No-dig style out of left field for Waipu market gardeners

No-dig proponents Gus and Jen Ross of Left Fields market gardens, Waipu. Photo / Donna Russell

The no-dig style of farming is paying off for market gardeners Gus and Jen Ross, of Waipu.

The Left Fields owners produce a wide variety of vegetables and flowers on their 4.5ha property in Mountfield Road, off State Highway One.

Weeds are smothered with tarpaulins for several weeks before the ground is covered in a thick foundation of cardboard, organic matter and compost.

Wood chip pathways separate the 10-metre garden beds, 150 garden beds of which are dedicated to growing vegetables and 30 for cut flowers. Another 20 garden beds are being developed.

The couple pursued a dream of a self-sustaining lifestyle after quitting their jobs in Auckland about two years ago.

"We had good jobs but we were like ships passing in the night. We both travelled a lot for work,'' Jen said.

They knew they wanted to pursue a different pace of life on the land but were initially unsure what they wanted to do and had decided to take six months to come up with a plan.

However, the idea of market gardening quickly took root.

Gus said they had always had a passion for gardening, having been brought up with families that always had large vegetable gardens.

"We knew we would be growing for ourselves, so we thought why not grow for others as well?'' he said.

Gus Ross with the milking cow and breeding cow, another of their self-sustainability measures. Photo / Donna Russell

They laugh about going "a bit crazy" with seed selections at first.

"We'd been to lots of farmers' markets and wanted to have a much bigger variety for people to buy so that we could be like a one-stop shop for veges. However, we had to rein it in a bit as people still mostly wanted the ones they were most familiar with,'' Jen said.

Their range is still extensive, with about 60 varieties of vegetables and flowers grown on the property.

A pick-your-own-flowers by appointment is a popular drawcard to the property.

Visitors pay for 10-litre or 14-litre buckets and are encouraged to squeeze in as many as possible.

Jen said the PYO experience was "like a flower buffet", with a mix of blooms and foliage including heirloom, old-fashioned and fragrant varieties.

"The cutting helps me manage the flowers as the plants need regular cutting to keep producing, so the visitors are doing the work. But they love it,'' she said.

"We have all sorts of groups coming through, including a local florist, birthday parties and brides with their wedding parties,'' Jen said.

"The flowers are perfectly imperfect as they are all grown outside and nothing is sprayed here.''

The couple also have a bed-and-breakfast business, occupying the downstairs wing of their barn-style farmhouse.

A perk for visitors is to browse through the property and buy fresh veges and flowers to take home.

Gus and Jen are also regular hosts for the Waipu Roving Market, where local growers gather to sell their produce.

As well as this outlet, they take orders through their website and social media pages.

"We take orders for Tuesdays and Fridays. People can pick them up or we'll deliver to the car park in Waipū at specified times.

"If people are running late, they get a phone call pretty quickly,'' she said.

The main challenges have been army worms, which have been particularly bad this season.

Jen said their first line of defence against pests was to do nothing and watch what happened.

"We noticed the paper wasps were predators for the army worm and we realised a small orange wasp would also lay eggs in the worms. We'd been removing wasp nests but then we realised they were working for us.''

Solar moth traps have been installed to help combat the worms in their moth stage.

The resident duck patrol was used to combat slugs and snails. Hares were active on the property and were deterred by walls of mesh fencing.

The other main challenge had been torrential rain events, for which they have adjusted and installed more drainage "so that we can sleep at night in a storm".

Gus said with a tank water supply, water had to be managed carefully. A natural spring also runs through the property.

"All of the mulch and the wood chip pathways act like a sponge to conserve water,'' he said.

Keeping the soil constantly covered allows the natural soil processes to regenerate.

Crops are harvested above the soil, leaving roots in the ground to become compost under the no-dig regime. Any remaining weed seeds stay dormant as they are not lifted to the surface with digging.

"There is a huge amount of activity in the soil. We can see the improvement with our own eyes,'' Gus said.