Country Life

George and Diana Turney went from tragedy to starting Mangaweka Asparagus three decades ago. After the community came to their aid, they have enjoyed giving back and helping others gain a living from the land.

Listen to the full story on Country Life

When George and Diana Turney's home caught fire in the middle of the night, little did they know the tragedy would set them on the path to growing asparagus.

They lost everything in the blaze but the Taihape community rallied around with goods and funds which enabled the couple to start afresh and buy land in Northland.

With four children to raise and difficulties farming the land, the family had its ups and downs. Meanwhile George had always dreamt of returning to the Rangitikei district.

"I'd learnt this land can grow anything."

The Turneys eventually bought a sheep and beef farm in the Kawhatau Valley, over the river from Mangaweka. Out went the livestock and in came asparagus.

That was 25 years ago and Mangaweka Asparagus now produces up to 250 tonnes of asparagus a season, off 70 hectares.

The Turneys brought in manager Sam Rainey nine years ago and workers from Vanuatu come every year for the harvest.

When Country Life visits, the morning pick is over and the 60-strong team are in the packhouse, weighing and bundling up the spears, music pumping in the background.

Glen Towbah, in his eleventh season, is at the front on quality control.

He weighs the bundles after checking the spears are neatly taped up and of similar size, which ensures the bunch cooks evenly.

"We try to sell the best," he said.

The quality has to be spot on, Rainey says, because their crop comes to the market a little later in the season. They go on harvesting later too, feeding those who are still keen for asparagus after the Christmas splurge.

"You've got to be producing early or producing late to make any money in this industry," Rainey says.

His workers can take back home as much as $15,000 after seven months harvesting asparagus and apples, allowing them to build a well-constructed house, pay school fees and perhaps in time set up a small business.

Their remote workplace in the Kawhatau Valley means they're not tempted to spend too much of their earnings, Towbah said.

The Turneys say it's great to have the team back after the tough Covid years when the men were not allowed in and there weren't enough hands to harvest.

But this year has been tough too with lower demand and oversupply because of the various growing regions peaking at the same time.

All parts of the farm have been mowed down at some stage this season in order not to flood the market and depress prices further…

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Eleven rare equine breeds, including the only black Percheron in the country, are on display in a quiet and sunny corner of the Canterbury A&P Showgrounds.

Horse enthusiasts and curious onlookers gathered at the Canterbury A&P Show to witness a spectacular display of rare equine breeds this week.

Listen to rare horse enthusiast Liselle Silver on Country Life

Among those showcasing their horse was organiser Liselle Silver, a dedicated volunteer and self-proclaimed hippophile.

As a member of the Rare Breeds Conservation Society of New Zealand and the founding member of the newly established Rare Horse Society of New Zealand, Silver's commitment to preserving and celebrating these extraordinary horses is evident.

She said last year's event featured 14 equine breeds, including a charming donkey.

"This year, we have something special lined up. We'll be welcoming the Tennessee Walking Horses, who will grace us with a captivating roping display."

Among the stars of the exhibition was a majestic Paso Fino, one of only 31 in New Zealand.

"They're known as gaited horses, meaning instead of trotting, they have a unique and smooth alternative gait.

"Riding one of these is a delight; your bum doesn't leave the saddle, no posting required. It's a comfortable experience, and you can ride all day, getting off feeling fresher than when you got on."

Silver described the camaraderie among participants, saying, "We're mostly camping here. Tents, floats tucked in the back of our riding area, and even some brave souls sleeping in the car park.

"It's really fun; we just have a great time. I don't think anyone who was here last year had a bad time."

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Country Life is at an asparagus harvest near Mangaweka and meets some of the harvesters from Vanuatu. The team checks out some rare horse breeds at the Canterbury show and meets a Banks Peninsula farming couple.

Country Life is at an asparagus harvest not far from Mangaweka and meets some of the farm workers from Vanuatu hand-picking and bundling up the crop.

Also, the show finds out about some rare horse breeds at the NZ Agricultural Show in Otautahi-Christchurch and meets a couple living the rural dream on Banks Peninsula.

Listen to this weeks episode of Country Life

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A round-up of the week's agricultural news with RNZ rural news reporter Sally Murphy

A round-up of the week's agricultural news with RNZ rural news reporter Sally Murphy

Listen to this week's wrap of agricultural news

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Pigs, cattle, fruit and honey processing are all part of a sustainable farming business plan for first-time Motukarara farmers, Stacey and Ode Gielen.

Bees and pigs aren't often in the same thought, unless of course, it's honey-cured bacon.

But for the Gielen family, the two species harmoniously coexist as part of their journey to create a self-sustainable farm.

