All Articles

Lynton Downs homestead sits beneath the towering inland Kaikōura ranges, surrounded by mature trees, gardens and rolling farmland. There is a quiet kind of magic about Lynton Downs. Maybe it is the stillness of the hills. The creak of an old homestead staircase. The sight of sheep moving through the paddocks beneath mountain ranges that seem to rise straight out of the earth. Or perhaps it is the feeling that this is a place layered with stories. Built in the 1860s and added

Anna Munro (left) Abbey Mackenzie, and Pete Wilkinson bring a country sound to rural stages across Mid Canterbury. The Landgirls are not trying to be a big band. The Mid Canterbury trio, made up of Anna Munro, Abbey Mackenzie and drummer Pete Wilkinson, play the kind of music that fits where they live. Country leaning, harmony driven, and built for rural halls, pubs and paddock gatherings. “It’s definitely got a bit of a country vibe… just songs that people like hearing. It i

Laura MacDonald says modern homesteading is less about perfection and more about learning practical skills over time. Supplied There is a loaf of fresh bread cooling on the bench, children collecting eggs outside and herbs growing in pots by the door. For many New Zealanders, that kind of life once felt old-fashioned. Now, amid rising food prices and growing interest in slower, simpler living, homesteading is making a comeback. But according to Waikato mum Laura MacDonald of

The Brown Shavers are Emily's "army", a breed known for their consistent egg-laying. It looks like something lifted from the pages of Little House on the Prairie. Or maybe, a scene from ‘The Good Life’. There are chickens scratching in the yard, tomatoes ripening in tunnel houses, herbs hanging to dry in the kitchen, and shelves lined with jars of preserved fruit, pasta sauce, and pickles. A rescue cat patrols the deck while dogs lounge in the sun, unconcerned by the hens wa

A harvest from the garden. What began as a small project has become a steady source of food and flowers. There is something quietly powerful about turning a patch of lawn into something that feeds you. Not in a grand, self-sufficient, off-grid kind of way. Just a few raised beds. A handful of herbs. A couple of rows of vegetables. Enough to change how you cook, how you shop, and how you think about food. That is exactly what Holly van Dam has done. Through her growing online

A red shed sits against the hills near Parnassus (photograph). Bruce Mortimer Bruce Mortimer does not describe his work as rural. But his landscapes will feel familiar to anyone who spends time in open country. Wide horizons, open space, and a single element holding its place against something much larger. It is not farming, but it is the same land farming sits in. Originally from England, and raised in the Netherlands and South Africa, Bruce Mortimer has called New Zealand

Justin Klar with one of his largest works on display at the Wānaka A&P Show. What started as a way to fill an empty driveway has quietly turned into something much bigger for Wānaka-based sculptor Justin Klar. The German-born artist, who now calls Central Otago home, only began working with metal just over a year ago. At the time, there was no grand plan. “My driveway was looking boring, and it just needed something,” he says. What came next wasn’t expected. Neighbours notice

Agright Operations Manager, Mathew Bryant, marks the occasion with a group of very excited Chertsey pupils. All with a basketball each, because playing a game with just one ball is boring! Amy Riach Bright blue astroturf and a brand new set of basketballs have made the children of Chertsey School into very proud athletes. A new, multi-use sports court at Chertsey School was officially opened on May 27, and it’s already making a difference for local pupils, said principal Clai

The Next Chapter Bookshop has become a destination in its own right, drawing in readers from Wānaka and beyond Tucked behind the bustle of Wānaka’s lake-side main street, The Next Chapter Bookshop has become as much a destination as the town itself. “One thing we didn’t anticipate was becoming a visitor destination,” says owner Sally Battson. “We get a lot of travellers buying books. I’m constantly surprised by how many.” In an era where print media is supposedly being swallo

Why local, seasonal shopping is finding its place again Becks and Dryden Power at The Country House Greengrocer in Woodend. Greengrocers are quietly making a comeback. Rising food prices and a growing focus on seasonality are pushing more people to think about where they shop and what they’re buying. In the small town of Woodend in North Canterbury, one store is leaning into it. At The Country House Greengrocer, people aren’t just moving in and out. There’s a coffee from next

