In this edition we shine a light on Anna who has supported us with her membership for 10 years. As part-owner of Orths Nursery and Copperhead Wines, she describes a journey which has weathered the challenges of droughts, bushfires and of course the pandemic. Each time, she and her partner Hans have had to pivot to find new ways of doing things. You’ll be inspired by Anna’s triumph over adversity!
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My Journey Through Horticulture
From a young age, I was fascinated by plants. During family holidays, I would collect leaves and seeds, carefully pressing them into books and labelling them—sometimes with their correct names, and sometimes with what my parents believed them to be. Even then, I was unknowingly laying the foundations for a lifelong career in horticulture.
After finishing high school, I applied for a position at Penmain Nursery in Launching Place. At the time, I had no idea this opportunity would shape my future. I commenced a horticulture apprenticeship, immersing myself in plant identification, propagation, and nursery production. Learning botanical names felt like acquiring a new language. One that opened my eyes to an entirely new world.
I completed my apprenticeship in 1988. The following year, due to changes in my employer’s business partnership, Hans and I established Orths Nursery on his parents’ property in Coldstream. Some infrastructure was already on the property so rather than buy tube stock in we propagated everything ourselves. It was a hands-on, grassroots approach that built a strong foundation for our business.
Hans and I married in 1992 and welcomed our first child, Amy, in 1994. Around this time, we transitioned to computerised systems an experience that included the hard lesson of losing an entire year’s data due to inadequate backups. As the market became increasingly competitive and price-driven, we recognised the need to diversify.
In 1996, we started planting our vineyard, beginning with Chardonnay. By propagating and potting our own cuttings before planting them out, we were able to bring vines into production more quickly. Initially, demand for our fruit was strong, and we were optimistic about the future. However, we soon learned that quality winemaking extends far beyond growing fruit. Hand harvesting, whole-bunch fermentation, and wild ferments revealed the depth and complexity of viticulture and winemaking.
By 2009, we were managing a five-acre nursery a 35-acre vineyard and marketing our own wine label Copperhead Wines and raising two children. Although the work was constant, we valued the lifestyle and occasional winter holidays abroad. During one such trip to Austria, we sourced Zweigelt cuttings, which underwent three years of quarantine before being planted in our vineyard.
That same year marked significant challenges. Following a decade-long drought, the devastating Black Saturday bushfires on February 7 brought fires dangerously close to our property. While we managed to save the nursery and vineyard through continuous irrigation, our crop was smoke-tainted and unsellable.
Simultaneously, the nursery business was affected by ongoing water restrictions. Consumer spending on gardens declined, and sales slowed considerably. Traditionally, we had supplied retail nurseries directly, with weekly sales visits and deliveries. Recognising the need for change, we began participating in plant markets. What started as a single market gradually expanded to four, as we refined our product selection and presentation.
The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic brought uncertainty for many businesses, but it proved transformative for ours. We had recently adopted the online platform Evergreen Connect, and when in-person visits ceased, we fully committed to building our online presence, uploading photographs, updating availability, and streamlining digital ordering. Demand quickly accelerated, and we found ourselves struggling to keep up with orders without needing to leave the property.
Today, after many years of growth and adaptation, we specialise in high-quality and less readily available plant varieties. Our customers trust our standards and confidently place orders online, though we also like to attend the monthly trade market to have that invaluable face to face contact.
As we look to the future, we are entering a new chapter, with our children now actively involved in the business. We are excited to see them take the reins and shape the next stage of our journey, building upon the foundations we have worked so hard to establish.
