Hill Nurseries Ltd was formed over 20 years ago to provide containerised seedling transplants to the commercial vegetable, native and forest industries.
Located on the outskirts of Hastings in the basin of the fertile Heretaunga Plains, the nursery now supplies product to growers and suppliers throughout both the North and South Islands of New Zealand. Some of our customers are involved in large scale commercial growing activities, while others are more niche product growers for specialised markets.
A wide range of seedlings are grown in the nursery, some of which include tomatoes, lettuce, brassica, leeks, melons and brussel sprouts. Many native plants, trees and grasses are also produced, along with a number of different tree species, including eucalyptus and pine.
All products are grown direct from seed. Individual seeds are mechanically placed into a wide variety of cell trays, which pass through a production process of seeding, germination, growth and gradual hardening off for delivery to the client. During each of the processes the plants pass through a different growing environment as required by their genetic makeup. A warmer, sheltered environment is generally used to start with, followed by a gradual introduction to a more cooler more unsheltered environment, with a final move where necessary to a place completely outside.
The production facility utilises automated systems where appropriate, making sure product is passed from one process to another with the minimum of disturbance. The company also provides distribution pods for protected delivery of the product direct to the customer wherever they may be.
A core crew of permanent staff operate and maintain the production facility, some of whom carry over 20 years of knowledge and service to the industry. The nursery also calls on the services of suitably qualified professionals to assist as required. All plant scheduling, plant growth, plant health, plant nutrition, nursery engineering, building and plant maintenance is carried out by staff in house.
