There’s a new farmgate open on Phillip Island and it’s attracting a lot of attention, from locals and visitors alike.
Phillip Island Strawberries looks a little like something from a fairy tale.
Its magical forest of strawberry trees has row after row of vertical towers of plants, with baskets filled with plump and luscious rich, red strawberries.
Roger and Faye Morris’ unique hydroponic vertical tower growing system is as efficient as it is attractive.
This boutique farm near Wimbledon Heights has 4000 strawberry plants in a space not much bigger than the average backyard. Each tower has 40 plants and is watered by a custom-built irrigation system, thanks to Roger’s years of experience as a plumber.
The strawberries are grown in coir – a recycled coconut husk – rather than soil.
“Strawberries are very susceptible to soil borne disease, so growing them in coir takes away that risk,” Roger explained.
“We feed them the nutrients they require, the accurate amounts of what they need.”
The whole enclosure is netted, to keep out the pests (but still let in the bees) and there are no herbicides or pesticides used on the berries.
Roger discovered the tower system from a Canadian who was using it in his backyard.
“I did some research and tracked down the company that made the planters.
“We started out with ten, shipped from the USA, to see how it went.”
During the Covid lockdown, Roger and Faye got busy in the garden – “we went a lot further than we were going to” – and saw how good the system was.
“It’s the simplest form of hydroponics and the planter does the work for you. You don’t even need to weed it,” he said.
“Phillip Island didn’t have a strawberry farm, so we thought we could offer something that wasn’t available.
“It’s a niche market, entertainment for the kids, and a place to buy fresh produce,” Roger said.
“There’s not going to be a café or a restaurant, there’s enough places on the island that do that.
Fresh and ready to eat
The berries are picked in the early morning or late afternoon, when they are at their red and juicy peak. They are then packaged up and sold to eager customers.
Unlike supermarket berries that are picked before their peak so they can be transported and stored, these berries are fresh and ready to eat.
“You can pick a strawberry earlier, and it will get redder, but it won’t get sweeter,” Roger said.
He advises customers the berries should be eaten straight away.
“Our strawberries are picked to last a couple of days, tops,” he said.
While Covid restrictions put a stop to a “pick your own” experience, Roger said they hope to offer that in the future.
Visitors to the farmgate can also purchase radishes and Lebanese cucumbers, and tomatoes should be on sale within a week.
Current crops also include green and purple beans and snow peas.
Looking ahead, Faye and Roger hope to increase the number of strawberry plants, expand their vegetable selection and they’ve already planted around 60 fruit trees on the farm.
“We’re still experimenting with other plants in the garden.”
Amazing response
In the month since the farm got the all-clear to open – “we got the approval on a Friday and opened the following Tuesday” – Roger said they’ve been overwhelmed by the response.
“We have been blown away by the locals. They’ve been incredibly supportive,” he said, joking he’s met everyone from Wimbledon Heights in the past month.
And due to the overwhelming interest in the vertical tower growing system, these are now also on sale, with Roger happy to answer any questions.
Each week, the visitors to the farm have increased.
“It’s exciting the number of people who’ve come through. I’m blown away that so many people are prepared to go out of their way to come here, just to buy strawberries.”
Phillip Island Strawberries is open Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 10am – 4pm, at 122 Ventnor Beach Road.
Visit their Facebook page for trading times.
Find out more at www.phillipislandstrawberries.com.au/
