Spirli Strawberries – thank you for 10 years of strawberries

Strawberry season is a highlight of the Eltham Farmers’ Market year. The local season starts in mid or late October and runs until the end May or early June.

Spirli Strawberries has been Eltham Farmers’ Market’s strawberry supplier since 2014, making it a decade of service the market’s strawberry lovers!

They are based in Wandin in the Yarra Valley and the Spirli family have farmed there since 1973. Dominic (Dom) Spirli grew up with farming in his veins and he and wife Angela acquired their 3-acre farm in 1994. Initially, they grew vegetables but moved to strawberries in 2006 and, in 2017, made the important addition of hydroponics.

Angela (Ange) is also the Spirli ‘face’ at the market, sometimes assisted by her sister Teresa. Son Sam is also involved in the business from a distance; having chosen a career as an agronomist, he gets to sleep in on Sundays and keeps his fingernails clean, but provides advice on matters like hydroponics.

The Spirlis currently have about 52,000 strawberry plants. The original farm of 3 acres is now all hydroponics and a second leased farm is used for in-ground cultivation.

They grow three main varieties of strawberries: Albion (which are particularly sweet), Monterey and Petaluma (both of which are hydroponic varieties). Tutored by Sam, Dom is regularly testing new varieties.

Spirli Strawberries is a member of Ausberry, which is a group of 7 local growers who jointly supply supermarkets.

Ange loves her time at the market and really appreciates her market ‘family’, both customers and fellow stallholders. If there is ever any criticism, it is that she doesn’t bring enough so, in 2024, she has invested in a bigger van.