Reedy Creek Nursery
Reedy Creek Nursery is a
commercial propagating nursery, owned and run by Mike and Gayle
Quarmby in the south eastern Limestone Coast area of South
Australia. Reedy Creek is 20km south of Kingston. The core business
at the nursery is in native plant production for re-vegetation and
forestry. Grape rootling / grafting production and seedlings for
various industries are also cultivated.
The nursery was built at Reedy Creek to utilise the abundant
underground water supply and the proximity to the Green Triangle
horticultural areas of the South East of South Australia. The
facilities include sophisticated propagation and production hot
houses, with the seeding capacity for up to 140,000 seedlings per
day.
When Mike and Gayle
decided to create the philanthropic Outback Pride project, they
realised that a way to generate outcomes for remote indigenous
people was to use the commercial base at Reedy Creek to develop and
fund this emerging industry. Reedy Creek Nursery has the skilled
staff and facilities to support the enormous amount of research and
development required for the Outback Pride project.
The systems are developed
at Reedy Creek for the propagation and cultivation of the bushfood
plants, which are planted in the communities. This has resulted in
a coordinated planting program for the supply chain and guarantees
the best plant selections are used at all times. The produce from
community gardens returns to Reedy Creek to be value added, before
being dispatched to indigenous distributors throughout
Australia.
To facilitate the long term industry growth for indigenous
communities, Mike and Gayle have always made available the Reedy
Creek facilities for work experience and specialised horticultural
training in bushfood cultivation.