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Fresh apricots prepared for sampling at local markets, where the Wilsons connect directly with customers. On a hillside above Clyde, the rows don’t look quite how you might expect. Instead of big, spreading orchard trees, everything is trained tightly onto wires, more like a vineyard than a traditional fruit block. It’s deliberate, and it says a lot about the way Tammy and Trent Wilson approach farming. They didn’t come into horticulture through generations of orchardists. T

Men’s champion Jay Reeve and Women’s champion Abbey MacDonald celebrate after earning their place at the World Stone Skimming Championships in Scotland. Photo Deanna Gerlach An icy start on the shores of Lake Hāwea did little to deter the crowds gathering for the inaugural Aotearoa Stone Skimming Championships. The event, held on May 16, was presented by Novus Glass supporting Melanoma New Zealand. Wrapped in puffer jackets and beanies, spectators lined the lake edge while c

Arthur Burkes’s John Veale (left) and Tim McCracken with the new JAC ute at the Amuri A&P Show. Claire Inkson Chinese-built utes are gaining momentum in the New Zealand market, offering buyers a new value-driven option and beginning to reshape a segment long dominated by familiar brands. At Arthur Burke Ltd, which has its main branch in Amberley and a second workshop in Waikari, sales manager Tim McCracken says interest in the JAC T9 has been strong, particularly among tradie

Nathan and Joy Dodd at the Wānaka A&P Show in March. Claire Inkson On a clear Southland day, with Stewart Island visible off the back of the property, Nathan and Joy Dodd’s Glenham farm does what it has always done - just gets on with it. There is no big pitch, no grand claims. Just stock that performs, year in, year out. The Dodds run Glenvale Texel Stud with their son Ted on around 600 hectares of rolling hill country near Wyndham, alongside a self-contained sheep and beef

Tony and Michelle Roberts with Kate Roberts and Mark Lieshout, recognised as Southland Regional Supreme Winners at the Ballance Farm Environment Awards. Tony and Michelle Roberts, alongside daughter Kate and her partner Mark Lieshout, run their Merino Downs farm near Gore as Top Deck Trading, a family operation built on long term thinking, hard decisions and a willingness to adapt. This year, that approach saw them named 2026 Southland Regional Supreme Winners at the Ballance

Scott and Stacey Mackereth were named the 2026 New Zealand Share Farmers of the Year at the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards in Rotorua. Supplied. Southland couple Scott and Stacey Mackereth say people, relationships and creating opportunities for others have been central to their success after being named the 2026 New Zealand Share Farmers of the Year. The couple took out the national title at the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards in Rotorua on May 9, alongside three merit

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

Outgoing Mid Canterbury Federated Farmers of New Zealand provincial president David Acland (left) hands over the reins to incoming president Kerry Harmer following his four-year tenure. Harmer becomes the first woman to hold the role in the branch’s 81-year history. Photo: Angela Cushnie There has been a changing of the guard at Mid Canterbury Federated Farmers, with high-country farmer Kerry Harmer taking over as provincial president after the completion of David Acland’s fo

Hinehou Timutimu was named the 2026 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year at the Dairy Women’s Network conference gala dinner in Christchurch. The Bay of Plenty leader says she hopes the award helps create pathways for other women in the sector. Photo Supplied. Bay of Plenty leader Hinehou Timutimu says if her win as the 2026 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year inspires even one other woman to step forward, it will have been worth it. “If I can just inspire one person, that would be

Waikari Warriors Rosie Barton, Max Beach and Fergus Butters celebrate their win. The North Canterbury trio are heading to the FMG Young Farmer of the Year grand final. There are only around 34 students at Waikari School. Which makes what the Waikari Warriors have just done feel even bigger. Despite being wrongly labelled the “Waikari Wanderers” in early coverage, these are Warriors and they proved it. Rosie Barton, Max Beach and Fergus Butters, all 12, have taken out the Agri

A Mid Canterbury dairy farmer has been named a finalist in a national award recognising grassroots leadership across the sector. Ashleigh Gordon, of Valetta, is one of two finalists in the 2026 Regional Leader of the Year Award, presented by Dairy Women’s Network (DWN). The winner will be announced at the gala dinner during the organisation’s annual conference on May 5 in Christchurch. DWN chief executive Jules Benton said the finalists reflected the importance of leadership

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

Alastair Malcolm stepped into the role of branch manager at Diesel Tech Fernside earlier this year, bringing nearly a decade of machinery industry experience and a strong focus on supporting North Canterbury farmers with reliable service and specialised equipment. A new chapter is underway at Diesel Tech’s Fernside branch, with Alastair Malcolm stepping into the role of branch manager earlier this year. Malcolm officially took up the position on January 5, bringing with him n

Comedian Tom Sainsbury is used to travelling around the country to perform, but when he takes the stage in Gore during the Tussock Country Music Festival this May, it will feel more like returning a favour. Sainsbury says it was noticing how many people from Gore were travelling to see his shows elsewhere that prompted the decision. “Every time I go and do a show down there, people travel from far and away from Gore to come and see me,” he said. “And I feel terrible about it.

Tussock Country is back in Gore this May with its biggest programme yet, stretching across 10 days and more than 80 events. Festival promotions and event co-ordinator Annabel Roy says the festival has grown well beyond a single weekend, now spanning two weekends and running through King’s Birthday weekend. “It’s a 10-day festival, which in itself is quite unique,” Roy said. “It’s always the last week of May, it’s cold, so all the venues are cosy. There are fireplaces. There’s

The team at South Canterbury Toyota celebrate the dealership’s fifth President’s Trophy win, a national record for Toyota stores in New Zealand. Supplied Consistency might not sound glamorous, but for South Canterbury and Ashburton Toyota it’s proving to be a winning formula. The dealerships have just taken out Toyota New Zealand’s prestigious President’s Trophy for the second year running - and for a record fifth time overall. For CEO Mark Patterson, the achievement reflects

Rowland Smith took out the individual machine shearing title at the Golden Shears World Shearing and Woolhandling Championships in Masterton, held March 4 to 7, winning on quality in a tightly contested final. Supplied. Rowland Smith has claimed a second World Shearing Championship title, more than a decade after his first, cementing his place among the best shearers New Zealand has produced. The Hawke’s Bay shearer took out the individual machine shearing title at the Golden

Some dreams sit quietly in the background for years. Not because they are small, but because they require time, money, patience, and a certain amount of stubborn belief. For Matt and Helen Barbour, owning their own vineyard was one of those dreams. Matt has been in the wine industry most of his adult life. He studied viticulture and oenology at Lincoln University in the mid-2000s and has worked in wine since. Having a vineyard was never guaranteed, but it was always the goal.

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

Ella Gorton with the new Ford Ranger Super Duty at the Wanaka A&P Show. Photo Claire Inkson With fuel prices climbing and global uncertainty starting to filter through to everyday decisions, the conversation around what people drive is shifting again. Petrol, diesel, hybrid - buyers are weighing it all up. At Macaulay Motors in Queenstown, Ella Gorton is having those conversations daily. There is interest in plug-in hybrids, she says, but for many South Island drivers - parti