AUSFLORA PACIFIC 40 YEARS OF BLOOM

By Matt Ross

Ausflora Pacific are celebrating their 40th birthday this year, we spoke to nursery managers Linda Sijpkes and Sarah Burgess, to find out a little more about the origins of the business and where they’re heading.

Ausflora Pacific was established on a large site, occupying three blocks in Gembrook in 1981. It was part of a corporate enterprise named Austflower; a cut flower business that was soon struggling financially.

In 1982, Peter Sijpkes, emigrated to Australia from the Netherlands. Lured by the promise of an Australian Visa, he stopped looking after patients in his previous role as a nurse and took started working at Austflora.

He’d always been a passionate gardener, having watched and learnt from his own dad back in the Netherlands. In the early 90s Peter took over the management, and subsequent ownership of the business, changing its name to Ausflora Pacific.

The nursery was originally set up primarily for growing and developing plants for the flower plantation, two very popular flower varieties came to the fore; Protea Grandicolor PBR and the Gembrook Waratah PBR.

Ausflora were responsible for supplying the Gembrook Waratah that were presented to Olympic medalists in their bouquets, at the Sydney Olympics in 2000. After experiencing a large hailstorm that destroyed many plants on the ground in the late 90s, they began to focus on propagating tubestock for flower growers and nurseries in Australia and overseas.

Having sworn she wouldn’t work in the family business, Linda Sijpkes, Peter’s daughter, took on the management of the nursery in the final year of her apprenticeship in 2000. She set about growing the nursery production and improving the quality and variety of plants.

After over 15 years of dedication and loyalty to Ausflora Pacific, Sarah Burgess became a business partner, alongside the Sijpkes family in 2017.

The nursery has a dedicated team of people many of whom have been with them for over 10 years. They believe that everyone should be challenged and empowered to do their best and that means creating a workplace that is fun and challenging.

The nursery now provides quality Proteaceae plants to retailers, landscapers, wholesalers and flower growers across Australia, and internationally.

The aim is to continue to grow the brand, increase nursery sales, broaden the range, and educate the public on Proteaceae; dispelling the myth that they are native to Australia.

And what’s a birthday without presents? To celebrate their 40th year, they secured an Agriculture Energy Investment Plan Grant, that allowed them to install glistening new solar panels and increase the energy efficiency of their cool room.

Having been fortunate enough to spend a morning with them at the NGIV Golf Day Classic, I can vouch for the fact that they’re a wonderfully fun bunch, extremely knowledgeable about their stock and passionate about the industry. From all the team at NGIV, the Board and our members; Happy Birthday Ausflora Pacific.