A passion for the land, grown in a field of roses

Zoë Field (right) with her mother Sue. Pictures supplied by Zoë Field

Field of Roses is a hidden gem in the natural beauty and rural charm of the Waingake Valley, just south of Gisborne.

Mother and daughter team Sue and Zoë Field live, love and breathe the seasonal life cycle of flowers and the land.

Field of Roses is a boutique flower farm and floral design studio that has sprouted since its inception in 2011. Timing, trust, groundwork and diligence have been integral in the growth of the flower farm.

The flower-growing operation occupies the upper levels of the large family farm, which once housed grape vines. Sue’s many years of experience working on and with the land, along with her extensive knowledge of soil conditions, has been invaluable in the art of growing garden roses and annual blooms.

“The shallow topsoil in the upper terraces consists of Taupō ash and beneath that is a heavy clay that doesn’t drain well when it’s too wet, so mulching and feeding the soil is a big part of our growing,” Sue says. “We also have a seedling shed for propagating and a tunnel house which allows us to grow from seedlings and to extend the growing season.”

The mother/daughter pair work side by side and much of the work is planting, tending, picking and designing from spring through to autumn.

Roses have been the predominant crop, with hundreds of garden roses keeping them busy throughout the year. Their first root stock of roses were planted in 2011 and they kept the flower market humming by supplying authentic garden roses and annuals in the early years of their business. The flowering annuals include a mix of the classics – sweet peas, foxgloves, dahlias, zinnias, poppies, clematis, to name just a few.

The focus of the business has shifted in recent years to specialise in supplying wedding flowers, facilitating onsite floral design workshops and the release of their flower- inspired book Lost & Found.

Zoë, as a trained florist with a passion and flair for design, creates wedding bouquets, table arrangements and floral arches.  She recently created a romantic mix of flowering annuals and orchids for Jacinda Ardern’s wedding bouquet and designed the table arrangements for the wedding reception.

The floral design workshops morphed of their own accord. Zoë created an Instagram page in the early years to promote their business via social media, which led to the creation of workshops. She was contacted by a florist in the United States who wanted to come to their flower farm to host workshops. People travelled from different countries to attend a series of international workshops held between 2016 and 2019 in the Waingake Valley.

The rustic on-site studio was built by Roly, Zoë’s father, and the third person in the equation of the family-run business. Roly is “the all-round handy dad, always helping where he can, whether it’s building sheds, irrigating the fields, moving fences, or mowing lawns”, Zoë says.

The studio offers an authentic, comfortable and peaceful space for creative floral design to unfold.

Since the initial flurry of those overseas workshops, Zoë has teamed up with another local flower grower and florist, Rhonda of Flora Forms, to deliver a range of workshops that cater for florists and flower lovers alike.

Once the growing, picking and floral design season has ceased, the ensuing autumn and winter months are filled with catching up on weeding, mulching and tending to the flower beds in preparation for planting for the new season ahead.

“We work with the seasons creatively; every season brings something new and different from the last one and we love that,” Zoë says.