Mango and Lime
My autumn crop includes mangoes, from a tree that is now nearly twenty years old. It is not a big tree mainly because it is into its second life - in 2001 a bushfire burnt the tree so badly that I thought it was dead and cut it off to a stump, but before I could get round to digging out the stump a new shoot emerged which has grown into a small tree and four years ago produced its first fruit. The biggest crop ever this year at 17. Because I am so far south of the normal growing districts, my fruit does not ripen until April / May, though this year along with a lot of other fruit in the garden, the mangoes are starting to ripen four to six weeks earlier than usual. I think all gardeners now know that the climate is changing and is warmer each year. However my mangoes are a very welcome touch of the tropics and the taste takes me back to my youth in Queensland. The taste of tree ripened mangoes is so ripe and luscious that you realise why this fruit has such a reputation, a reputation that is never reached by the fruit picked early, transported and sold in the fruit shops of the southern states. I eat all the fruit from my trees fresh, on a very few occasions with prawns in a salad, but mostly just as is for breakfast.
Another warm climate fruit I grow is the Tahitian lime, these are also ready now, in fact starting to turn yellow as they get to the end of their ripening life....a gin and tonic is not the same without a slice of lime.
Apples
The Granny Smith apples are ready to be picked and stored, they will store in cold conditions for a all of winter, giving me time to deal with the golden delicious. Granny Smith is good for both eating fresh and cooking. The last of my apple trees is the Lady Williams its crop will not be ready until late May.

Golden Delicious Apples and Persimmons
Autumn is here when I, and the parrots, get the first persimmons. The parrots, I must admit, start eating well before my Fuji fruit are fully ripe but they provide an early warning system, time to bag  and net off the fruit I want, leaving a share for them. They are however starting to get rather sneaky and trying to get their head inside the bags or crawl in through gaps in the netting. The apples were bagged quite a while ago well before they even started to ripen, in order to save them from fruit fly and from the birds.
The Fuji persimmons can be eaten while still firm like an apple and used in salads. Greens, finger lime caviar, macadamia nuts, peeled persimmon cut in chunks, olive oil , freshly ground pepper, fresh goat curd or feta or parmesan (NB while I peel the fruit, it is not really necessary, just wash and use.) Can also serve slices with the cheese course. I prefer however to leave the fruit until it is very soft and then spoon out the pulp to have as is, or every so often with clotted cream, ice cream or mascarpone. The pulp can also be used in cakes or puddings but the cooking seems to remove all taste of persimmon, although does affect the texture.
Golden Delicious apples are best fresh i e not stored for too long. They are wonderful cooked and seem to hold their shape fairly well rather than collapsing into mush. I eat fresh and cooked in all sorts of ways, especially in salads, apple pies, tarte tatin and cakes. 

Finger Limes
A really great crop of finger limes this year. Have two varities, one that has yellow /pale green juice vesicles and the skin turns very dark green, almost black, when ripe and the other has red vesicles and the skin turns from green to almost black and finally to red when ripe. if the ripe fruit is  left too long on the tree it will eventually split open exposing the flesh and then drop off the tree.
Pears
The pear also did very well this year, it is still fairly young and in the past has only had 3 or 4 fruit each year, but this year there were about twenty fruit, that I have just picked  and put in storage and bring out enough to ripen as needed.

Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner
For breakfast I am having pears sprinkled with finger lime 'caviar', which really compliment each other. Am also using the lime vesicles on fish, on lamb chops, in salads as well as on and in desserts. Something that is really simple and extra wonderful is combining the vesicles with vanilla icecream, the pop of the frozen gobules and the flash of citrus is sensational.
A pear, rocket, macdamia nut, finger lime (all from the garden) salad, dressed with extra virgin olive oil and shaved parmesean, is also something that is difficult to go past

Karkalla
This indigenous plant commonly called 'pig-face', normally grows on sandy coastal areas and does Ok in my garden but, understandably does not have the salty taste of the plants that grow near the sea. Being a low growing plant it also tends to get smothered by the wild excesses of the rocket, mustard greens , rapini etc unless I am there to rescue it. I use it fresh in salads and in sandwiches and with grilled meat, the Karkalla quickly braised in a pan while the meat is resting.

Scarlet RunnerThis is a great bean as it flowers proflically making an attractive addition to the garden, crops well and will re-shoot the next year from a fairly large tuber / root after it dies down in winter.
The beans have a furry skin which does not affect the eating once they are cooked. These beans also have a reputation for being excellent for freezing, though I have always eaten all of my crop rather than freezing any excess.
I use the beans as per normal plus I delight in pasta with beans, tinned tuna, a touch of chilli, garlic, lemon or finger lime dressed with extra virgin olive oil.

Max Dingle                                                           5 March 2014