It’s the kind of destination that breathes with a natural indoor-outdoor rhythm. Every step – from the light-filled café to the wide deck, then into the fields and gardens beyond – feels like it was always meant to be taken slowly. Here, you can sip something warm, enjoy simple, country fare, and inhale the soft perfume of lavender carried on the breeze. It’s a place where connection to the land elevates every moment, and calm finds its way back to you without asking.

But Red Hill Lavender Farm is more than a moment – it’s a working, family-run farm with deep roots and strong values. Founded by the Crump family in 2007, it has grown into the Mornington Peninsula’s largest commercial lavender farm. Their lavender is hand-cultivated on 27 acres high on the Red Hill ridge – a location chosen for its ideal growing conditions and remarkable beauty. In full bloom during summer, the fields are a feast for the senses: visual, fragrant, peaceful.

At the heart of everything here is a simple philosophy – to remove the non-essential. In their botanical skincare range, that means creating products without synthetic preservatives, using only plant-based, natural ingredients, and ensuring each batch is small, fresh, and full of integrity. These products – along with culinary teas, oils, and lavender-infused treats – are available exclusively through the farm’s retail store and online. You won’t find them on supermarket shelves, and that’s the point.

Even their packaging is intentional – recyclable, biodegradable, and designed to be reused. Everything at Red Hill Lavender Farm reflects a commitment to simplicity, sustainability, and care – for people, for the land, and for the future.
There is also history here, deep and meaningful. Long before the lavender rows or café tables, this land was the traditional home of the Boonwurrung people of the Kulin Nation. That presence is felt in the surrounding bush, the shifting light, and the sense of something greater that hums just beneath the surface.

Over the years, this property has worn many hats – an apple orchard, a fly-fishing lake, a winery, even a Greek restaurant. But today, as a lavender farm and café, it seems to have found its true calling – offering visitors not just something to do, but a feeling to carry with them. Something soft, quiet, and enduring.

Come for a walk through the fields, sip a tea on the deck, breathe in the scent of harvest bunches drying in the botanical tent, and take home something made with intention.

It’s not just a place; it’s a return to something essential. Open Thursday to Monday, it’s as close to perfect as you could expect.

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Mick and his wife, Anne are still just as passionate about farming strawberries and have moved the farm to a sustainable model, reducing the use of agricultural chemicals and relying on organic mulch to continue improving soil quality.  One of the first things Mick instigated when he took over the farm was the Dessert Café, a way to entice visitors and locals to explore the farm and develop a taste for the fresh, unadulterated product. The café is famous for the chocolate fondue with strawberries.

Thousands are already gathering every weekend for U-Pick Strawberry Picking  – every year from November to April daily from 9am until 4.30pm. Adults are $8 and it includes 500g of strawberries
, children up to 12 years are $4, which includes 250g strawberries
 and children under 3 years are free.

As well as the intensely popular, U-Pick season, strawberries are sold through Coles, Woolworths and Costco Supermarkets. The berries are of the highest quality and are known for being premium Mornington Peninsula produce. This is achieved through best farming practice, which optimises plant health by ensuring field hygiene is at top levels. Rocky Creek grasses inter-row furrows, which controls weed populations and protects bare soil from erosion and structural damage. Crops are rotated to revive the soil. They also use indigenous Australian species as border plants to create a growing environment more in sync with the local habitat.

The couple’s children remain invested in the business, daughter Nicole runs the packing shed – she spends half her time in Australia and half her time in Belgium where she is married to a Belgium strawberry farmer! Son Matt runs sister company, Rebello Wines. Rocky Creek has made wines for the last 15-20 years but recently divided the business into separate enterprises. Rebello produce strawberry wines, fruit wines and ‘Cheeky Rascal’ cider using only real fruit. Rebello also produce wines under the ‘Little Birdie’ label. During peak picking periods they have up to 80 staff in the shed, 80 picking and 30 in the shop.

Visit Rocky Creek Strawberry farm this weekend to pick your own amazing, fresh strawberries. Strawberries are an incredible source of vitamin c, serve them with pancakes and fresh cream, chop and mix with balsamic vinegar and icing sugar, make a compote to serve with French Toast, decorate cakes, make strawberry ice-cream or wash and enjoy them straight out of the punnet.

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John’s journey began with two feral beehives that he discovered on his farm. With patience and care, he transformed these hives into the foundation of Pure Peninsula Honey. Over the years, John has honed his skills, turning his passion into a full-time enterprise that not only produces some of the finest honey around but also plays a critical role in the local ecosystem. Orchards across Victoria and New South Wales rely on John and his bees for pollination, ensuring the growth of fruit, vegetables, and seed crops that fill our markets and tables.

The process of creating honey is a beautiful and intricate dance between nature and time. From the moment a bee visits a flower to collect nectar, it can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months for that nectar to be transformed into the rich, golden honey we all love. Bees tirelessly work to fill their hives with honeycomb, storing the nectar which is gradually dehydrated into honey through a process of evaporation and the bees’ own enzymes. At Pure Peninsula Honey, this honey is cold extracted, a method that preserves all its natural goodness, making it a true taste of the Peninsula’s diverse flora.

Beyond honey, Pure Peninsula Honey also offers a range of products that highlight the versatility and value of bees. From beeswax lip balms to handcrafted candles and moisturizers, each product is a testament to the incredible work of these tiny but mighty insects. They even offer bee and wasp control services, reflecting their deep understanding and respect for these creatures, ensuring they are relocated safely.

A visit to Pure Peninsula Honey isn’t just about purchasing honey; it’s about experiencing a slice of the Mornington Peninsula’s rich agricultural tapestry. In their farm shop, you can taste an array of honey varieties, each with its own unique flavour profile—from the citrusy notes of Orange Blossom to the deep, woody undertones of Ironbark. And if you’re in the mood for a treat, their honey ice creams are the perfect way to finish your visit.