There are some songwriters whose music feels woven into the back roads of New Zealand. Not because they set out to write “rural” songs, but because they have lived that life. They have travelled the country, watched people closely, and learned how to tell a story the way New Zealanders talk. Straightforward, observant, and quietly reflective. Barry Saunders is one of them. This May Saunders returns to the Tussock Country Music Festival with The Warratahs, bringing decades of

After 17 years as a volunteer firefighter, Felicity Lang is stepping into the role of first female officer for the Waipara Volunteer Fire Brigade. Felicity Lang has been answering the pager for nearly two decades. Now the Waipara volunteer firefighter is stepping into an officer role at the brigade, becoming the first woman to do so - although it’s not something she makes much of. To her, it is simply the next step. “I’m just one of the guys,” she says. “That’s how I look at

Gabe Ross (left) and Riley Meason became full time content creators last year. A turning point was when the pair entered and won the reality show ‘Tracked’. Supplied. Weekend Mish didn’t start as a business. It started with a group of mates filming their hunting trips for fun - and seeing what happened next. Today, best friends Gabe Ross and Riley Meason run one of New Zealand’s fastest-growing outdoor content platforms, sharing everything from farming skits to multi-day bush

The Gore-raised country artist Jenny Mitchell returns to the Wanaka A&P Show stage this year. Photo: Supplied Country artist Jenny Mitchell has spent the past year on big stages across Australia and New Zealand, opening for international acts, winning awards and building serious momentum. But when she steps onto the Wanaka A&P Show stage on March 13 & 14, it’s a kind of homecoming. Because long before the tours and the awards, there were A&P shows, rural halls and small-town

Moa Brewing co are riding the low carb wave with their Southern Alps low carb lager. Supplied. From its home among the Marlborough vines, Moa Brewing Co is carving out a new future: one built on family ownership, South Island sourcing and a fast-growing low-carb lager that is now challenging much larger global players. Under Managing Director Stephen Smith, the brewery has stabilised, rebuilt and begun rising quickly in a shifting beer market, driven in large part by Souther

While Duncan and Lorna Humm never intended on starting a pet cremation business, it’s been a natural fit for the Mid Canterbury couple. Photo: Isla Humm For Mid Canterbury deer farmer Duncan Humm, starting a pet cremation business was never part of the plan. “I definitely never woke up one day thinking I’d like to start a cremation business,” he says. “It just sort of evolved.” Humm, who is also co-founder of farming platform NZ Farming, runs Summerland Pet Cremation alongsid

Dating has never been simple, but for rural New Zealanders it can feel especially stacked against you. Distance. Long hours. Small communities. Everyone knowing your business. Add dating apps into the mix and suddenly love feels less like a romance and more like a logistics exercise. Christchurch-based dating coach Jude Gane sees it every day. “Everyone’s single,” she says. “But no one’s making it work.” App fatigue is real Dating apps were meant to make things easier. In som

Dylan Aymes (left) and Hannah Williamson have worked in hospitality together for years – and now they are not just good mates, but business partners. Claire Inkson When Hannah Williamson and Dylan Amyes unlocked the doors to D.O.T.I in June last year, they did it on a leap of faith. Redundancy had pushed them out of their long-held roles at Waipara Hills, and although they both temporarily picked up jobs elsewhere, they were still searching for what came next. Then the old A

Sally Macdonald has run her clothing shop, Sally Macs, in Amberley for 29 years. Amberley is a town with one foot firmly planted in its rural past and the other stepping confidently into a future of boutique shopping, modern cuisine and wine-region tourism. It is both a service town and a destination, a place where you can pick up fencing gear or stock feed in the morning and enjoy a long lunch, winery tasting or artisan shopping in the afternoon. Increasingly, it is a tow

Mary Blain with her book, “Explore with me Mid Canterbury.” Anisha Satya When Mary Blain’s first son was born, she was given a children’s book about New Plymouth. “I read that to him, and he wanted to hear it a hundred times, so I came to know all the places in New Plymouth,” she said. “When I visited, I knew all the places I wanted to go. “I thought, ‘why don’t we have one here?’.” That series of events is what led to Blain writing, illustrating and producing “Explor