TALGA30 Conference wrapup report and photos.
TALGA30 AGM, CONFERENCE & FIELD DAY
Celebrate the Past – Embrace the Future
15-17 October 2025, Creswick VIC
On Saturday 6th April TALGA welcomed members and new participants to York on Lilydale for a day seminar and site visit to Larkman Nurseries.
The lavender community came together in October 2025 for TALGA30, a milestone conference marking 30 years of The Australian Lavender Growers' Association. Held in the heart of Victoria's Hepburn Shire at the fabulous venue RACV Goldfields Resort, Creswick, the event was a vibrant celebration of passion, perseverance and progress - honouring the pioneers who built the industry in Australia and inspiring the next generation of growers to dream even bigger.
On Wednesday afternoon the conference began with the Annual General Meeting at the venue, followed by a relaxed welcome meet-and-greet on the terrace overlooking the golf course. The next morning attendees registered and received their souvenir TALGA30 event bags before the formal opening.
Mayor Cr Don Henderson of Hepburn Shire Council officially opened the conference, welcoming delegates and sharing stories of the region’s rich agricultural and mining heritage. With fertile soils, canola fields and thriving bee populations, he noted how beautifully lavender now complements this diverse and productive landscape.
Then began the full programme of speaker presentations, workshops and networking sessions for the remainder of Thursday and Friday at Henle Gardens in Maldon. Research, sustainability and innovation were all part of the discussions and focus on how modern technology, data-driven farming and collaborative learning are shaping the future of lavender production.
As TALGA30 drew to a close, delegates left inspired and optimistic, armed with connections and fresh information shared generously by all. It was particularly exciting to see a new generation of growers entering the industry, bringing fresh ideas and experiences, big ambitions for large-scale cultivation and a commitment by all to excellence in oil quality, technology and agritourism.
Thank you to all who attended, our generous corporate sponsors, impressive speakers and Field Day host Henle Gardens for making this a milestone event for TALGA. TALGA30 was a promise of a fragrant and flourishing future for lavender in Australia.
See the Photo Gallery
On Wednesday afternoon the conference began with the Annual General Meeting at the venue, followed by a relaxed welcome meet-and-greet on the terrace overlooking the golf course. The next morning attendees registered and received their souvenir TALGA30 event bags before the formal opening.
Mayor Cr Don Henderson of Hepburn Shire Council officially opened the conference, welcoming delegates and sharing stories of the region’s rich agricultural and mining heritage. With fertile soils, canola fields and thriving bee populations, he noted how beautifully lavender now complements this diverse and productive landscape.
Then began the full programme of speaker presentations, workshops and networking sessions for the remainder of Thursday and Friday at Henle Gardens in Maldon. Research, sustainability and innovation were all part of the discussions and focus on how modern technology, data-driven farming and collaborative learning are shaping the future of lavender production.
As TALGA30 drew to a close, delegates left inspired and optimistic, armed with connections and fresh information shared generously by all. It was particularly exciting to see a new generation of growers entering the industry, bringing fresh ideas and experiences, big ambitions for large-scale cultivation and a commitment by all to excellence in oil quality, technology and agritourism.
Thank you to all who attended, our generous corporate sponsors, impressive speakers and Field Day host Henle Gardens for making this a milestone event for TALGA. TALGA30 was a promise of a fragrant and flourishing future for lavender in Australia.
See the Photo Gallery
TALGA Seminar and Field Day 2024
A seminar focused on agronomy, soil testing and health, weed control, plant maintenance and pruning.
6 & 7th APRIL 2024
LILYDALE VICTORIA
On Saturday 6th April TALGA welcomed members and new participants to York on Lilydale for a day seminar and site visit to Larkman Nurseries.
The day was opened by TALGA President Louise Bickerton who gave us an overview on what the board has been working on and an introduction of Board Members and their roles. After a Morning Tea full of catch ups and cuppas we knuckled down to listen to Tim Manders, Agronomist with Browns Fertiliser. Tim talked us through in great detail soil testing and what to look for and understand when we receive our soil test results. The information provided enabled us to understand our soil test results, the components of our soil and what may be required for great soil and plant health. Tim also covered extreme weather conditions, microbial activity and broad and general advice on weed control.
After Lunch the Grower Panel discussion focused on Post Harvest Plant Care. The Question and Answer session panel utilised the growing experience of Fiona Glover, Annemarie Manders, Louise Bickerton and a little input from Matt Oxenford. Always a lively and interesting part of the seminar with lots of great questions and experienced answers.
After lunch we made our way to Larkman Nurseries at Wandin North. We were warmly welcomed by Clive, Di and Simon to their growing facilities. We were treated to an entertaining tour by Clive with some insight into the workings of the nursery and how we end up with our lavender plants. Generously the Larkmans provided happy hour drinks which we enjoyed while participating in a question and answer session and a quick overview of product from Seasol. Many of us took the opportunity to collect plant orders after which was greatly appreciated.
The day was rounded off with a casual dinner and catch up at York on Lilydale.
On Sunday 7th we were invited by Annemarie & Peter to Warratina for a most enjoyable Farm Visit. We were lucky enough to have Annemarie give us a guided tour of her equipment, plants & site and hear of her long growing history which she shared generously. The hospitality didn’t end there as Annemarie generously provided us all with a complimentary Devonshire Tea before we all started our journeys home!
As usual the generosity of time & information gathering by TALGA to organize such wonderful opportunities of information, networking, new friendships and great fun is very much valued. I personally would like to Thank Louise and the Board for their hard work in enabling these opportunities.
