Did you know that our Pepperberry farm was formerly owned by Tasmanian bushranger Martin Cash?
Martin Cash was Van Diemen land’s most notorious and charismatic bushrangers of the nineteenth century . This famous Irish convict was first to escape Port Arthur penal colony by swimming across the shark infested waters of Eaglehawk Neck! TWICE!!!
He lead an adventurous life of crime as an outlaw bushranger. He was on the run, evading capture for years until he was finally caught and trialled for murder. However, his Irish charm saved him from execution and instead served out a lengthy sentence on Norfolk island.
His 1870 autobiography The Adventures of Martin Cash, ghostwritten by James Lester Burke, a former convict, became a best seller in Australia. Highly recommend it!
The retired Tasmanian bushranger married and lived out his days peacefully on a small farm north of Hobart until his death in 1877.
The orchard has a few very old pear trees remaining that have been verified as over 100 years old. So it is possible that Cash himself planted these!
We are re-establishing the old orchard and planting a native Tasmanian pepperberry orchard as well.
You can read the full article and interview with Sally Dakis here. http://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2017-09-15/pepperberries-growing-on-former-bushrangers-farm/8863980
