It takes a lot of energy and a love of the hustle to run a small rural business, as any of the producers in Farmgate Festival will tell you.
The growth of farmers’ markets in Tasmania means it’s now easier to hear direct from those who grow and make gourmet produce. But an opportunity to talk to them on their farm, right there in the paddock, is still rare.
One woman in the Tamar Valley has changed that. In 2015, Carol Bracken, then a hazelnut farmer, won the Rural Woman of the Year award. It was the catalyst in making her “think bigger” about everything, she says, not just her own farm. “It made me think about the whole of agriculture and the bigger picture, and what our region actually needs.”
What the West Tamar needed, in her view, was an event that saw farmers and producers working together, to showcase what they did. She came up with the concept of Farmgate Festival, applied for seed funding and soon the festival was pushing up into the light. Every November, a handful of farms open up for one weekend and the owners give short on-farm tours. This gives those growers and producers a chance to tell their stories directly. And visitors get to see where some of their food comes from, and to understand what living the dream on a small productive property is really like.
The West Tamar’s microclimates and temperate location on the banks of the river have seen it grow into a thriving area, bristling with niche farms and vineyards. “The big advantage of the valley is the variety of farms people can visit in the one weekend,” Carol says. “And they’re all within easy driving distance of each other.”
The farms are at different points in their yearly growth cycle for the festival in November. Olive farms have oil, but berry and walnut producers have flowers. Even so, there is plenty to see, with farmers demonstrating harvesting and growing techniques, hosting tours of orchards, sheds and paddocks, and generally educating visitors.
Niche farming is rewarding, but it’s also labour-intensive and complex, with the producer usually involved along the length of the supply chain from farming to production to sales.
Work can involve long months of pruning fruit vines over winter, standing in a freezing shed grading truffles, washing and drying nuts or pressing kilos of heritage apples in a cider mill.
“They’re all the things you wouldn’t think about unless you actually came here and heard it for yourself,” says Susan Manning, co-owner of Bridgenorth Berries.
Some farms have remained with the festival from year to year, such as Lentara and Village Olive Grove, who coax trophy winning oils from the Tamar’s perfect terroir. New farms keep the mix fresh; this year the Rowella walnut orchard Tamar Valley Organic will offer insights into growing, processing and bringing their crop to market. At Glengarry, dairy farmers tell their inside story – why cows even produce milk, and what happens to calves – with the herd right there in the next paddock.
Vineyards are included in the festival for a glimpse into a different aspect of production. Besides producing cellar-aged wines at Grey Sands Vineyard, Bob and Rita Richter have cultivated a garden which featured in the ABC’s Open Gardens series. Tascargot, the snail farm at Winter Brook, exemplifies a clever, low-input means of value-adding and diversifying. And Waterton Hall opens for the weekend for a rare chance to visit the West Tamar’s historic estate.
At Marion’s Vineyard, co-owner Cynthea Semmens will talk about biodynamic growing techniques on her tour. “There’s growing interest in biodynamics and the need to revisit how we treat our soils, and this brings a new perspective to the festival and opens that conversation,” says Carol Bracken.
Bee keepers Rebecca and Tristan Campbell are passionate about the wider conversation too. The garden beside their Exeter shop, and the glass-sided hives where bees can be see going about their honey-making business, help focus people’s minds on the importance of bees in our ecology.
“Getting up close to animals is a big drawcard,” Bracken says. “When you live in the country, you tend to forget that a lot of people don’t have those opportunities.” Livestock farm Wilmore’s Bluff fills that gap. On a scenic bend in the river Tamar, a tour through the old shearing shed leads out onto pens and paddocks with lambs and calves for festival-goers to get close to.
Many people are curious to find out what it’s really like running a small rural business, says Martin Grace, co-owner of Lentara Grove olive orchard. “Some people will quiz you quite closely, and it’s a good way for them to get tips on where to begin.”
It’s believed Farmgate Festival is the only event of its kind in Tasmania and possibly Australia. Having chaired the event for four years, Carol Bracken moved to the north-west coast to a strategic tourism development role there. She leaves a legacy of interest and goodwill in the Tamar Valley, the day-long, widespread nature of the event across the valley meaning it never feels crowded or rushed. We’ll give her the final word, “These farms are an important part of our economy, and the Tamar is a stunning destination in its own right. It’s great to have a festival that celebrates those two things together.”
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Farmgate Festival takes place on Saturday and Sunday, November 21 and 22, 2020. More at www.farmgatefestival.net.au
Fiona Stocker is a Tamar Valley-based writer, editor and keeper of pigs. She has published the books A Place in the Stockyard (2016) and Apple Island Wife (2018). More of her writing can be seen at fionastocker.com.
