A Decade of Growth: Early Summer Tour at Roebuck Farm + Welcoming Jean-Martin Fortier Back to NZ
It’s hard to believe it’s been 10 years since Jean-Martin Fortier first came to New Zealand. That first visit lit a spark — inspiring dozens and dozens of growers to set up small farms just like ours. His work shaped the direction of market gardening in Aotearoa, and it shaped us too.
Next week, JM returns to Taranaki, and we’re honoured to host him for a sold-out full-day event here at Roebuck Farm. The following day, he’ll give his Transforming Communities keynote at Green School NZ, the only public New Zealand event before he and Jodi head to Australia.
Tickets for the Green School talk are still available.
As we prepare for his visit, we wanted to share a look at where we’ve come in the past decade — from a hobby plot to a financially secure, high-output market garden that now direct markets everything within 10 km of the farm. Our produce moves into New Plymouth through a dozen local outlets, and our systems continue to evolve each season.
This early-summer farm tour gives a glimpse of what’s happening right now:
Greenhouses & Crop Updates
Cherry Tomatoes
Our first greenhouse build in full production.
The cherry tomatoes were seeded in August, transplanted six weeks later, and are climbing the QLIPR system from the Netherlands — a setup we love for its efficiency and ease of handling.
We’re growing two favourite cherry varieties and expect to start picking mid-January for retail and restaurant customers across town.
Baby Leaf Salad
Salad sales have been strong these past ten weeks.
We grow 100 kg of baby leaf mix every week, year-round, something we’re proud to maintain even through a challenging spring. Expertise from growers like JM — and foundational texts like The Market Gardener — have played a huge part in building resilient systems.
Microgreens
Our tiny microgreens house punches well above its weight.
Daikon and radish are cycling through in 6–7 days at this time of year.
This single small greenhouse produces an incredible 2,500 kg of salad annually, supplying only the New Plymouth area.
Cover Crops & On-Farm Fertility
Last autumn we expanded our cover crop diversity in a big way — drilling mixes through the five-row Jang and letting them mature over winter.
- Tic beans (a prolific nitrogen fixer and carbon builder, small enough to direct seed)
- Ryecorn, a new favourite for its winter ground-covering habit and strong tillering
- Wheat, barley, oats, and nitrogen-fixing allies
- Phacelia, bringing colour, pollinators, and structure
All this biomass is now becoming on-farm compost. We produce 100% of the compost for our greenhouses and field production — a huge step toward regenerative, closed-loop fertility.
Cucumbers in the New Greenhouse
We harvested our first cucumbers yesterday, grown again on the Qlipr system (now in year three).
It’s fast, ergonomic, and makes both the growing season and end-of-season cleanup dramatically easier.
Expect cucumbers available across town from next week.
Looking Ahead: JM Fortier in Taranaki
Jean-Martin often talks about his mentor Eliot Coleman, and we’re deeply thankful to have been mentored by both of them. Their influence has shaped not only our systems but our philosophy — grow well, grow simply, grow with integrity.
His Transforming Communities talk at Green School on Friday will explore how small-scale growers can rebuild local food systems and strengthen communities — something we believe in wholeheartedly.
We can’t wait to welcome you next week, celebrate what’s been built, and keep growing the movement together.
