History

Olives in the Wairarapa

The oldest olive trees in the Wairarapa were sporadically planted for various reasons, El Greco was a variety often used for hedging and as an ornamental. Some trees were grown from stones brought back by returned servicemen to infuse memories into the local landscape. A grand example of this is the tree at Solway College which was planted by a member of the Donald family on his return from the Boer War. This tree is now protected being over one hundred years old and was well established when the school began in 1915. It was put to good use by the school, its fruit was used for pickling and sale up to some 15 years ago.

The oldest commercial olive grove in the Wairarapa was pioneered by Ian and Robyn Lockie in 1991 at Olivo, just east of the Martinborough golf course. Many more were to follow including Kilrae Olives in 1996.

Kilrae Olives 

Although not known for its affinity for Olives, the name has special meaning for the Irwin family. Kilrae is named for the church parish in County Derry, Northern Ireland where the Irwin family lived prior to emigrating to Southland, New Zealand in 1886.

Olive Press

Another venture was investing in The Olive Press (TOP) that now services the majority of the Wairarapa growers. This is a centrifugal press which is capable of processing 1500 kilos of olives per hour to produce the highest quality extra virgin olive oil.

Stewart

Stewart’s real name is David Brown, he is a 1949 Cropmaster still in working order, or would be if Rob could get the fuel line unblocked. He was one of the first acquisitions for Kilrae and originally had to sit under a tree with a cover on. Now he is lucky enough to share a shed with a younger diesel International Harvester mate and is awaiting the big renovation job. Funnily enough, Rob first learnt to drive on a David Brown Cropmaster many years ago, bought new by his late father Stewart.

Lilies

Those who know Kilrae will have seen the tyres at the end of each row. Before olives were the favoured venture, we propagated lilies from bulb scales eventually having around 2000 in plastic bags under the trees of our Hillcrest St property. As weeds grew much faster than lilies it was rapidly apparent that it would require a major effort to commercially grow lilies. Rather than waste those lilies already grown we planted them in tyres at the row ends to keep the bulbs dry and provide some protection from herbicides. The result has been a continuous supply of lilies from Asiatic, trumpets, Regales, orientals and Formosanums from November to April.

Solway College Olive Tree

The Olive Press