Countdown to another year nearly over! 
Sandra, Sam and I wish everyone a Happy New Year! Our New Years day will be spent in the Fruit Stall – it is always wonderful catching up with people on the first day of the New Year
We have Sundrop apricots available in plentiful supply, new spuds and we are coming to the end of our cherries and Red Beaut plums – another variety of plums is coming on very shortly 
Our Sundrop apricots are picked daily and are available in assorted sizes of bags/boxes.
Just a reminder if you want to pick up/purchase outside of our hours… 7am – 9pm just text/ring me Ruby to arrange a time. No worries at all – many people already do this. 
PYO Sundrop won’t be starting until there’s an even amount of ripeness in the trees – Sam can’t give me an exact date as of yet – will keep you updated!
Call me on 027 288 6090 for all fruit queries/orders.
Fruit Update
The warmth of the past two days has finally kickstarted the final ripening stage of Sundrop apricots! Yahoo! Sundrops are a great all rounder- bottling, freezing, jam, chutney, cooking, etc. Flavour is gorgeous 
Soo we have heaps of boxes available on the Fruit Stall starting from today 
Sandra (Mum) & I are packing as I type.
Sam and crew will continue picking for the Fruit Stall at first light.
PYO apricots will not begin until we have an even amount of ripeness on the trees. Will let you know the PYO start date soon.
Courier orders will start being sent out from 6th January – which when the courier opens up for the new year – I send out Sundrops in 5kg, 10kg and 15kg boxes – PM me if you would like to place an order
Still have cherries, new spuds, Red Beaut plums and Earli Ril apricots on the Stall.
Call me on 027 288 6090 for all fruit queries/orders or if you want an weather update.
Open 7 days from 7am – 9pm 
Fruit Update
On the Fruit Stall we have New Spuds, cherries and as from today Red Beaut plums and Earli Ril apricots, which are an old variety 
Our first main crop of apricots, Sundrop, will be on the Fruit Stall about New Year. Will keep you posted – it may be earlier All the other fruit varities are ripening steadily – will you keep updated.
PYO apricots will commence between 8th-10 Janaury 
Will keep you updated as to the exact date.
Please send sunshine our way!!
Ring/text me (Ruby) on 027 288 6090 for all queries/orders.
We are open 7 days from 7am – 9pm and we only sell what we grow
The Sun is now playing the ‘ripen the Cherries’ game……hence we are definitely opening this coming Saturday the 21st December
We will then be Open 7 days through to early June 2025.
Opening hours will be 7am – 9pm every day
Here’s a couple of pictures of our business card which gives clear directions to our Orchard from when you enter Roxburgh.
1 kg punnets of cherries and bags of ‘Sam’s New Spuds’ will be available to start with.
Remember……we only sell what we grow.
Our Earli Ril and Sundrop apricots will ripen in early January ……both varieties are absolutely delicious…..great for eating, bottling, jam, chutneys, freezing and ‘free flow freezing’ and then bagging for future smoothies all year round…and of course both varieties are great for dehydrating.
All other fruit varieties are looking good on the trees.
Will keep you posted as to when each variety ripens.
Txt or phone me, Ruby, 027 288 6090 anytime for fruit pre-orders, fruit info, weather info, recipes, prices, etc. 
We have a couple of spots now available for bulk Royal Gala apples 
This is very popular with schools/groups who are wanting a healthy alternative when fundraising and of course we bag them up for you. Txt/phone me, Ruby, if you want more info.
Recently the ‘Sun’ has not been as much of a frequent visitor to our Orchard as we would have liked.
Hence, we will be delaying the Fruit Stall Opening until
Saturday 21st December
And from then on…
7am – 9pm
The weather rules our lives!
Good news though – the Cherry Courier pre-orders will be going out next Tuesday 17th – this being the last day for Courier Orders.
Pick up orders will be available from the Sunday 22nd – will keep in touch with everyone closer to the time as to when your order is available for pick up or will arrange which day works for you
When we Open on the 21st, both cherries and new spuds will be available.
So looking forward to the Fruit Stall opening and catching up with everyone. Roll on Sunshine and Summer!!
Remember you can txt/phone me, Ruby, anytime 027 288 6090……fruit orders, fruit queries, recipes, weather updates, etc.
In my rush yesterday I forgot to mention that we courier NZ wide.
Cherry Courier orders are full up as we have standing orders every year which we fill first. Sorry about that.
But there will be plenty of cherries on the Fruit Stall once they ripen
A wee bit slow this year in ripening due to the fact that other parts of the country have pinched our Sun not impressed!
You can pre-order anytime from now on – at the moment it looks like most orders will be ready for pick up from Saturday 21st up until Christmas Eve 
But remember there will plenty on the Fruit Stall from when we open so you won’t miss out
We are taking orders now for all varieties of apricots as well as plum varieties, pears, quinces and apples 
Fruit will be sent out in 5kg, 10kg and 15kg boxes.
PM or phone me 027 288 6090 if you would like to place an order or enquire about fruit prices/courier charges.
Once the apricots are ripe and ready to go, orders will be sent on Mondays and Tuesdays.
I do send on a Wednesday if I know delivery can be guaranteed.
Here’s a photo of one of my ‘supervisors’ from yesterday – he was hard at work making sure I wasn’t slacking off.
Another ‘rush post’ so please contact me if you need clarification on anything.
