Lemon Ironbark

Zane was raised on a cattle farm in far north Queensland. After completing a Diploma in Primary Production at Agriculture College sought work on cattle stations. To meet his dreams in owning farm land, worked on Fly-In/Fly-Out (FIFO) rosters in the mining sector throughout Australia. Married Megan and together they bought and sold land during a time when land values were at their peak, making it hard to make livestock farming a viable venture. Finally they bought a property in Dimbulah to be close to extended family members after having had 3 boys – Beau, Clint and Dustin. Zane then searched for something to grow that would be economical so he could stay home rather than to work in the mines. In 2012, a friend suggested that they grow crops for essential oils. A logical idea as with all farmers, they know how to grow grass well – just needed to know how to extract the oil. Little Zoe arrived. They began their essential oil journey with sustainable production in mind by growing Palmarosa on the family farm. Then bought a small Tea Tree farm with harvesting and distillation infrastructure in place which made it easier for the family to downstream their operation. Currently Zane and Megan are distilling Palmarosa, Tea Tree and now the ever popular Australian species, Lemon Ironbark. Zane no longer leaves the family for mining FIFO and loves the opportunity essential oils has given him to be at home full time. The couple are looking at new varieties suitable for their semi-tropical environment in far north Queensland.