But beyond the sweet delights and the artisanal products, Pure Peninsula Honey reminds us of something crucial: the importance of supporting local. In a world where faceless brands often overshadow the little guys, it’s essential to remember that small businesses like Pure Peninsula Honey are the heartbeat of our communities. They fuel creativity, foster diversity, and keep our local economies vibrant.

By choosing to support local businesses, we ensure that the unique character of our cities, suburbs, and rural communities continues to thrive. We preserve the essence of what makes our communities special and safeguard the livelihoods of those who pour their heart and soul into their work. So next time you’re reaching for a jar of honey, remember the bees, the flowers, and the hands that made it possible. And remember to choose local.

Pure Peninsula Honey has been nourishing our community for nearly three decades. Their story is one of passion, dedication, and a deep connection to the land—a story that deserves to be celebrated and supported. Whether you’re a longtime fan or a first-time visitor, take a moment to appreciate the sweet labour that goes into every jar. We vouch for that!

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The Ripe ‘n’ Ready Cherry Farm at 52 Arkwells Lane in Red Hill, is owned and operated by two generations of the Easy family, who planted the orchard back in 1947 on 24 acres of lush, Red Hill countryside. These days, Eric and Simon Easy’s farm is one of the Peninsula’s biggest and best cherry producers. The love that has gone into cultivating the orchard is evident in the lush quality of the fruit. With over 70 varieties of cherries, there is a delicious variety for every jam, ice cream, cake, sauce or fruit bowl.

With a trout pond stocked full of rainbow trout – autumn, winter and spring are the best times to try your hand at catching a plump, juicy dinner-plate-sized fish. Eric loves fishing so much, he can often be found helping kids cast off and catch fish.

Earlier this year, the farm was featured on the Mornington Peninsula episode of Australia’s Masterchef. The Northern Territory’s Lucy was seen catching a fish from the trout pond, which she took back to the Royal Exhibition Building in Melbourne to prepare and cook. Filmed last winter, in prime trout fishing season, the trout pond was redolent with leaping rainbow trout.  In spring the cherry trees blossom and many visitors come just to see and smell the perfumed branches.

Coming into summer, the farm is vibrant with visitors and fragrant with sweet and sour cherries, blueberries and raspberries ripening to summer perfection. You can ‘pick your own’, which allows you to enjoy the sunshine and wander about the farm choosing your own berries. At the end – the box is weighed and you’re charged accordingly ($8 a kilo).

In early November the Bergstoff variety are the first cherries to ripen, later come the Lapins, which are the most prolific variety and then the Burlaps, a big favourite with ‘pick it yourselfers’. After Christmas the most prized Morello Cherries come into season.  In autumn frozen berries are available to purchase, trout fishing is well underway and there is seasonal homemade ice cream on sale – packed full of ripe summer fruit.

Farm Gate is now a big part of the business – with freshly picked cherries, silvanberries, raspberries, boysenberries, marionberries and blueberries. Visitors and locals like to buy directly from the grower and know exactly what they are getting, where it has been grown and how fresh the berries are.  Ripe ‘n’ Ready is open from the first week of November until the last week of January. Visit ripenreadycherries.com.au for more information.

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For many, it’s a one-stop shop for their pantry needs. Best of all, their food truck is open on the weekends cooking their famous thrice cooked hot chips – hand-cut from their own potatoes grown on the farm. The veggie patch is the perfect place to sit and enjoy their delicious coffee & treats, and kids will love their 1970s Farmall tractor that takes pride of place.

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It’s not that I didn’t want to take them, it was more about where to take them for their first go, somewhere safe, on the money and to some degree a sure thing. As an adult, you can grasp that you might go out all day in the hope that you’ll catch the big one and miss out. Heck, you may not even catch anything but fishing provides a chance to ponder the finer concepts of life like patience, faith, determination and hopelessness amongst other things.

Teaching children to fish is an important way to make sure that fishing and conservation is passed down to the next generation and gives them a better idea of how our ancestors used to provide for themselves. These days a significant number of children have no idea how food gets to their plate so this is an important component of life. From my experience most kids love to fish if they have a great first positive experience.

First, and most important, remember the goal is a positive experience for the child. This means that you may not fish at all. If your kids learn to love fishing you’ll have a fishing partner the rest of your life, so giving up a few years when they’re young is just an investment in the future.

Teaching a child to fish is easier on a calm lake. You should use kid size fishing equipment. The short rods and plastic reels are a good way to get kids started. Fishing with worms and a small fish hook size are easy ways to begin. Show them how to cast but also help. Fishing with a barbless hook will make it much easier when the child hooks bushes, chairs, clothes or you. Remember you’re just playing fishing games.

Bring along a small kid size lawn chair so the child has a comfortable place to sit. Set your chair right beside your child and cast out your line equipped with just a sinker. That way you both can hold a rod but all the catching will be done by the child. Nothing is more discouraging to a child, than having the adult catch all the fish.

Now let me let you in on a well kept secret, there’s a magic place on the Mornington Peninsula that ticks all the boxes when it comes to giving your children a fun morning or afternoon out, especially on the weekend. Its safe, they provide the rods, the hooks and the safe environment and it’s called “Ripe and Ready Cherry Farm” 52 Arkwells Lane, Red Hill. It’s always best to call on 03 5989 2578 as it’s by appointment only but it will be the best couple of hours you’ll spend with your kids in a long time. The large trout fishing dam is full of rainbow trout and silver perch with fish up to a kilo in size, the kids will be in for a treat. For more information visit: ripenreadycherries.com.au

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