We look forward to the conference in 2025!
Kellie Oxenford
Leven K Farm
Kellie Oxenford
Leven K Farm
TALGA Conference and AGM 2023
The Carrington Hotel
Katoomba Blue Mountains NSW
17, 18 and 19 May 2023
Katoomba Blue Mountains NSW
17, 18 and 19 May 2023
The beautiful Blue Mountains were the back drop for the 28th TALGA Conference & AGM at The Carrington, Katoomba! What a fabulous venue and a magnificent area.
Growing Momentum – Building your best Lavender Business was the foundation for the conference and our sessions followed the Five Key elements of Business Success to a T! VISION, SINGULARITY, VALUE, VISIBILITY & PERSONALITY!
The conference began on Wednesday afternoon with a pre-conference session for new growers with Clive Larkman on different lavender varieties and growing. This session was well attended by some new growers but I did also lay eyes on a few experienced growers attending this session! Just goes to show you are always learning…..
The AGM was well attended by members after this session with two board members – Gary Young & Christine Hitchin retiring from the board. Two new board members Michael Hill and Karen McRae were voted in with enthusiasm.
Conference Attendees were invited to attend Welcome drinks and canapes in the bar and lounge area of the Carrington. This was a warm, friendly, fun couple of hours that gave us all time to network and catch up with lavender friends from near and far. Lots of laughter, chatter and excitement was heard!
On Thursday morning delegates gathered their lanyards, show bags (filled with lots of goodies donated by our awesome sponsors) and programs ready to soak up as much information as possible. We were heartily welcomed to the Blue Mountains by Councillor Suzie van Opdorp and encouraged to explore the area.
Our keynote speaker DeeAnn Seccombe Prather – Managing director of DownUnder Enterprises was our VISION speaker – Holding the line, Flexing and being a Roly poly toy. DeeAnn was a most inspirational and engaging speaker and it was very interesting to hear her story in relation to vision.
We all enjoyed morning tea and a stretch before settling down to listen to Clare Dean from Tasmania Lavender Company and Port Arthur Lavender speak about SINGULARITY – Unique Selling Proposition an essential ingredient in the recipe for success! Clare inspired us to do our own USP for self discovery and find out what our lavender business does well, what our customers want and what do our competitors do well – so interesting.
This lead straight into our next speaker Phillip Prather chair of ATTIA Board of Directors who focused on VALUE – Quality Assurance for Essential Oils Starts with the Grower. Phillip had the whole room engaged and inspired and thinking more about Quality Assurance and a QC system which could ensure the industry achieves consistency.
Attendees enjoyed lunch and more networking (we can never get enough networking) and time to chat to suppliers and speakers.
Our next speaker was Nikki Barker from Monrose Marketing + Design who focused on VISIBILITY – Digital Marketing for Growers. Nikki guided us through the swamp of digital marketing and some of the most desirable tools for us to use, identifying our markets and customers and how to be savvy with Social Media! Essential tools in this modern business world.
Our Agritourism Panel – Stuart Abernethy (Lavender Abbey NZ) & Helen Griffin (Amandine Lavender QLD) & Louise Bickerton (Blue Mountains Lavender NSW). Each told their Agritourism Journey – the positives, the negatives, the rules and more rules mostly government hurdles, the rewards! The conversation was lively, fun but serious, informative and user friendly!
The serious part of the day done – time to wrap up and smarten ourselves up for the gala dinner! In the Grand Dining Room we were treated to the musical entertainment on the grand piano from Tien Attwater Year 12 student at the Blue Mountains Grammar School while we enjoyed our beautifully presented meal, the banter from Clive Larkman our MC, Craft, Oil & Dawn Baudinette Award presentations. Our Guest Speakers for the night were Shane & Tessa McLaughlin from Hillbilly Cider NSW who bought new meaning to the PERSONALITY part of our elements of business success. Great entertaining speakers who definitely bring personality to their own business.
On Friday morning we caught the bus (on time!) to Blue Mountains Lavender Farm at Little Hartley. We could not have asked for a better day – a perfectly clear, crisp morning, no wind and a comfortable day in the sunshine! We were treated to lovely coffee/hot chocolate/tea from the Coffee Cart sponsored by Fiona! We enjoyed a welcome and tour of the farm by Louise & Bruce. It was wonderful to walk around their farm and distillation shed! A beautifully presented farm and environs – lots of discussion, questions and networking about growing, diversity & sharing.
Some members enjoyed a bus trip to visit some local gardens and a tour of Historic Hartley Village while those that remained at the farm were treated to some more speakers. Fiona Glover from Creative Dried Flowers presented a fundamental educational session for all lavender growers and distillers on Best Practice for Storing Essential Oil and Drying Lavender.
Train your Nose to Assess and Evaluate Lavender EO was presented by Fiona Glover and Matthew Oxenford. This instructive sniffing session was used to educate members on appreciating the fragrance qualities of their own oil and others. This session was heady with the fragrance of good and bad oils, lots of questions were raised and answered and plenty of food for thought which may lead into another follow up session?
Kaye Kelly retired owner from Tower Hill Lavender presented an informative talk on Compliance Protocols around Product Development and Labelling. Kaye’s in depth talk triggered many questions and the need for members to do their own research within their state Governments regulations.
The conference ended on such a high note and some very positive & enthusiastic feedback was much appreciated. Many thanks to Louise Bickerton for her hard work & dedication and persistence to allow us to participate in such an informative & enjoyable conference.
Well done!.
Well done!.