One of our favourite projects was being commissioned to write about the market gardeners of Brimbank. We interviewed market gardeners to learn more about their love of the land, their passion for paddock to plate produce, their memories of a one-time way of farming and opinions of why marketing gardening is on its way out.
We enjoy writing profiles. It starts with being able to ask open-ended questions and listening hard. All too often profiles fall short of the mark because pieces lack depth, focus too much on facts rather than letting the person emerge as a human being.
When we interviewed the market gardeners, we put aside time to research the history of the area, find newspaper articles about marketing gardening in the area as well as learn more about market gardening as a way of life across the globe. This time was priceless. It allowed us to go beyond the routine questions and expand our focus. A lot we discarded during the process of writing drafts.
Our questions included:
Where the family came from? How much had their roots influenced the type of vegetables and fruit they grew?
What was it like for the person growing up? Who influenced his life? How?
How had school influenced their lives?
What about relationships, within the family, across the gardens, in the neighbourhood?
What ups and downs the gardeners had had? How had the weather patterns changed the way they gardened?
What kind of groups and causes they were involved in and why?
The results were fascinating to record and a privilege to tell.
Photo credit: Kylie Grinham.
