1927 Alf B7C1 and Tilly selected 790 acres in the Mallee

 For seventeen years after they were married in the Lutheran church in Gawler , Alf and Tilly worked on land near the family homestead area west of Kangaroo flat, raising up one girl and six boys, lots of flowers, yeast streusel kuchen, pasties and watermelons.

By the early 1900’s, though, the Modras had outgrown their small allotment, and were looking for new opportunities for growth and development. Many of Alfs brothers were seeking to make a living on 100 acres of very sandy and "poor ground" to the south of the main homestead . While it must have been tough for these families in this dry country ;-they were used to gardening, but in the more sustainable environment of the Spreewald. However as the 60th anniversary of their Dad's wedding showed in 1937, these families continued to relish the new opportunities in their new homeland. 
Not to be deterred by more mere hard work, this mature age couple, and their large teenage family, moved off to clear some more mallee scrub in the tradition of their father and grandfather. 

Their youngest son Max has compiled a outline of their life on an even drier farm of 800 acres in a booklet titled "On the Farm at Bambill ( July 2006)  You can read more in the Modra family book about the next move to Melbourne in 'Below the white blossom and abundant fruit " by J.L. Modra.