Chestnut Brae Farm is 70 idyllic acres of mature organic sweet chestnut forests that produce 12 tonne of chestnuts each Autumn. Chestnut Brae uses grazing animals to help build microbial activity in the soil to increase soil health.
Chestnut Brae Farm Stay
A fully self contained three bedroom cottage, Chestnut Cottage Farmstay was the original dairy and later the farmhouse before John and Linda converted it to a farmstay in 2016.
Set in the stunning heart of the Southwest, 15km south of Nannup, nestled between pristine jarrah forest and rolling hills of farm land, Chestnut Cottage is a peaceful rural retreat offering an unique tranquil haven. Chestnut Cottage is perfect for relaxing, reading, star-gazing, bird watching, bush walking, cycling, exploring the south west region, watching kangaroos and emus at the start and end of each day and providing your children with the opportunity to connect with nature and learn where their food comes from.
While you’re here with your family, with your partner, or one your own, make sure you ask about our Chestnut Experience Farm Tour. The tour takes you from the medicinal garden, into the rose garden, the chestnut orchard, the grading shed, shows you the mill room and the farm shop. The history and many uses of chestnuts is explained, as is the harvesting, grading and processing of chestnuts along with the system of regenerative farming and the raising of the pigs and sheep
Farm and Garden Experience
Chestnut Brae offers “Chestnut Experience Farm Tours” where visitors can experience a working farm with farm animals. On the farm, visitors can see our Wiltshire sheep which act as our lawn mowers. Our sheep are watched over by two Alpaca – Eirene and Klotze. Angora goats frolic in their playground and Dexter cattle keep our grass down.
Guinea fowl and turkeys roam freely through the garden and act as our insect control. Being organic we don’t use any chemicals but instead allow our animals to do the work. Heritage Wessex Saddleback pigs (which are now extinct in Britain) are free to roam in their pasture areas, but due to biosecurity measures, visitors are not permitted near the pigs. At dawn and dusk Farmstay guests have the added delight of being able to watch kangaroos and emus in the next paddock as the animals make their way to and from their feeding grounds.
The Chestnut Experience
Autumn is the season of colour and activity at Chestnut Brae. It is harvest time. Sweet Chestnuts fall to the ground in Autumn – April and May and we encourage people to come for “Pick Your Own”. Chestnut Brae is the only organic sweet chestnut farm in WA. We peel, process and mill chestnuts right here on the farm. We have a beautiful Austrian wooden stone grind flour mill to make silky soft fine chestnut flour. A range of chestnut products is hand produced at Chestnut Brae including chestnut flour, ice cream, hummus, puree, mustard, roasted and peeled chestnuts. Blackwood Valley Brewing Company make gold medal award winning Chestnut Ale from our chestnuts.
We now have beehives in our orchards and our lovely bees now give us chestnut honey – which as far as we are aware is the only chestnut honey produced in Australia. Join us as we walk you through the process from picking to quality control, to grading, peeling, drying and milling to finally sample some of the range of chestnut products we produce on our farm. We take you from tree to table on the sweet chestnut experience. Join us for an unique chestnut experience. Chestnut Experience Tours takes around 90 minutes, and can be booked by clicking on the link on this page.
The Heritage Garden
The tour begins in our heritage rose and salvia garden, which is modelled on a Mediterranean style farm garden. The garden at Chestnut Brae was planted around 2004 by the then owners Graeme and Marilyn Wells. Graeme’s passion was salvia and heritage roses. Gardens are one of John and Linda Stanley’s passions, so they restored and extended the garden and replanted a number of salvia and more roses along with a selection of plants that are unusual in the region, including a Gunnera that is John’s pride and joy.
Linda loves being able to walk into the garden to gather fresh edibles for the family meal, so edibles have been inter-planted, particularly herbs for culinary as well as medicinal purposes, in amongst the ornamentals. A separate medicinal garden has now been introduced, and keeping in line with the healing aspect, a Labyrinth has been constructed which is based on the Labyrinth at Chartres Cathedral. The purpose of the Labyrinth is a walking meditation. The kitchen garden comprises heirloom vegetables sourced from around the world as John and Linda believe it is important to maintain diversity in both the plant and animal kingdoms.
The garden is open for festivals and a guided tour can be booked by clicking the link on this page.
The Marron Experience
The Marron Experience is for Farmstay guests only and during the Marron season. It is by appointment only. Marron is a species of crayfish – freshwater crustaceans resembling small lobsters, that live in the waters of the southwest and is one of the world’s most delicious foods. Fishing for marron is tightly government controlled, with a limited season, permits are required and minimum sizes are enforced. Recreational marron fishing open season is from 12 noon, 8 January to 12 noon, 5 February. In season we will walk you through how to put out nets and later pull them in with the days catch. You will then get to taste this delicate morsel caught that day from our own dams.