Stories Along the Way

I’ve always loved the idea of being able to pick fresh, organic fruit and vegetables straight from our balcony.

So I planted a miniature mandarin tree in a large pot.

And because I like to recycle whatever I can, I used guinea pig droppings as fertiliser.

Very organic. 

There was just one small complication.

My guinea pigs absolutely love capsicum because it’s a good source of vitamin C, and somewhere along the way I suspect one of them may have accidentally eaten a seed.

Apparently that seed survived the entire journey. 

Before long, a capsicum plant appeared in the mandarin pot.

At first, I left it there.

The mandarin was doing well, the capsicum was doing well, and everyone seemed happy.

Then the capsicum started taking over.

It grew taller.

It grew stronger.

It produced fruit.

And eventually, my poor little mandarin started struggling to compete.

So I had a decision to make.

Do I uproot the thriving capsicum plant that my guinea pigs love?

Or do I move the mandarin somewhere else in the garden?

Economically, the capsicum was making a very persuasive argument for itself.

Mandarins are seasonal and, when they are in season, they’re still relatively cheap.

Capsicums, on the other hand, are not always cheap — and this plant has been producing consistently.

So the accidental plant won.

The mandarin can move.

Which means I planted a mandarin tree…

and somehow ended up farming capsicums for my guinea pigs.

Sometimes the garden has its own plans.