AN HEIRLOOM IN MY HANDS

This afternoon I went to visit an Italian man, with sketchy details that I had from Deb about some seeds to collect...Here is the story.... This man, Silvio, 78, has been growing these same cucumbers for over 30 years and they have a story - many stories - of their own which I will recount in a moment. Recently he has been looking for some people to entrust these seeds to because he has been ill and his family are just not interested in some old, Italian cucumber seeds. So I have them now, to share and grow and keep pure forever.

This is a huge responsibility because these seeds, as far as he and his sister-in-law, Maria (88), know were only ever grown by her family, near a place called Bari, in southern Italy. Silvio's wife died some 20 years ago but was the first of her family to come out to Australia as Silvio's wife, 50 years ago. One by one her brothers came out to Australia until there was only Maria and her father, left in Bari. Eventually they came out too and the seeds were left behind and grown on by other relatives in the same area. One day some of these relatives came out to visit the family in Australia and brought some of the cucumber seeds. Here the story becomes a bit of a secret but Silvio told me in confidence.....Anyway since then he has been growing them for his wife's family, every year, without fail. Some years later the relatives in Italy lost the seeds and Silvio was able to send them some of his from Australia or the strain would have been lost completely. Even now he does not recognise them as his cucumbers, but those of the Radogna family of Bari and he would not even be in the photo with Maria and the plate of freshly-picked cucumbers. He wants them to be known as Bari Cucumber, although Maria wanted them to be called by the name her family in Italy use - Caroselli Baresi.

For some time this is just what I have wanted - to have the seeds of someone's life in my hands, to have a connection to something historic and significant and to truly feel responsible for saving one tiny piece of the genetic biodiversity of the earth. However, like all meaningful things, it is quite a daunting thought. Moreover, anyone who grows this from now on will have to grow only this cucumber, as cucumbers cross readily, and, Silvio told me, it has special requirements. But when you receive such a gift you can't send it back!

As we settled down for a good talk, Silvio brought out a bottle of his home-made wine, made from grapes that he grew from some cuttings he imported from an area of Italy near Venice where he grew up. He has some land behind Morialta, at Norton Summit, where he grows the vines and the vegetables, as he only has a small back yard where he lives. I must say that I did enjoy that wine, called Prosecco, and he told me it is now one of Jamie Oliver's favourites since his series on Italian food. Odd but true, evidently.
Maria didn't speak much English and it was fun to try out some of my newly acquired Italian on her. I have only had 3 lessons and don't know much more than a few basic phrases so when she answered my introduction with a huge smile,and lots of Italian, I knew I must have got it right.

After talking about the cucumbers Maria led us outside and started picking leaves of herbs for me to try. Then she began to collect some very big olives off the ground and Silvio picked one up too and put it in his mouth, handing me one with instructions to do the same! Oh no, I thought!....It was strong but delicious and not at all bitter. This, said Silvio, is an eating olive and you can eat it without pickling. Maria was banging the branches with a rake and collecting the olives. Silvio said that for the most exquisite taste in all the world I had to take these olives home and fry them - not too hot and without much oil - until they were soft but still held their shape and looked 'boiled'. He said I could come back later in the year and get some cuttings - at the time I was more excited about this than the cucumbers.

I talked with Silvio and Maria for a couple of hours - about all sorts of things - until I just couldn't justify staying any longer. I gave them some of my spinach seeds that I have been collecting for maybe 15 years. I asked Silvio if there was anything I could give him as a gift and he said yes, he would love a quince tree. So, I will get one ASAP from the Rare Fruit Society, probably, and take it around soon.
As soon as I got home I cooked some of those olives and Roger and I had them and truly they are fabulous, especially when squashed onto a piece of toasted olive bread. Buonissimo!