A garden showcasing the vast variety of fruit that can be grown in Adelaide’s climate.

If you haven’t come across jujube fruit before, Midway Park offers an opportunity to find out how to grow these and other subtropical fruits in your own back yard! This large garden surrounding a lovely 1890s bluestone villa holds around 70 different fruit and nut trees including many that are unusual and not often grown in SA climatic conditions.

In the collection are five different bananas, avocados, figs, apples, guavas, pomegranate, coffee, red and white dragon fruits, black and white sapotes, jackfruit, custard apples, and 20 different citrus including Buddha’s hand, chinotto and pomelos.

A 20 metre long ‘fruit cage’ is planted with six rows of espaliered fruit trees and delicious jujubes, while two green-houses provide the perfect conditions for cold-sensitive tropical and subtropical fruit trees.

Planted on the shallow covering of soil on top of a 310,000L inground water storage tank are around 130 roses which, when in flower, provide a bee-attracting show of colour and perfume.

Beautifully coloured and speckled Belgian D’uccle Bantams with beards and feathered feet roam beneath the fruit tees helping to control insect pests. A pond provides water for the two hives of bees and encourages other pollinating insects to the garden.

Most of the trees are clearly labelled with a photograph, the name and a brief description about each fruit, and there will be talks and garden tours throughout the day on a variety of subjects associated with organic gardening and fruit production.