This young lemon tree is already giving Bea Spraggs lemons. Photo / Catherine Fry
This young lemon tree is already giving Bea Spraggs lemons. Photo / Catherine Fry
In 2018, Bea Spraggs wound up her catering business and moved with her husband and children to the Waitetuna Valley near Raglan.
The family had no definite plan in mind as to what they would do next; they just had a desire to set up some sort of sustainable businessfrom home.
“We’d always lived out of town and the three-acre (1.2ha) block, with its Waitetuna River boundary and mature fruit trees, ticked all the boxes, including proximity to Hamilton,” Bea said.
“I enjoyed the little break, but as our many trees on the new property came into fruit, I started bottling it, along with other local people’s excess fruit, which was a great way to meet people.”
Bea had worked in cafes for a long time, then in her catering business, and is an experienced cook.
Before Covid-19, Bea had been getting to know like-minded local people interested in starting a growers market in Raglan, supplying the community with their produce and products.
“We had Zoom meetings through the lockdowns and were getting organised to hit the ground running once we were out of lockdown.”
For two seasons, Bea made and sold preserves, marmalades, pickles, sauces, relishes and oils at the Raglan Growers Market and Hamilton Farmers Market.
More fruit trees were planted around the property, especially heirloom varieties, ensuring a self-sufficient source of fruit in future.
“As I got more serious about growing a preserving business, we invested in turning our kitchen into a certified commercial kitchen.”
No lifestyle block is complete without free range chickens. Photo / Catherine Fry
The shed was quickly over-run with five extra-large freezers, enabling Bea to keep preserving out of season, providing consistent products.
The house has been taken over by utensils and boxes of preserves, and the roof has an array of new solar panels to soften the electricity bill.
Bea Spraggs picking oranges for her preserves. Photo / Catherine Fry
Frost in the valley stops Bea from growing certain fruit and vegetables.
She’s happy to outsource for some items, such as tamarillos, within the Waikato, so she knows the fruit is spray-free.
During lockdown Bea perfected a Spicy Indian Carrot Chutney recipe using carrots she was unable to sell, and it won her a Bronze at the 2024 New Zealand Artisan Awards. Photo / Catherine Fry
“I use blood and bone, and sheep and chicken poo as fertiliser, and dig it into the soil around August and plant in October/November.
“We have great soil, full of big worms.
“If needed, I spray pests with boiled garlic and chilli solution, and I spray dissolved baking soda on fungal issues like mildew.”
Bea sells her preserves at the Cambridge and Clevedon Farmers Markets and online through her website, Foraged in Raglan.
