Welcome to Purple Pear Organics

Overview

the garden entrance.

Purple Pear operates on 14 acres just outside Maitland in the Hunter Valley. The aim of the farm is to produce sustainable outcomes on a small scale agricultural endeavour. We have a market garden designed along the principles of a mandala garden and are establishing table olives and grapes as well as nut trees to supplement the food boxes we distribute in a community supported agriculture box system to the local community.

The operation

To make the system function to its potential we practice permaculture, through design and striving to follow the ethics and principles, and biodynamics through the application of the biodynamic preparations and use of the planting calendar. The aspects of organic growing inherent in permaculture and biodynamics have been practiced here for many years especially through association with the Hunter Organic Growers.

Education

We share the knowledge we have gained and the model we have produced at Purple Pear, through education sessions run as field days, permaculture design courses and guided tours of the property. We will soon add biodynamics.

Conclusion

Working at Purple Pear is very rewarding, although the return on investment in time and money is slow. We acknowledge the contribution of friends in the Hunter Organic Growers and in the Hunter Biodynamic Group and the efforts of WWOOFers. Without these communities it would not have been possible to achieve the levels of development we have achieved.

 Mandala Market Garden

 

Testamonial

Having fiddled around in my garden for many years with varying degrees of success, I realised I actually didn't understand how growing food really worked... and neither did my friends. So I gathered them up and together we did the PDC course with Mark and Kate.  It was a fabulous experience on many levels. Not only did we begin to understand the process but we applied it as well. Through practical projects on the farm and ceating designs for our own backyards,  the principles of permaculture slowly took hold in our minds and our imaginations. Mark's teaching style may be laid back but it's built on a base of extensive knowledge as well as practical wisdom and experience. Too bad about his jokes, but hey, you can't have everything. All that should have been enough but there was more.  We also spent time hanging out on the verandah eating Kate's delicious home-cooked food, having a cuppa or three and talking through ideas with other like-minded souls.  The course was a truly satisfying experience on many levels and the practices I've learnt have helped me enormously in designing my gardens and growing food organically.  When the course was over, we formed a group to continue the experience. The Gardening Goddesses gather each month in someone's garden and work on a project together. We've built frogponds, a rock wall, chook domes, compost heaps, many raised vegetable beds, planted out heaps of seedlings and given TLC to neglected plots. We've shared seeds, cuttings, seedlings, successes and failures. So the tradition lives on and so of course do the delicious morning teas. Thanks Mark and Kate for so generously sharing your knowledge and your home. The ripples in the pond continue to spread as a result.

M Beckett

Subscribe for updates by email

  First name (required)
 
  Last name (required)
 
  E-mail (required)
 

 

More Events here

Mth

Date

Event

Feb

4

Farm Tour.

 

18

Farm Tour

Mar

3

Farm Tour

 

10

Workshop Sourdough Bread

 

24

Workshop Cheese & Yoghurt

Apr

21

Farm Tour

 

28 29

Workshop - Intro to Biodynamics

May

12

Farm Tour

 

19

Day1 PDC (Weekends)

 Jun

24

Last day PDC

 

30

Farm Tour

Jul

7

Wksp Prune & Graft

 

7

Wksp Propagation

 

14

Farm Tour

 

21

Wksp Compost

 

28

Wksp Worm Farming

 Aug

11

Farm Tour

18.19

Wksp Intro to Permaculture

Sept

15,16

Wksp Backyard Gardens

 

22

Farm Tour

 Oct

6

Farm Tour

 

15 - 26

PDC Intensive Permaculture Design Course

 Nov

3

Farm Tour

10

Wksp Keeping Chickens

 

Internships now available.

Learn permaculture by doing. There will be elements of formal learning and practical excersises and tasks.

More information is available here.

For a hands on practical permaculture experience.

Transition Towns - Maitland.

We now begin to raise awareness of the transition movement with a view to establishing a local group. Contact us to find out how you can be involved in this grass roots movement to redesign our commuinty to thrive in a post oil community.

Farm Tour.

Starts 10 am

By appointment. - $15 per head

Length of tour aprox 2 hours

next scheduled tour is

Living Skills WORKSHOPS