Kōanga Institute: Preserving heritage seeds for the future

Kōanga Institute founders Kay Baxter and Bob Corker are joined by a staff of 13.

Kotare Road in Wairoa is home to a remarkable collection of people dedicated to the protection and development of heritage seeds, food plants, and animals, as well as the advancement of regenerative systems for a regenerative future.

Founders of the Kōanga Institute, Kay Baxter and her partner Bob Corker, settled on the 50ha site 15 years ago and reside there with their son and grandchildren.

They are joined by a staff of 13, most of whom live on-site, some with children, while their daughter and several support staff work remotely.

Baxter and Corker, who have featured in two Country Calendar episodes, started collecting heritage fruit trees in the 1980s while living in Kaiwaka.

Baxter realised that the fruit trees that had been brought in by early settlers and were mostly neglected and dying out, were the ones that grew the best and tasted the best in Northland.

She started collecting them, and in doing so began to realise the importance of their stories and whakapapa.

After many years living in Kaiwaka, they decided for many reasons to find a more suitable place to operate.

They travelled around New Zealand, expecting to find a base in the South Island, but they settled in Te Kura Whenua on the East Coast.

“We loved it so much we started looking around and found this land,” Baxter said.

“We absolutely love it because it’s like traditional rural New Zealand and completely different from big cities.

“People smile, talk and support each other!”

A key factor in their decision-making was physical isolation, as they didn’t want to be too near any horticultural ventures.

This was to avoid contamination by a crop that had been genetically engineered or accidental contamination by bees.

Bees can cross many of their crops, including pumpkins, and brassicas.

Foxtail millet

It was just after the Chernobyl nuclear accident in April 1986 that Baxter’s life took a new turn.

The realisation that the bulk of New Zealand’s seeds were sourced from Europe, much of which was then covered by nuclear fallout, highlighted that the country had no seed security and was vulnerable to overseas events.

Her mission was to save seeds that she could grow that weren’t contaminated.

“We’ve got to keep the seeds alive; heritage seeds are the key to our future.

Germination testing

“Industrial food isn’t going to maintain our health through the generations.”

Her goal was to connect with old gardeners and save their heritage seeds.

Heritage varieties are far more nutritious and hugely superior to homegrown food from commercial seeds.

“We’ve got to be able to grow them out so people have access to them again.”

The heritage vegetable seed collection numbers more than 800 and there are more than 400 varieties of New Zealand heritage fruit and berries.

Mennonite, white popping and Rūātoki black sorghum

Over the years Baxter has also collected an incredible number of endangered grains such as millet, barley from other countries, wheat, sorghum, and New Zealand heritage corn seeds to name but a few.

“The old grains used to be quite different grown for home gardeners - over the years they’ve been changed to suit modern production methods.

“Old grains are far more nutritious and tastier.

“Every year it costs about $1500 to grow a seed line out and this year we will be holding a special grain grow-out.”

The grow-out will happen this summer and the seeds are ultimately offered for sale.

The institute has struggled, what with Covid and nine floods, as has the whole East Coast.

Much work has gone to improving drainage and off-grid seed driers, and the gardens are looking productive again.

Find out more at Kōanga Institute’s website, or their Facebook page.