About mid-December our Family Fruit Stall will open for the 34th Season so wanted to take a minute and introduce ourselves to all our new customers and catchup with all our old ones
I’m Ruby – I manage the Fruit Stall during the Fruit Season from mid-December through to the beginning of June and during the other months of the year I prune, thin and and every other job that needs doing……absolutely love my job
When we open we will be Open:
7 days a week……7am – 9pm daily.
From mid-December to early June.
My Mum, Sandra, and I work in the Fruit Stall.
My brother Sam and I are in Partnership with our Mum, Sandra.
We are only 2 km from Roxburgh, a lovely scenic drive down the side of the river 
As we only sell what we grow, we can only open when the first crop of cherries ripens which will coincide with Sam’s Early Spuds being ready
Will keep you posted as to when but hopefully it will be mid-December.
Send every bit of spare sunshine our way please!
Early Ril and Sundrop apricots will ripen first, hopefully during the first few days of January.
And then the rest of apricots, will follow soon after.
All varieties of plums, nectarines – apples – pears – etc are looking great on the trees
Remember to keep an eye out for fruit updates once we open or phone/txt me anytime for fruit updates, pre-orders, weather conditions, etc…..027 288 6090 or you can email us …sandralex@xtra.co.nz.
Directions:
In Roxburgh you will see a Roxburgh East Road sign on the right opposite the Petrol Station….turn and travel down the road, crossing the Clutha River…turn right off bridge……our Orchard is only 2km down the road and you will see a huge sign “Hobbs Family Partnership Orchard and Fruit Stall”
Drive on up…a few yards up, you will find an “Enter” sign into our large parking area, adjacent to the Fruit Stall and then you will see an “Exit” sign so large trucks, mobile homes, buses, etc have no issues getting in and out.
Important read about Faulty GPS Systems
There are many incorrect GPS systems which direct those travelling from Dunedin end to cross the Millers Flat Bridge by the Pub……WRONG….DO NOT TURN….or you will end up being directed up our neighbours farm driveway and then you will travel along a goat track to get to us!
Definitely not an access to our Orchard.
Have had no luck having this corrected….and trust me I have tried.
I am a bit behind in thinning nectarines so hope all this makes sense as wrote it in a rush 
What a great day we have today 🌞🌞
Sun is shining and I can hear the bees are pollinating 🐝🐝 what more could a girl want!
Here are some photos of the blossoms and a view of the Clutha River from the bottom of the river block 🌸🌸 And of course a couple of my cats 🐈⬛🐈
Planting out new trees, finishing the last of the pruning and general orchard tidying are on the agenda for this month.
Frost-fighting hasn’t begun yet but will start soon enough 😳
Later on next month we will be getting into thinning 😊
I will post more photos later.
Remember you can email/txt/ring anytime for fruit recipes.
Hope everyone is well as we are 😊😊
Splendour apples will be available on the Fruit Stall as from tomorrow They are a lovely eating and dessert apple.
Golden Delicious apples are now finished – Red Delicious will be available until the end of next week.
Still have a plentiful supply of Braeburn apples.
Granny Smith apples will be available from next Thursday. They are a heritage variety and are also they are a popular cooking apple and eating apple. Both Granny Smith and Braeburn are long keepers
Quinces are still available too – I have had a few customers ask for Sandra’s (Mum) Quince jelly recipe so here it is below.
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Sandra’s Quince Jelly Recipe
2-5kg Quinces
Wash and cut quinces into chunks…do not peel or core.
Place the chunks in a preserving pan or large pot and add water to just cover the fruit…if you add too much water, scoop it out.
Bring to the boil and simmer until it is a thick, soft pulp…. this should take about an hour.
Stir with a wooden spoon often.
Don’t worry if it takes longer….patience is required.
Once cooked, strain through a jelly bag.
Do not be impatient and squeeze the jelly bag as this will cause the jelly to become cloudy.
A clear jelly looks gorgeous in the jars.
Bring the measured juice to the boil and add sugar gradually…..for every 1 cup juice, add 1 cup sugar.
Stir continually over a moderate heat until sugar is dissolved.
Then bring to a rolling boil until setting point is reached.
To test put a little jelly on a cold saucer…leave to cool slightly.
If set it will wrinkle when touched and if you run your finger through it, the gap will remain open.
Pour jelly into clean sterilised jars* and seal.
*To sterilise, place clean jars into the oven at 120C for 30 minutes.
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Sending out all varieties of apples and also quinces – in 10kg and 15kg boxes. Happy to do mixed boxes of fruit – if you would like a box contact me on 027 288 6090 to place an order.
Remember we are open 7am-9pm everyday and we only sell what we grow.
We have freshly picked Red Delicious, Golden Delicious and Braeburn apples available on the Fruit Stall
All apple varieties are lovely for eating – the best varieties for cooking as well are Golden Delicious and Braeburn – Braeburn are also long keepers. I grew up with bottled Golden Delicious apples. A bowl of apples and hot custard is still a firm favourite of mine 
Quinces are still available so there’s still time for making jelly, paste, preserving or bake them in the Oven with honey or brown sugar…..Yum.
The change in the weather over the past few days has certainly been noticeable – hard to believe it is nearly mid-April..this year is going so fast! 
Despite it only being 10 degrees, there is no rain on the forecast – a relief as Sam and the team are once again picking apples and quinces later this afternoon.
Tomorrow looks to be a nice day with sunshine and a high of 16 degrees in the afternoon
Still taking Courier Orders for apples and quinces.
I send out in 10kg and 15kg boxes – PM or contact me on 027 288 6090 for more details. You’ll like our prices
Remember we are Open every Day from 7am-9pm and we only sell what we grow. 
