We moved to Tasmania almost five years ago to start a hazelnut farm.
There is no farm yet, but we have visited lots of farms in our research (let’s just say we’re still in the research stage). Before we moved to this incredible island, Harvey spoke to hazelnut farmers around the country. The couple who made the biggest impression were the Frenchs, who moved to Tasmania (like us, just a few years before) and established Hazelbrae at Hagley. They planted thousands of hazel trees and we’ve watched it grow in the time we’ve been here.
Almost a year ago Hazelbrae was sold to new owners, who have since worked hard to build the business. This has included finding buyers for their latest harvest and a running a series of open days.
The open day we attended included a treasure hunt through the orchard to find the golden hazelnut. Needless to say, the boys had a ball reading the clues and then following directions to the next hint, finding the odd fairy along the way.
Harvey loved walking through Hazelbrae’s pretty gardens and chatting with new owner Christie and I was soaking up the atmosphere wondering what if.