For more than 25 years, the pair have operated Waikouaiti Gardens, a thriving market garden on the coast 30 minutes north of Dunedin. Their nomination praised them as "always service with a smile" with an "amazing variety of fresh produce, eggs and plants," and noted that "Mark will even deliver to my home."
Growing has always been in Mark’s blood. His parents owned a garden centre in Dunedin, and as a schoolboy he sold homegrown cacti and vegetable plants at local markets. While building a banking career that now spans more than 40 years, he also continued nurturing this passion — meeting Lynley along the way, having a family and turning a side hustle into a family business.
The land itself in Waikouaiti has a proud growing history, having been used for market gardening since the 1970s under John and Julie Ollerenshaw. The Hunters have furthered this, recently investing in new tunnel houses to replace ageing glasshouses and introducing modern equipment like an automatic seeder to boost efficiency.
From small beginnings — selling locally from home and through Waikouaiti’s Hammer Hardware — the couple joined the Dunedin Farmers Market in 2003 and later the Oamaru Farmers Market where Lynley was assisted by their daughter. Today they sell a mix of certified organic produce, as well as certified organic and conventional vegetable seedlings and certified organic free-range eggs. Their son has carried on the family’s farming traditions too, rearing heritage hens and continuing a hen breeding business he started as a child.
Lynley’s aunt, Doreen McMullan, is also a fixture at the Oamaru stall, sitting at the back each Sunday to greet customers as they pass by. That personal connection is something the Hunters treasure.
"Seeing repeat customers every week buying our seedlings and fresh produce is a real highlight," Lynley said.
"We also love helping the next generation — offering advice to young people and hearing how their vegetable plants are going is really rewarding," Mark said.
Post Covid, they adapted to offer contactless deliveries, a service some customers still rely on today
"I work in Dunedin most days so it’s no problem to detour a few minutes and drop plants or produce off to people who might otherwise not have access to it," Mark said.
While Lynley runs the day-to-day business, Mark has his own tasks in the business. He is particularly interested in soil health and is doing an agronomy paper through the Southern Institute of Technology. The couple also credit Peter Brass, a longtime mentor in the growing industry, for sharing seed knowledge which has strengthened the quality of what they offer.
Looking back, the couple say the greatest reward has been raising their children alongside the garden and seeing them learn the values of hard work and perseverance. Looking forward, they hope to keep improving and evolving.
"We are always learning something and looking for ways to improve," Mark said.
Although they admit marketing and social media are not their strengths and something they would like to do more of, the Hunters have built a strong following through word of mouth and weekly interactions at the markets.
"We love the life we’ve created and we have no plans to slow down just yet," Lynley said.
"Although we probably need to get the work-life balance thing a bit better," Mark added, laughing.
— Alice Scott
