TypeNewspaperDetailsWhen Rosemary Hemphill of Somerset Nursery, Dural attended cookery classes in the 1950s, she did not realise that these lessons would open the gate to a new career for herself and her husband. Some of the gourmet recipes demonstrated in the classes required herbs that were not readily available in stores at the time. Mrs Hemphill persuaded her nurseryman husband John, to grow some of the herbs for her. Before long her classmates were asking for the herbs used in recipes and wanted to purchase them from the small nursery in Dural. When takings at the nursery showed that the herb section was bringing in more money than the regular business, the Hemphills decided to concentrate on culinary herbs and spices.
Customers soon demanded a wider range so John and Rosemary Hemphill decided to import and sell exotic spices as well as their own oregano, rosemary, sage, thyme, mint and parsley under the Somerset label. By 1962 a wide range of herbs were available, attractively packaged in boxes of four selected jars together with a recipe folder or in varnished wood or white lacquered shelves. Pot pourri made from scented lavenders, verbenas and roses dried in the shade and scented with rare essences and oils were available and could be bought in cellophane boxes, or in a range of hand thrown and painted pottery boxes.
As well as providing the family with an income, herbs became an absorbing interest to the couple who built a traditional herb garden behind their cottage. The shop and nursery became a popular and pleasant place for groups to picnic near while listening to talks that combined cooking, garden love and herb mythology. Rosemary did so much research into herbs that she was able to write books on the subject. For many years the Hemphill’s wayside store on Old Northern Road, Dural was open every weekend and gift packages were sold at major stores including Farmers in the city as well as Grace Bros at Chatswood.Date1976PublisherHemphill's Herbs & Spices Pty LtdKeywordsDuralSomerset CottageHemphill Family
