We started growing strawberries in 1981 with just 10,000 plants. Today we grow approximately 200,000 plants on our two farms. We grow a number of different varieties, and in the last few years the emphasis has been on producing strawberries with a good flavour as well as good visual appeal.

Most of our crop is sold through the Canning Vale Wholesale Markets in Perth, or in our local area. Our strawberries, with their distinctive Willow Tree logo on the punnets, can be found in many Perth shops, especially between Christmas and the end of our season in May, when it is too hot for strawberry production in the Wanneroo area of Perth. In the early part of our season before Christmas, much of our crop goes to Sydney and Melbourne.

We have also increased raspberry production since planting the first canes in the mid 1980s. Raspberries have grown enormously in popularity in the last few years and supermarkets are now keen to stock them as the demand increases.

Raspberries are not an easy crop to grow in Western Australia as our winters are not cold enough. We dig some of our canes every year and give them an 'artificial winter' in the coolroom in order to get a good crop the following summer!

Seven years ago we planted 1000 avocado trees on the two farms and have since increeased the planting to 1400 trees.

The Albany Farmers Market is a big success story in the region. Every Saturday morning, come rain or shine, local growers take their produce to Albany to sell to local people and visitors. We have a stall there every Saturday from mid-October to the end of May. Our strawberries, raspberries and avocados are always very popular! We also sell strawberry and raspberry jams and sauces.