Taupiri Sunflower Farm a place of remembrance

Thursday, 25 December 2025

Melanoma is the fundraising cause for The Taupiri Sunflower Farm this year. From left Mel Bromley her partner Bri Walker and farm owners Phil and Deanne Crowder.

It was a melanoma diagnosis close to home that sharpened the focus for the Taupiri Sunflower Farm owners this summer — arriving in a season that was already testing their resolve in the fields.

Armyworms chewed through young plants overnight, heavy rain washed seed away and one patch had to be replanted three times. Deanne Crowder was ready to throw in the towel, but husband Phil decided to give it another go.

Then a close family friend, Mel Bromley, revealed her father had been diagnosed with melanoma this year. The news hit hard because Bromley had already lost her grandmother to melanoma in 2015.

Mel Bromley’s father was diagnosed with melanoma early this year.

Her partner, Bri Walker, had also lost her granddad to the disease. “We were talking and just realised it’s a lot more common than we thought,” she said.

The Taupiri Sunflower Farm has established a donations box for Melanoma New Zealand.

Walker, who owns Āhuru Photography, has been photographing the farm since its first pick-your-own season in 2021, but she and Bromley were long-time family friends of the Crowders before that. When they shared the idea of a melanoma fundraiser, the Crowders immediately offered to set up a donation box at the farm.

“When you come out to the sunflower fields you’re out in the sun for so much of the day, which is stunning and beautiful, but people forget that they are still in the sun,” Walker said.

New Zealand has the highest melanoma incidence rates in the world, according to Melanoma New Zealand, with more than 7000 people diagnosed each year and about 300 deaths. The hope is that raising awareness in a place so closely associated with sunshine will help people think differently about sun exposure.

The Crowders have gone a step further than just donations though. They also have a remembrance fence, where visitors can write their loved ones’ names on a yellow ribbon and tie it on.

Deanne and Phil have built a remembrance fence where visitors can tie on ribbons in honour of loved ones.

Deanne feels that providing a place to memorialise family and friends is especially important over the Christmas period.

For Deanne, the remembrance fence is where she can honour her sister, Leisha Steiner, who was killed in a car accident in 2001.

Steiner’s love of sunflowers is what sparked the idea for the sunflower farm originally.

“The whole theme of her funeral was sunflowers … so we wanted to grow them one Christmas for Mum and Dad to see as they came down the side of the road on Christmas day.”

One of the ribbons is for Deanne’s sister, Leisha, who was killed in a car accident.

It was already a ritual for the family to place sunflowers at Steiner’s grave but we wanted to go “one step further and plant a whole field of them,” she said.

Over the years, people have heard about Deanne’s sister and now they come and share their stories with her. She has realised that “sunflowers actually feature in a lot of people’s lives”.

Alongside their sunflowers, the couple have also planted a Zinnia and phacelia field.

As well as the donation box, Walker said she plans to donate 10% of this year’s sunflower photography profits to Melanoma New Zealand.

Up to 1000 people a day visit the sunflower farm at its its peak, so the team are hopeful that together they can raise a decent amount.

While many families are taking off to the beach for the holidays, the Crowders are bracing for a busy season.

The couple are planning to open the sunflower farm between Christmas and New Year, so they will be mowing tracks and putting finishing touches on the field in between presents and Christmas dinner.

The sunflower season is short, so they will have a hectic month before they shut again in the first week of February.

Deanne said this year has been “struggle street” for them.

The farm is home to a variety of animals, including donkeys Maisy and Monty.

“We thought that they were going great and then we came out one night and realised that they were slowly disappearing.”

Armyworms were the culprit. The larvae did enough damage in a single night that the Crowders had to start again at the end of October.

A range of photo props are scattered around the fields.

One spot in particular has been replanted three times this season after issues with pests and heavy rainfall making it challenging to get seed in without it washing away.

Deanne was ready to chuck the towel in after spending thousands on seed with very little result, but Phil went ahead and ordered the new seed anyway after deciding “this is not going to beat us”.

Despite all the challenges, they have approximately 280,000 sunflowers spread across four hectares as well as a large Zinnia and phacelia field.

They plant a variety of sunflower varieties but Phil and Deanne said their favourites are the fiery Autumn Beauty and creamy White Nite.

The flowers aren’t their only attraction. Amidst the flower fields, are the couple’s donkeys Monty and Maisy, Romeo the goat, sheep and alpacas. Two new pigs are also on their way, already named Jenny and Geraldine.

Although the flower season is thick and fast, the rest of the year is just as busy.

On their 32ha farm, the Crowders also rear beef and Jersey calves. This year they have reared 320 calves and they have 100 left to sell in January.

The run-up to summer is also filled with painting for Deanne. Dotted around the fields are a range of funky photo props ranging from old phone booths to vintage cars and a Kombi van, which are all decorated by Deanne.

After weeks of being bombarded by Facebook messages asking about open dates, the Crowders are now ready for a run of hot weather and people.