Family's mission to find a better way

A DESIRE to be self-sufficient initially drove Thomas and Nanette Botha to Apinoka farm in the Huon Valley. 

Aet among the rolling hills and winding roads of the valley, Appinoka, is run with regenerative principles and a passion for growing high-quality produce.

The couple found themselves enchanted by the picturesque farmlands of Tasmania during a winter holiday in 2018. 

As they flew over farms in Launceston, Thomas turned to his wife and remarked, “Wouldn’t it be nice to farm in Tasmania?” 

This passing thought soon became a life-changing decision.

Inspired by those aerial views, the Botha’s spent half of their holiday exploring properties in Tasmania.

By 2019, the couple relocated with their three kids to Tasmania and purchased a farm in the Huon valley.

 Believed to be a former apple orchard, the farm had broken fencing, strewn rubbish, degraded soil, and lots of weeds, but the couple saw this as an opportunity to repair the land and began transforming Appinoka into a thriving farm.

“The advice we were given when we first moved here was to burn off all the weeds and bushes on the land, but we decided that wasn’t the way we wanted to go, we knew there had to be a better, more natural way,” Mr Botha said.

“We didn’t want to have to burn everything and then the next day have to put nutrients back in the soil again.”

Instead of burning the weeds, they decided to use livestock like Dorper sheep and cattle to manage invasive species like blackberries.

In the weeks after buying the farm the Botha’s planted over 400 trees to create a shelter belt, built fences and their new home.

Starting from rock and clay, the Botha’s adhered strictly to organic principles, ensuring everything they produced was free from chemicals. 

Originally, the Botha’s aimed for self-sufficiency, growing enough produce to support their family, however, they soon found themselves supplying to the local community. 

It began with strawberries, expanding from a small batch to 9,000 plants, before starting a market garden with staples like carrots and lettuce, supplying local businesses such as Meredith’s in Margate and Eurmarrah. 

In 2022, a “pick your own strawberries” event proved so successful it became a regular occurrence, allowing them to lighten their workload and gauge market demand.

They soon diversified into other crops, including kale, eggplant, chili peppers, and more.

Inspiration for the Bothas’ farming methods came from Richard Perkins, a Swedish farmer known for his regenerative farming practices. 

Mr Botha completed Mr Perkins’ course, which focused diversification and soil health which soon became a value central to their approach, leading them to incorporate a variety of plants and animals into their farm. 

They now have pigs, chickens, sheep, cattle, and bees with each playing a role in maintaining the farms’ balanced ecosystem.

“We are trying to do as much diversification as we can,” Mr Botha said.

Mr Botha said their keen focus on soil health guides almost all of their decisions.

“We see weeds as indicators of soil health and use them as an assessment of our soil to diagnose issues.”

“As soon as you have healthy soil and healthy plants then the weeds won’t grow.”

The farm will soon grow productive trees like apricots and asparagus— which they will be doing organically which isn’t commonly done.

The Botha’s have managed to increase soil diversity by using a custom-made seed mix with 34 different species on their land.

“We continually spread the seed mix everywhere there is open space and that increases diversity in the soil and the landscape.”

Another technique they have adopted is the keyline method, a landscaping technique that increases water retention and distribution.

“The keylines are rippled lines that are dug into the soil that slow the water down, it averages water usage, and the water gets drained to the areas that are dry,” Mr Botha said.

Mr Botha said the keyline method is ideal for Tasmania’s hilly country and save them time in the long run.

The method has significantly improved their bottom paddock, which is now green and vibrant without irrigation— a stark difference to what the land looked like when they first arrived.

Efficiency is a guiding principle for the Botha’s, allowing them to manage the farm while working their full-time jobs, the Thomas an engineer and Nannette a teacher.

They practice “lean management” to minimise wasted resources, time, and effort and focus on people first. 

“When we do something, we try to do it at a certain quality level so we can reduce the time we spend doing it,” Mr Botha said. 

“If we have quality products and our workflows are all supporting each other we’ll have a much better system.”

Mr Botha emphasised their consideration of “people-first” when it comes to their produce.

“When we produce food, we are producing food for our people and for ourselves, so if it’s not good enough for us, we won’t sell it to the public.”

As well as running the farm, the Botha’s take farm tours to showcase their practises, healthy farm animals, and educate others who may be interested in sustainable farming.

These tours are tailored to their guests and provide a unique glimpse into the workings of Appinoka.

“The main reason we’re doing them is to show people where their food is coming from, it’s also been really nice to showcase what we’re doing and that we’re not just food producers.”

“Seasonality is massively important to us and that’s one of the things with our farm tours that we want to share.”

“I mean, you can’t even grow bananas in Tasmania so it’s about what’s available here and what’s in season.”

Mr Botha also hopes the tours will spread a message to those wanting to do something similar that it is possible.

“We both have full-time jobs and we’re here, so it is possible, it just comes down to consistency.”

Looking ahead, the Botha’s plan to expand their pasture-raised egg production and diversify their crops further, continuing to supply good quality food to the community. They also aim to establish an orchard for grapes and other fruits like pomegranates and loquats.

Currently, they offer farm gate pickups for local customers and participate with the Tasmanian Produce Collective, distributing produce boxes across the state.

“We’re not specialised market gardeners supplying high-end restaurants, we just want to supply to the community.”

 The feedback they receive is fuelling their passion for what they do.

“A big satisfaction for us is having people come here and say wow these are the best strawberries or potatoes or carrots I’ve ever had.”

“We’ve had some older people taste a vegetable and tell us it tastes like it did when they were young, so that does make me concerned with what has happened with food production over the last 50 years.”