Country Style Magazine

Author: Hannah James
Photography: Lion Schoots
Styling Belle Hemming Bright
March 2025

HARVEST HOME
Beauty and joyful abundance are the hallmarks of Autumn in the kitchen gardens at Dairy Flat Farm, in Daylesford.

GARDEN FRESH
Beautiful seasonal produce, grown at Dairy Flat Farm, Vic, is transformed into autumn dishes to share.

APRIL DAYS AT DAIRY FLAT FARM are beautiful – and busy.
“Autumn heralds the end of late summer crops; it’s one of our most bountiful seasons,” says Alla Wolf-Tasker, who has been running her Lake House accommodation and restaurant in Daylesford, Victoria, for 40 years. The two-chef-hatted Lake House kitchen is supplied by Dairy Flat Farm, so she’s keenly aware of seasonal produce.

“In the orchard, stone fruit are finished, but we still have late-season apples being picked,” Alla says. “Quinces are imminent, but medlars have some way to go. The vegetable gardens are still producing every kind of herb, coloured carrots, beets, beans, salad onions and potatoes. And there’s still an abundance of heirloom tomatoes, eggplant, cucumbers and zucchini coming from our hoop houses.” The cycle of the seasons means kitchen gardeners are always looking ahead. “New beds are being prepared for rotational cropping and also cover cropping,” explains Alla.

“We practise pesticide-free regenerative farming, where everything we do is designed to work with nature for improving the soil.” And there’s plenty of soil to work with: “It’s a 40-acre [16-hectare] farm, not just a kitchen garden.” So, in addition to the abundance of fruit and vegetables, “We now have our own olive oil, our own honey, cider, pinot and chardonnay. And in the farm bakehouse, our bakers daily produce beautiful sourdough and pastries.”

All this industry means guests get to enjoy the wealth of each season on their plates. Alla has shared some of her favourite recipes with us here. “These recipes are an example of the shared autumnal dinner table we offer guests at Dairy Flat Lodge and Farm,” she explains. “There’s so much abundance – it was difficult to choose!” Apart from the produce we’re celebrating in these recipes, she’s also a lover of quinces. “They’re so definitely autumnal. It’s something that can anchor us to the seasons in our cooking – as we should be. They’re also beautiful preserved and a good quince jelly is a very special thing. And then, of course, there’s wild forest mushrooms. The local woods abound with excellent varieties if we’ve been blessed with good rain.” There’s one more treasure of the season that Alla adores.

In April, she says: “We’ll also be harvesting our honey. Each autumn flower is a reminder that every drop of nectar is precious.” In their hard work and preparation for the changing seasons, the bees have become an emblem for the Dairy Flat Farm team. “Raising the bar and working as a committed collective is part of the fibre of our place,” says Alla. “That’s why you’ll see a gold bee pin glinting on our staff uniforms – they’re our humble mascots.”

“Autumn heralds the end of late summer crops, it’s one of our most bountiful seasons”

Bright blooms in the kitchen garden; Alla Wolf-Tasker AM, the culinary director of Lake House and Dairy Flat Lodge and Farm, British Whites in the paddock; farm manager Pedro harvests the last of the cucumbers from the vine in one of the polytunnels. These will be taken directly to the Lake House kitchen, 10 minutes down the road; each day yields new tasks for the team at Dairy Flat Farm- this year they produced their first apple cider. Alla describes autumn days at Dairy Flat Farm: “Crisp mornings with an occasional light mist followed by brisk but sunny days. Mind you, we’re already on the lookout for early frosts. And there’s a strong sense of change.”

“Working as a committed collective is part of the fibre of our place. That’s why you’ll see a bee pin on our staff uniforms – they’re our humble mascots.”