Nala Pakana hosts SeedSaveUs

My passengers arrived on time. I bundled up my various packets of seeds for sharing, grabbed my basket of food and we set off for Nala Pakana, a property not all that far from my place, for our June SeedSaveUs get together.

It is Tasmania and mid winter so the back of the car was filled with jackets and scarves while feet were shod in warm socks and thick soled shoes. Theresa said turn off at the sign and its a bit more than 3 kms up Scarrs Road to her house in the forest. Well, my car is a city car and I was not prepared for the rough track, having to steer from one side to the other to avoid ditches and rocks. However, we arrived safely, just as another shower of rain raced across the landscape and the strong winds forecast blew us toward Theresa’s haven.

Inside it was warm and cosy. One by one everyone blew in, removing their coats and boots in the dry entrance room, depositing food on the table and finding a space to nestle down with baskets of plants and seeds to be shared later. The house looks like it evolved out of the forest, as every part of it was hand made from the forest and surroundings, before Theresa bought it.

 

About 30 people came this day; several I had not met before, all laden with things to share and stories to tell of growing food. I especially loved the bean seeds Eva brought which had originated from an Italian man who had brought them with him from Italy more than 50 years before and had grown and saved every year since.

  Theresa is an amazing woman, so keen to help people find the best of themselves and live happy and healthy lives.

Outside we met Choco the goat, Audrey and Henry the geese and 2 talkative dogs. Theresa told us how well corrugated iron works to keep out possums, wallabies and other wildlife, while providing shelter from the wind, reflective heat and light for cold sensitive plants and a surface to cover with art!

The teepee is gorgeous and the golden light inside adds to the feeling of warmth and comfort it gives. Theresa wants to run all kinds of workshops and yoga classes in it when it is finished….. and that is another story!