WE ARE ARTISAN GROWERS, GROWING YOU THE FRESHEST BEAUTIFULLY HANDCRAFTED FLOWERS & PLANTS
Hi my name is Angelique and I have two hugely creative sisters who work with me; Monique and Mieke, whom share my love and passion for natural fresh flowers and plants the way nature intended.
2015
I had the opportunity to start growing on a Farm in Kumeu. I am a Qualified Landscape Architect by trade and was looking for growing houses to grow many of my plants I had collected over the years while landscaping! This farm wasn't quite what I was looking for..'just a small little greenhouse tucked away somewhere was just fine for me'! I never dreamed I would be growing on a farm of this size (but its still quite small in the scale of things!), It was a big leap to take, and I was a bit nervous, (nothing that a glass of bubbles couldn't fix!) so, after much convincing (alot actually) I decided to take this challenge on.
And a few years down the track and Boy what a learning curve it has been! I had been used to growing outside and growing tough, hardy Native Plants, but what I was taking over included cut flower roses, that were grown hydroponically in a very old system.
My son is a great fixer of anything! His eyes gleamed when he saw a run down old greenhouse with mud pits for drainage! And that was just the start, and boy did I need his help!
Some of the changes we have made were to move some of the roses from the old (but costly to run) hydroponic systems back into soil beds, and also increased the varieties with new Garden and Old Fashioned large flower heads, with exquisite perfumes. And the most amazing revelation is the roses we moved from the hydroponic system to the soil beds are now sweetly scented with delicate perfume. What an exciting discovery that has been!
2023-2024
After nearly nine great years at Station Road our lease came to an end so we started to relocate to my home on Herald Island, just 15 minutes away. The picturesque Herald Island is in Auckland's Upper Waitemata Harbour. We still continue to grow our beautiful floribunda roses and seasonal flowers in a more natural way that nature intended. Much safer for us, you and the environment. Herald Island was once known as Wood's Island after its first European owner, from the 1840s until the late 1880s, and from the late 1880s until the early 1950s, as Pine Island.
In 1953, the island joined the Waitakere Riding of the Waitemata County, having previously not had any form of local government. At this time, the island's name was officially changed to Herald Island. The first fruit trees in the Upper Waitemata Harbour area were planted at Herald Island in 1847, and by 1922 the island had become a popular location for picnickers and day-trippers to visit by ferry. The island was linked to the mainland by a causeway in 1957, for which Waitemata County Council charged residents a special rate of 5·878d.(Don't worry though there's no charge to cross the causeway today)There are 275 houses on the island, which has a walkway around its perimeter. The island is almost entirely residential, with no shops but some small home-based businesses like Kumeu Flower Farm so we look forward to seeing you soon!
We are continually trialing new flower crops on our little farmlette, to see what grows well so we can offer a special and unique range of cut flowers to the local community. We are not about what is growing in the latest fad or what is popular, we just want to grow what nature will let us (or tell us!) to grow! There have been lots of failures, but also lots of new discoveries too, which is so exciting and rewarding. We are adding to our collection as we create more beds, and as time allows. Its a slow process but definitely a rewarding one.
We will open our U-Pick again in early Summer 2024/2025. If you want to get an early bird ticket for the U-Pick make sure you get one here as the prices will not remain at this price for long. Cant wait to see you soon!