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OUR STORY: ZADOW | 15
H Y D R O S M A R T

Zadow family

LOCATION: GALGA
FARMING SINCE: 1875
OPERATION: Cropping and sheep

BY LIAM WORMALD Johann and his wife had their hands full with
eight children, which included the second
EARLY 150 years on, the Zadow family generation farmer of the family, Gustav Reinhold.
at Galga are in the rare position of Gustav and his wife Pauline Alwine had 11
Nstill farming the land taken on by their children, including third generation farmers Victor
ancestors. and Murray Reinhold.
Three generations are still involved with the farm, They would end up selling their 7486-hectare
headed by Mandy and Darren (Fred) Zadow, their property and 80 horses for an average 10 pounds
three children Emily, Cameron and Bronte, and a head in the 1950s before retiring at Murray
assisted by Fred’s parents, Colin and Anne. Bridge.
The Zadow farming history started in 1875, after Victor and Murray formed a partnership in the
Johann William Zadow travelled to Australia, aged 1920s on a back block at Galga, expanding to a
nine, from Germany in 1845. Kalyan property called Turners Well in the 1930s.
After building his farm up at Pompoota, Johann In 1945, Victor and his wife welcomed their
became the first white man to grow wheat on youngest of six children, Colin Zadow who was
Colin, Anne, Darren, the eastern side of the River Murray, say his born exactly 100 years after his great-grandfather.
Mandy, Bronte and descendents. In 1950, the Zadows purchased a neighbouring
Cameron Zadow property at Galga, previously owned by the
all play in part in Andriske family.
getting the farm to a From a young age, Colin had an interest in
successful standing. farming and farmed with his two brothers Reg and
Robert after their father passed away in 1962.
Colin said he couldn’t wait to get home after
school and work on the farm, preferring that to
his school options, which would have involved
traveling to Karoonda where there was no bus
services.
It was a common theme for kids to not pursue
The Zadow family has seen the
evolution of tractors throughout the an education as they were too valuable at home,
years. Colin said the driving of a tractor Colin said.
had changed considerably in recent The partnership between Colin, Reg and Robert
years. Picture supplied came to an end in 1965 and the land was divided-
up between the three brothers, with Reg and
Robert taking ownership of the Lalirra and Turners
Well properties, while Colin took ownership of the
Reg and his brother Colin formed a
partnership when they first started their Colin Zadow was always eager to work on the farm Galga property.
farming journeys. Picture supplied as a child. Picture supplied Colin said he found the first few years of working
on his grain and sheep farm difficult.
“The first three years were very lean years - in
1966, 1967 and 1968, when we did grow a bit of
a crop, they bought in wheat quotas, so we could
only sow X amount,” he said.
“If you had anything left over, you had to store it
on the farm until they asked you to deliver it.”
The farming journey of Colin did not really find its
feet until 1973, he said.
“We had two years in a row with a 20 inch (328
millimetres) rainfall, and it just rained and rained,”
he said.
Colin met his wife Anne Berger in 1963 and,
soon after setting eyes on each other, they knew
they were destined to be together.
They originally met through Colin’s friendship with
Anne’s brother.
“He invited me over to the farm for tea and she
must have thought ‘that bloke’s alright, I might
hang around’,” Colin said.
Anne had lived three kilometres from Colin’s
property, also growing up on a farm.
Her grandfather was the first person to take up