Listen to Stacey and Ode Gielen of Gielen Family Farm

Nestled in Motukarara, south of Christchurch, right next to Lake Ellesmere is where the Gielen Family Farm is located.

Here, Russian-born Stacey Gielen and her Belgian-born husband Ode breed saddleback pigs while also extracting honey not only for themselves but also for fellow beekeepers and hobbyists.

Stacey explains, "It all started with the bees."

"We feel really passionate about the bees and honey and we actually did a beekeeping course back when we lived in town, and it just sort of started from there.

"We started having conversations about what it would be like to have a piece of land, what it might look like, can we grow enough food, what sort of food, and then it's sort of evolved from there."

Stacey says that following the beekeeping course, the couple purchased their own hive and eventually, they turned their hobby into a business.

In 2018 the couple purchased the little block they now call home - but as most could expect, there was a period of trial and error before they settled on bees and pigs.

Ode says they initially started with ducks, turkey and guinea fowl but realised quickly it was not for them.

"If I would do it again I would ask for advice," Ode said.

"And I was always the guy just try it and see what happens. But lesson learned."

Now the couple have nine breeding sows and Boris the "big boy". All are primarily black in colour with long hair and have a white broad band around their torso that gives the pig breed their name - saddleback.

Stacey said she was always fond of the breed due to their friendly temperament.

"And the meat is quite amazing. It's marbled, it doesn't have a lot of fat because they're slowly grown pigs so they don't have that."

The couple breed for saddleback piglets which at three months old would sell for $160.

More recently, the Geiliens have started a two-hectare apple and pear orchard which helps to feed the pigs. However, the manure from the pigs also helps to feed the orchard.

The orchard is part of their grand vision of being self-sustainable and having bees on site only works to enhance that vision. …

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

89-year-old Fraser Ross has been restoring a podocarp forest remnant for nearly half a century. Arowhenua Bush near Temuka was damaged after a severe norwesterly gale struck the district in 1975.

In the quiet expanse of Arowhenua Station, nestled just west of Temuka in South Canterbury, a symphony of nature is playing out.

Thanks to the tireless efforts of one man, Fraser Ross, the once-damaged podocarp forest stands tall once again.

Listen to how one man transformed Arowhenua Bush

In 1975, Fraser Ross, a Timaru pharmacist and devoted Forest and Bird member, took on the challenge of restoring the Arowhenua Bush.

The area had suffered a severe blow nearly 50 years ago when a north-westerly gale wreaked havoc on the podocarp forest, leaving behind a landscape in need of healing.

Undeterred by the sceptics who claimed the damage caused by rabbits would prevent trees from regrowing, Fraser embarked on a journey to rejuvenate the land.

"I was told initially I'd never get trees to grow here because of the damage caused by rabbits, and that proved to be the case.

"But you just don't walk away; you find a solution to that," reflects Fraser.

And find a solution, he did.

Determined to overcome the challenges, Fraser and those around him became pioneers in using tree guards around individual trees.

The initial step involved collecting seeds and propagating them at home. With a touch of beginner's luck, the trees not only grew but thrived.

"It's amazing, really, just the transformation. I've got photos taken over the years of the stages of growth, and that used to be an open area. Now it's completely closed in and special trees there," marvels Fraser.

The Arowhenua Bush project stands as a living testament to Fraser's commitment.

A once barren area now blooms with life, with the lancewood, once reduced to a single tree, now standing proudly, its top hidden from view due to the dense vegetation.

Fraser's conservation efforts extend beyond Arowhenua.

He played a pivotal role in securing the protection of Conways Bush and co-founded the South Canterbury Conservation Trust, actively managing Kakau Bush.

His involvement spans monitoring pests, weeds, and birds, and maintaining walking tracks, exemplifying his dedication to the broader cause of environmental preservation.

The large area of regenerating bush is fenced off now, but to get to it to, one must pass through a couple of paddocks owned by sheep and beef farmer, Stu Bowman, who is full of praise for Fraser.

"The Arowhenua Bush wouldn't be here unless Fraser put in decades and decades of work and we're just fortunate enough to be part of its story."…

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

A round-up of the week's agricultural news with RNZ rural news reporter Sally Murphy.

A round-up of the week's agricultural news with RNZ rural news reporter Sally Murphy.

Listen to this week's rural news wrap

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Country Life meets 89-year-old Fraser Ross, who has been lovingly restoring a podocarp forest remnant for nearly 50 years. Arowhenua Bush near Temuka was damaged after a severe norwesterly gale struck the district in 1975.

