HUMBLE BEGINNINGS
Blue Willow Blueberries is a family orchard tucked away in Fairfield. It has become a beloved summer destination where locals enjoy a fun pick-your-own activity, while the fruit is also sold at the farmers market.
From January through to March, their blueberries are available fresh, and when the season ends, frozen blueberries are available to order via the website, while stocks last.
I met Hannah and her parents, Eric and Noreen, to hear their story.
It all began with a wild discovery in what looked like overgrown scrub in the back paddock of their land.
"We just thought it was part of the scrub," Eric recalls.
"But once I started clearing it, with our kids playing around me, I uncovered these beautiful old blueberry bushes absolutely dripping with fruit. It was so satisfying, like uncovering a hidden treasure - the children loved them".
The original orchard was nearly lost to time, buried under creeping vines and weeds. But once the clearing began, during the ripening season, it quickly became clear that the land had potential.
"The birds had been having a feast all those years. We thought, ‘if there are this many berries going to waste, maybe we could actually do something with them’."
It was a matter of learning by doing, as they had little idea about running a small orchard.
"Not a clue, I knew nothing about blueberries," Eric says.
The peaty southern soils and the micro climate in their particular corner of Fairfield proved ideal for blueberries, so more bushes were planted.
Still, not every variety is suited to the south.
"Some bushes in the old block never ripen - they’re better suited for further north," Noreen explains.
"The North Island gets a longer season. Here it’s shorter, usually from early January through to the end of February or early March."
What followed was a balancing act, raising children and holding down day jobs while slowly building up a small pick-your-own operation.
Word spread organically, loyal regulars returning year after year.
When Hannah and husband Vinnie came home from living overseas, they joined the farm, officially taking over two years ago. They started marketing on social media and everything changed.
"It just went absolutely crazy," she says, laughing.
"One day we had over a thousand people through in a matter of hours. It was chaos - people picking green berries, stripping the bushes bare. We couldn’t open for weeks afterward."
That day was a turning point. Overnight, the family had to pivot to a booking system to manage the demand and protect the crop.
"Some people didn’t like it and stopped coming, but most understood. We needed to do something to keep it sustainable for the berries and for us."
As demand grew, the family expanded the operation.
"We started selling at the farmers’ market and they were just flying off the tables."
THE ORGANIC CHOICE
What sets the orchard apart is its commitment to organic growing.
"We were hesitant at first, because organic means more work and we were already doing everything by hand. But we felt it was the right thing to do."
Now certified with BioGro, the farm undergoes rigorous annual audits and soil testing. The process took four years, but Hannah believes it is worth it.
"Our berries are hand-picked, hand-weeded and never touched by chemicals. It’s more manual work, as the weeding has to be done by hand instead of spraying with weed killers - but our customers care about what they eat, and so do we."
The fertilisers come from organic sources as well.
"We’ve been working with Superior Minerals to improve our soil. They’ve been amazing - even though we’re small, they’ve supported us every step of the way."
Running a small farm takes real dedication and hard work, it is a lifestyle not for the fainthearted.
"Last Christmas, we were in wet-weather gear, saturated, down on our knees hand-weeding in the mud and rain. At that moment, we definitely wondered if we were nuts," they laugh.
A regular day in-season starts early in the morning for picking and stretches into the late evening, sorting and packaging to be ready for market early Saturday morning. All this while still holding down day jobs and raising kids. Winter is for pruning and improving soil nutrition. So the schedule is busy.
"But people want food they can trust, and that keeps us going," Hannah says.
The berries are large, juicy and full of flavour. Supermarket frozen berries? They don’t compare. The taste difference is incredible.
LOOKING AHEAD
From uncovering overgrown bushes to creating a thriving, sustainable food source for their community, Blue Willow is more than a business. It is a passion project rooted in family, health and a love for people.
"We’re not just growing berries," they say.
"We’re providing a service - something local, something real, something good."
