Top of the south growers triumph
Top of the south growers have hit the horticulture awards jackpot, with Meryn Whitehead winning the Young Grower of the Year, and Miriana Stephens coming away with Horticulture New Zealand’s President’s Trophy.
Whitehead beat five other contestants in the competition, in which growers were put to the test on a range of skills, from soils to spreadsheets.
‘‘It was unexpected, [it was a] tough competition, but I’m quite proud,’’ Whitehead said.
The national competition was geared towards the business side of horticulture – the calculations and Excel spreadsheets used in allocating finances and wages, and health and safety issues: making sure everyone was safe at work.
Whitehead, 28, is a supervisor at Vailima Orchards, which grows several varieties of apples, some of which end up in the local Pak ‘n Save, while others are sent across the globe.
Whitehead’s background was in zoology, doing a degree in the subject at university in the United Kingdom.
She was looking to do practical work in the outdoors that she could take travelling with her. After arriving in New Zealand eight years ago, she ‘‘stumbled’’ into horticulture while doing seasonal work.
‘‘I thought I’d get a job sort of just pruning as it were, and they never got rid of me. They can’t get rid of me, I love it too much. It just sort of hit all the things I was looking for in a career.’’
In terms of global warming, Whitehead said growers were going to have a lot of challenges, but New Zealand was in the lead with new growing techniques.
Whitehead said growing apples well involved a lot of research. ‘‘You can’t sort of just wing it.’’
Nelson grew some great apples, she said, thanks to the soil and the conditions.
The region had another win in Miriana Stephens taking out the President’s Trophy. Stephens is a director at the Wakatū Incorporation.
The trophy recognises people with a passion for working on behalf of the horticulture industry, as well as a commitment to developing as a business leader and successful grower.
Wakatū Incorporation grows apples, kiwifruit and pears in its Motueka orchards under the business Kono.
‘‘To Miriana, business is not just commercial – it involves being a kaitiaki of the whenua and moana, as well as being commercially responsible,’’ said HortNZ president Barry O’Neil.
Stephens said she loved the horticulture sector as well as Aotearoa, but it was tough out there at the moment.
‘‘That is why we must work together as a sector to realise our potential.’’