So we headed for the hills. We compromised between his desire for a rural retreat and my desire not to have an impractical commute to our respective jobs. So we bought a 1/4acre block in an hills suburb of Adelaide.
However, being the hills, the block is hilly and I refer to the backyard as the North Face of Everest in frustration that there was no where flat enough to make a vegetable patch that didn't involve crampons to reach.

Enter a landscape designer and some contractors.
The large pinus radiata, which dominated the garden and made growing vegetables and fruit almost impossible, have been removed, along with almost all the other weedy vegetation. Large terraces have been created along the north side of the block for vegetables and fruit trees. The result is something resembling an open cut mine.
But the potential has been created for a fecund and productive garden of fruit, herbs, vegetables and indigenous species.