Feature by Carolyn Beasley
In the dappled shade of tuart and marri trees, impossibly delicate flowers materialise from the forest floor. Donkey orchids, complete with equine ‘ears’, clusters of cowslip orchids like bright yellow starfish, and the daintiest of all, the whimsical spider orchids in deep pink, white and lime green, all vie for the attention of their insect pollinators.
For local Noongar people in Perth / Boorloo, the orchids are one sign that Kambarang has arrived. Occurring during the western season of spring from October to November, Kambarang is is also referred to as ‘The Season of Birth’ or ‘Wildflower Season.’ It’s a time when nature explodes into life.
In celebration of Western Australia’s extraordinary biodiversity and the enduring Aboriginal connection to the natural world, Perth will host an immersive and spectacular new annual event; EverNow: A festival during Kambarang.
For Wardandi Bibbulmun woman Dale Tilbrook, Kambarang is a time of plenty and worth celebrating. In the Swan Valley on Whadjuk Noongar Boodjar Country, just 25 minutes from Perth city, Dale’s company Dale Tilbrook Experiences offers bush tucker talks and tastings from the grounds of the integrated winery, brewery and restaurant hub of Mandoon Estate on the upper reaches of the Swan River / Derbarl Yerrigan.
Dale Tilbrook giving her Bushfood tour, at Mandoon Estate
During sunny Kambarang days, Dale’s guests join her outside under the trees beside her Maalinup Aboriginal Gallery. Here they’ll sample native foods like lemon myrtle and finger limes, and unique WA produce, like quandongs and sandalwood.
“The sandalwood fruit is quite dry, but you can crack it open and inside is a delicious edible kernel, our local tree nut,” Dale says. Another of Dale’s favourites is bush tomato, which is best eaten dried. “It intensifies the flavours and the sugars in the fruit. It’s caramelised raisin when you first bite it, then the sweetness and tomato flavours come through.”
Dale says the arrival of Kambarang is hard to miss.
“It can be characterised by traditionally, big thunderstorms at the end of Djilba (August – September), which sends vibrations down through the earth and wakes up the Karda, the racehorse goannas. When they’re feeding on the surface, that’s a sign that we’ve moved into Kambarang.”
Bush food from Dale Tilbrook Experiences, Mandoon Estate
Aside from orchids, there are other floral signs of Kambarang, like the Balga (grass tree), with its long central flowering stalk, and the revered West Australian Christmas Tree, or Moodja with its riotous, deep yellow blossoms.
Wildflowers in Kings Park Botanical Gardens
“We didn't do much with the Moodja tree,” Dale explains. “That's where the souls, the Kaanya, of the newly dead rest in the leaves before they continue their journey under the sea, to Koorenup, the land of the dead.”
During Kambarang, Dale likes to imagine the local Noongar people, back before European settlement, camping beside the river below Mandoon Estate.
“The campfires would be alight at night and kids would be running around on the beach until it was time to come home and have dinner and go to bed,” Dale says.
Dale says Kambarang was a time for harvesting from large yam gardens that existed along the river.
“The gardens were a kind of pit agriculture, because the yams would be down about a metre,” she says. “The old girls worked out that it wasn't much use digging a single yam, they used to dig these big pits and then collapse all the soil and take out all the tubers. They’d pick off the little bottom bits and plant them back in.”
This in-depth relationship with local plants, animals, seasons and land will form the focus of EverNow. Over six enthralling days in October, the festival during Kambarang will transform three well-known city locations into wonderous dreamscapes, incorporating storytelling, music, light and performance.
Fire Garden, Perth Festival
At the Supreme Court Gardens, Song Circle weaves a futuristic take on dreaming stories, while in the Government House Gardens, Fire Gardens is a spectacular large-scale fire installation by French company La Compagnie Carabosse. Closing the festival in Kings Park, Boorna Waanginy – The Trees Speak is an unforgettable nocturnal sound and light extravaganza featuring three-dimensional projections, with culture at its heart.
The artistic associate of Boorna Waanginy is Dr Richard Walley, Noongar man and one of Australia’s leading Aboriginal performers and writers. He looks forward to EverNow bringing the community and visitors together in a very modern celebration of ancient culture.
“Kambarang has always been a significant season for us, marking the time of birth and the arrival of Spring,” Richard says. “It’s also a time of celebration, which aligns perfectly with the festival. The most exciting aspect of this event is that it combines new works with old, trialled and proven works, that are now presented in a new light.”
Banner image.
Boorna Waanginy, Kings Park
Published September 2023.