Daffodils springing up at Ellinbank

By Jack Morgan

Spring is on our doorsteps and flowers are blooming at the Blyth Bros farm in Ellinbank.

It’s prime season for their famous daffodils and farm workers are busy hand-picking the buds for market.

Nick Blyth runs the business with his brothers Peter and David, who supply and sell around a million bunches a year across Australia.

The brothers are on 350 hectares in West Gippsland and have found daffodils are well suited to the region’s cold climate and rich soils.

“We’ve been here for 30 years and it was one of the best things we did, and we came here because we thought that this was some of the best country in Victoria and it’s really proving to be true,” Mr Blyth said.

The Blyth family began growing flowers three generations ago in Boronia, a suburb of Melbourne. When the three brothers decided to fully commit to farming careers, it was clear they needed to find more space.

“Normally people have three neighbours, one on each side, well we had 22 and you can imagine trying to run a farm with 22 neighbours,” Mr Blyth said.

The family used to grow a variety of flowers, but their father always had a fondness for daffodils. With a season that runs from May to September, the business now primarily grows daffodils for their winter suitability and because of their versatility at market.

When the pandemic hit, many florists were forced to close up shop, but Mr Blyth said the flowers have been surprisingly resilient at market.

Although flowers aren’t being bought for weddings and events because of lockdowns, daffodils aren’t typically used at these gatherings. Rather, they have found a niche as a bunch flower at vegetable stores and at florists.

“They’re inexpensive compared to other flowers and they’ve got that cheerful thing about them that cheer people up and with times like this the way they are, there could be something in that,” Mr Blyth said.

The pandemic has also changed perspectives with consumers, Mr Blyth said more people are now supporting Australian grown products.

“I first probably really noticed it a few years ago and it just seems to be gaining momentum, a locally grown product and especially grown in your region even, we have our brand and logo, we market that with Australian grown,” Mr Blyth said.