Country Life meets 89-year-old Fraser Ross, who has been lovingly restoring a podocarp forest remnant for nearly 50 years. Arowhenua Bush near Temuka was damaged after a severe northwesterly gale struck the district in 1975.

We also take a walk through an olive grove on the bank of the Kerikeri River and we discover the story of Molly Mabel in a shop in Hunterville.

Listen to this weeks episode of Country Life

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

Twenty-five years ago on a Mediterranean island a retired doctor learnt about olives. Now he's brought that knowledge, and the pursuit of their health benefits, to Kerikeri at Puketi Olive Farm.

On the banks of the Kerikeri River, Puketi Olive Farm rests.

It's here where retired doctor, Peter Crelinsten, is cultivating not only the oil from the olives but the health benefits too.

Listen to Peter Crelinsten from Puketi Olive Farm

Peter's connection with olives dates back to the 1990s when he resided on the Maltese island of Gozo, in the Mediterranean.

As he walks through his small grove of 180 trees with Country Life, just outside of Kerikeri in the Far North, he shares he first fell in love with olive trees after learning the plant's history, all while renovating a 500-year-old collapsed farmhouse on the island of Gozo.

"We first started using olives to feed ourselves probably about 7000 BC or 9000 years ago. And that's documented from carbon dating of seeds and pits in Palestine, Israel and Jordan.

"It's a fascinating tree. It's been around a long time. It's the very first tree we actually harvested a fruit from. The second was the fig tree and the third was the pomegranate. So those were the first three fruits that humans started consuming."

He continues that the island and neighbouring states had their trees destroyed through various past conflicts, hundreds of years ago.

So Peter then started planting trees on the island himself.

"If you would have Googled the island of Gozo in the early 2000s there was one green patch on the island.

"That was our olive grove. I think we had the largest grove on the island with 100 trees."

So how did Peter find his way to New Zealand?

Having worked in Russell, in the Bay of Islands, as the doctor during the eighties Peter says New Zealand called him back.

"This was the area of New Zealand I was familiar with. And so we moved back here in 2011 and planted all the trees again."

It's the health benefits that drive Peter's mission. He says extra-virgin olive oil contains a group of compounds known as polyphenols, which contribute to its health benefits.

Peter explains the health advantages become particularly significant when the polyphenol levels are above 250 mg per litre. This year, his oil boasts a polyphenol level of 425 mg per litre. The year before it was 543 mg per litre.

Peter emphasises the importance of early harvesting, explaining, "As the olives mature on the trees, the oil content goes up. But as the oil matures, the polyphenol levels go down." …

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details

A vintage photo of a little girl called Molly Mabel sits above racks of pint-sized traditional woollen jumpers, booties and beanies in a Hunterville shop. Who was Molly and how is she helping to warm up desire for wool?

Five-year-old Molly Mabel, sitting on a shelf amid pint-sized winter woollies, is among three generations of women helping warm up the desire for wool.

The photo of Molly, taken perhaps a century ago, is propped up proudly in the corner of her grand-daughter Kelsey Smith's shop in Hunterville.

The township is in the middle of Rangitikei sheep country where, if you're not careful, you might bump into life-size statues of sheep on the main street as you amble up to Kelsey's store.

Listen to the story on Country Life

Nine years ago Kelsey decided to honour her grandmother by putting Molly's name on her children's clothing label, which features pure New Zealand wool.

Molly was a great cook but it was Molly's daughter, Renae Rutherford, who had the secret talent, Kelsey told Country Life.

She knew her mother was a very good seamstress and knitter and when Renae retired from her previous job, Kelsey said "Have I got something for you to do!"

And so the knitting and sewing began, with Renae crafting little dresses from vintage patterns and knitting tiny old-style brownish-coloured jumpers in natural wool, with Molly's name attached on a label.

"Invoking memories of days gone by."

The label's size range has grown as babies of the first buyers have grown older. Kelsey has taken on another knitter to keep up with demand.

While wool off the sheep's back is going through tough times price-wise, Kelsey is among many trying to keep interest in the fibre alive.

Her shop, Hunterville Village Bookshop, also hosts a Stitch and Yarn group when people, from 10-year-olds to those in their 80s, gather in the evening to knit and crochet.

"People have learned a new skill ... they might have been able to share some yarn or some patterns or a good old-fashioned talking yarn.

"It's brought a really different group of people together that perhaps wouldn't have connected otherwise."

Kelsey says her clothing brand is all about supporting farmers, the wool coming off the land and local people.

"It's based on being rural and rustic and totally exploiting my mother's talents."

She hopes her grandmother, Molly Mabel, would have been very proud.

Go to this episode on rnz.co.nz for more details