Heather Salter’s dream of owning a bed and breakfast came to fruition five years ago when she purchased a pretty storybook cottage set amongst established fruit trees and flanked by natural bush in in the picturesque Chittering Valley.
Juggling the operation of Treetops Guesthouse with her city job as a nurse at Princess Margaret Children’s Hospital meant that the business ticked along quietly until husband Greg, an environmental consultant, found himself at the end of a work contract and the couple decided to spice things up a bit – literally!
Greg and Heather had seen the Outback Chef’s range of native herbs and spices at the Bindoon Show and thought the range would marry well with their B&B and fit their shared passion for agricult
ure, native flora and sustainable environmental practice. They stocked up on the range of spices, teas and fruit pastes which include
Lemon Myrtle, Aniseed Myrtle, Bush Tomato, Quandongs, Fingerlimes, Saltbush and Native Mint to sell at local markets, but also added their own flavoursome home-made jams, relishes and dukkah, incorporating the products, to sell under their own brand.
Self-taught cook Heather loves using native spices and is constantly experimenting to create the perfect combinations. If it’s not already growing in the extensive Treetops orchard, she sources local fruit for her jams and she knows exactly what she likes. “ I prefer a particular type of orange for my marmalade and I like to get it from the Mannings in Bindoon. When it comes into season I just buy as much as I can each weekend, madly cooking them up until they’re all gone!”
Guests at the B&B enjoy Heather’s homecooked meals as part of their experience. “No-one leaves my home hungry,” she says, “It’s a point of difference for us that I’ll cook guests whatever they like for breakfast.” Inspired by a trip to France, Greg has recently added yet another arm to their business enterprises – crêpe-making.
“The crêpes do very well – because Greg is very good at it!” says Heather. Of course they have sprinkled in their own flavours, offering Lemon Myrtle Chicken alongside
the obligatory Crêpes au Chocolat. This side of the business gives them an alternative ‘hot food’ offering at the often competitive farmer’s markets and Greg is currently building a customised food van to streamline their market trips. Heather is thrilled that this new commercialgrade cooking space will also give her the opportunity to sell some of her home-made cheese – yet another passion in the pipeline.
If variety is the spice of life, then the Salters’ diverse business interests surely offer a flavoursome smorgasbord to keep them happily occupied. Their creative
approach to making a living from their little block of land has recently seen them recognised in the Wheatbelt Business Excellence Awards held in July, where they
took home the winning trophy for a homebased business.
Heather’s philosophy is to keep things simple. “We like to do everything ourselves. We don’t have a lot of money to spend but it works for us. A lot of what we do is a
passion – I can see us working ‘til we’re 90!” You can see the Salter’s full range of spices and condiments as well as try Greg’s delicious crepes at ‘Taste of Chittering’ on
29 August. See pages 10-11 for more.
