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From 1789, Cornish emancipist James Ruse was allowed to farm  30 acres of land at Parramatta.  He was able to support himself and his family by 1791, when Governor Phillip granted him the land  – the first grant of land in the new colony.Through the efforts of small farmers the colony was self-supporting by 1795. Ruse later sold his land at Parramatta and was among the first to farm in the Hawkesbury River area. More

Founded in 1788 as the colony’s second settlement, Parramatta means “the place where the eels lie” in the Darug Aboriginal language. The first colonists found the land around Sydney difficult to clear and the soil unsuitable for agriculture. Governor Arthur Phillip led an expedition up the harbour in November 1788 and found more suitable land at what was initially known as Rose Hill.  The first convict work team arrived later that month and began clearing the land for farming. More

A priority for the first settlers was to cultivate the land and begin producing their own food. Within two months of the First Fleet’s arrival on 26 January, three gardens had been established on the east side of the Tank Stream. By July, the Government Farm at what became known as Farm Cove had ‘nine acres in corn’. More

Early explorers did not hesitate to introduce familiar plants to the places they visited. In 1788, William Bligh anchored the Bounty in Adventure Bay off what is now Bruny Island. In addition to loading wood and water, Bligh planted seven apple trees. Returning to the same spot in 1792 as captain of the Providence, he and the ship’s botanists planted cress, celery, acorns and various fruit trees. More

The first official banquet in the new colony was held to celebrate the King’s birthday on 4 June. The occasion was reported in a letter written by George Worgan, the surgeon from the Sirius. He wrote that at two o’clock the officers joined Governor Phillip in a “very good Entertainment, considering how far we are from Leaden-Hall Market”. The meal included “Mutton, Pork, Ducks, Fowls, Fish, Kanguroo, Sallads, Pies & preserved Fruits”. More

Norfolk Island was settled by a party under the command of Lieutenant King  just five weeks after the First Fleet arrived in Sydney. Its settlement was part of Governor Phillip’s instructions and was to prevent its seizure by any other European power. Farming on Norfolk Island became a way of supplementing food supplies in Sydney, although the wreck of the supply ship Sirius on the island’s reef in 1790 actually exacerbated food shortages. More

The first colonists had a meagre diet. In the first year of  European settlement at Port Jackson, adults received a weekly ration of 7 lb of flour, 7 lb of pork or beef, 3 pints of peas, 6 oz of butter and 1/2 lb rice.  These rations were supplemented by any food the settlers could grow, and convicts were excused from work on Saturday afternoons so they could tend their own gardens. Public gardens were planted at Farm Cove. More