Gardens of WA: Genius of turning White Gum Valley Orchard community garden into kids’ dream playground

Every now and then I come across an idea that is so simple and so genius I am flabbergasted that it’s not already commonplace. How many children’s playgrounds are there in WA? Hundreds? Thousands? And how many of those are surrounded by a grove of edible trees — with limbs sturdy enough to climb and branches dripping with fruits? So far, I know of only one. “Ten years ago there was a really creaky swing and basically just mulch and weeds. We put our hand up to take on a site license for five years then got another five and now we’re at our 10-year birthday,” says Steph Jennings, from the centre of the White Gum Valley Orchard community garden. Next to Steph are Yuris Varpibs, Teresa Matassa and Digby Hill, who gaze with satisfaction over the orchard they helped create. These four, along with many other community members, have had a hand in things from the start. “We all had kids in playgroup going to the kindy next door,” Teresa explains. Steph adds: “Our kids were prompting us to grow more fruit trees and we didn’t have space in our backyard. The idea formulated over playgroup sessions, then we took it to the local precinct and were supported by the city to make it happen.” Nearly a decade later the productive trees that encircle the playground form a tall, secluded grove. Wooden logs and limestone boulders surround garden beds filled with lemongrass, wormwood, pig face, pelargoniums, banksias, lavender and self-sown borage. And, of course, there’s the large fruit and nut trees: mangoes, avocados, bananas, citrus, almonds, cherries, figs, pomegranates, a black and white sapote, an apple tree in blossom, and a tamarind tree grown from a seed that Steph germinated years ago. There’s even an ice-cream bean tree. “The kids love the ice-cream beans,” Teresa says, “many people can’t grow trees this big in their houses and also often people don’t stay in their houses long enough”. In this orchard, rather than shade sails, hot plastic and scrubby grass, the trees have become part of the children’s play equipment. “Kids make cubbyhouses in the avocado trees,” Digby tells me. Steph adds: “It gives a ready introduction to growing. Having the kindergarten next door, they can open their gates and come out.” While many people think of edible gardens as high-maintenance vegetable crops, the genius in this orchard is that the trees do not require daily maintenance. As the trees have grown, the community turned their attention to seasonal events. “We do a big olive harvest each year and a big winter solstice event — the kindy and schools all make lanterns in the week leading up to it,” Teresa says. Standing in the orchard, which, at one point, was going to be sold and developed, it strikes me what an incredible difference a patch of earth, and some people with a vision can make to their community. White Gum Valley Orchard is open to visitors on September 14 from 1pm-2.30pm. Go and take a look yourself!