Basil and Trudi Meyer
We hail from Switzerland and emigrated to New Zealand in 1987.
Initially, we were sharemilking in the North Island before purchasing a dairy farm in the Grey Valley on the West Coast. In 2008, we moved from the West Coast to our orchard in Canterbury to be closer to Christchurch.
We have four sons, but they are not currently involved in the orchard or the adjacent block of land where we rear and finish dairy beef cattle.
Our orchard is called BTM (Basil Trudi Meyer).
We purchased the orchard at the end of 2008 from a couple who had started it a few years prior. Initially, there were roughly 330 trees, and over the first three years, we extended that to the current 1,000 trees.
The main variety we grow is Rex, with pollinators including Tehama, Meyric, and Vina.
Our personal favourite walnut variety is Tehama. They are larger than Rex, easier to crack, and yield nice halves. They have a mild taste and a 'blond' kernel. That is the reason why a block of 100 Tehama was planted back in 2010 together with 100 Meyric.
Both these varieties seem to flower and set earlier than Rex. And then there’s the Purple Walnut!
Apart from walnut trees, we also have chestnuts, hazelnuts, and an abundance of apples, pears, peaches, and plums (both grafted and wild). This provides a welcome variety of homegrown produce for cooking, baking, snacking, and, of course, turning fruits into jam or preserving.
This year, our rather large vegetable garden got a bit neglected due to a lack of hours in the day and some health issues. However, our dozen free-range hens continue to provide us with eggs and forage in the orchard block nearest their run.
Our inspiration to get involved in the walnut industry came from the late Frank and Margaret Brenmuhl, who were among the pioneers setting up the walnut industry in New Zealand. They were tremendous supporters of walnuts and encouraged us along the way.
Our orchard is certified organic (BioGro). The main source of nutrients we use is Certified Organic Compost made by Living Earth from green waste, supplemented with foliar sprays made up of fish fertilizer, seaweed, and other nutrients.
We also have a small flock of sheep which graze the walnut blocks for as long as permitted. This reduces mowing/mulching requirements substantially, and the sheep convert grass into manure. The lambs are a welcome source of meat for our families.
There is no typical day here. It varies throughout the season. The only really busy time is during harvesting and pruning.
The biggest challenges are root rot, walnut blight and rodents. But at the end of the season, it is a great and rewarding feeling harvesting those beautiful nuts.
Basil eats walnuts every day at lunch in his muesli. He enjoys baking with them, trying new recipes and different ways to incorporate walnuts into their daily lives.
Once the daily jobs are done, Basil likes to spend time in his woodwork shop turning bowls, plates, vases and other things with (of course) walnut wood, but also Oak, Italian alder, Acacia (Wattle), Macrocarpa and whatever looks interesting.
Trudi likes to listen to music, reading and trying her hand at crochet, sewing. Puzzles are a passion, but she sometimes needs assistance from their sons and daughters-in-laws.
She enjoys spending time looking after and playing with their grandchildren which is always a lot of fun.
Trudi keeps the books up to date for the orchard, helps with stock work and of course harvesting, she is fully part of the team of 2!
Hello from the Meyer family!
