enter one in the Senior section and one in the Juniors though.

Our avocado tree had made a comeback from the previous year when the Guinea fowl were roosting in it while we were homing them in the orchard. So we entered them too.

Our young Bull got into the vegetable garden and ate his way through the chilies and tomatoes, and the Mango tree decided it wanted a gap year, so we got nothing out of that.

But I had other things to offer, and figured, if I’ve already won a blue ribbon for an exhibit, then that’s enough and I’ll Ash Barty myself out of the running.

So I set my sights on the preserves! I reallllllly wanted to enter one thing in the open section. Where the matriarchs of the CWA use their secret recipes, where chefs go to flaunt their knowledge of culinary chemistry and where the generational families of the town hold records since pioneering days.

The one entry I chose was Grape Jam and I would use the Chambourcin wine grapes grown in our very own vineyard. I started to separate the skin from the seeds and the fruit. One single grape yielded 1g of fruit. I stood for two full days shelling skin and seeds from grapes. My neck physically hurt for the next two days, but i had achieved my goal. Before me, sat one completely perfect 275g jar of Grape Jam.

I also thought the novice section was the best place to enter Lemon Butter for the first time, considering this was a popular event and I’d still never entered before. One jar, in class 14048, entry number 117, made from the lemons of my very own tree.

The results came in as follows: First place Grape Jam in the open, First place Lemon Butter for novice, First place Paw paw in the Juniors, Second place Paw paw in the Seniors, Second place Avocado in Juniors and Seniors.

I must say, I did enjoy Champagne from my verandah that night. Look out Kalbar, I’m coming with my Avo’s for the Blue!