‘Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose’: Phil’s Gardens to close

Paul and Katrina Russell at the end of their journey at Phil's Gardens. Photo / Paul Taylor

After 43 years of selling fresh fruit and vegetables to the Hawke’s Bay community, Phil’s Gardens has decided to close its doors on October 22.

An increase in production expenses such as fuel, fertiliser, the cost to lease the business and rises in the minimum wage has meant the operation is no longer sustainable for owners Paul and Katrina Russell.

The husband-and-wife team took over the shop from Katrina’s father Phil Young in 2015, and before that, the market garden was owned by Phil’s father.

The decision to close was made a month after they lost 70 per cent of their crops during Cyclone Gabrielle.

“We were putting in 80, 90, sometimes 100 hours a week, and we were barely making minimum wage ourselves,” he said.

Many of the potatoes grown were located around Pākōwhai Rd, which was significantly affected during the cyclone.

“You throw in a couple of bad summers and have the worst cyclone in living memory - it was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” he said.

Phil’s Gardens had established a reputation for fresh produce and had seen many regular faces through the doors.

A highlight for the couple was the ongoing interaction with customers who became friends.

Paul Russell said growing fruit and veges was “pretty satisfying”, and being able to produce something that went from a tiny seed to something people were able to buy was a great feeling.

“We had people all over the country order gherkins through us,” he said.

Phil’s Gardens grew an extensive range of local favourite fruit, as well as vegetables including broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, lettuce, pumpkin, potatoes, coriander, silverbeet, corn, peas tomatoes and gherkins.

“One of the things we will definitely miss are the pick-your-own tomatoes. There is nothing better than freshly grown field tomatoes. The flavour is incredible,” he said.

The young family feels positive about the choice and said they are looking forward to the next chapter and being able to spend more time with their kids.

Katrina Russel has her own range of personalised arts and crafts, including comical toilet paper, that has been sold in the shop at Phil’s Gardens.

Michaela Gower joined Hawke’s Bay Today in 2023 and is based out of the Hastings newsroom. Michaela covers Dannevirke and Hawke’s Bay news, and has a love for sharing stories about farming and rural communities.