About the Farms

The wool used by Briar Patch comes from a select number of stations:

• Lammermoor Station

• Te Toko Station

• Briar Patch 

These are people we know and trust to farm ethically and sustainably. If you’re a New Zealand-based wool farming family and would like to talk to us about including your yarn on this website, please contact Janette.

Read all about us and what makes us different...

Lammermoor Station

Central Otago is a region of New Zealand which boasts several world class industries, including wine growing and sheep farming. Its stunning scenery, acts as a seductive disguise of the region’s wide-ranging weather conditions - everything from stunningly cold winters to hot dry summers. Lammermoor Station is set in the tussock country at the south of the Maniototo region and its owners, John and Susan Elliot, both come from seasoned farming backgrounds. John has lived at Lammermoor all his life and Susan’s parents’ local farm, has been in the family for generations. It is the collective wealth of their knowledge and expertise, which goes into producing Lammermoor’s world class organically grown merino wool The merino sheep on the property all come under the hard-earned BioGrow certified organic label, which takes over three years to achieve. John & Susan’s three children, Brooke, Lachlan and Duncan are as passionate about the land and the sheep as their parents – for the entire family it is way of life, but also a true passion Buy organic merino knitting yarn from Lammermoor Station or contact us with your enquiry.   Why not experience the station for yourself? Self contained accommodation is available to hire so all you enthusiastic knitters can visit the sheep that produced your yarn. The testimonials from previous guests at the Lammermoor website  give a hint of the special experience staying at Lammermoor provides

Te Toko Station

The Waikato region is arguably, the hub of North Island farming. The glow worms at Waitomo Caves act as a beacon to thousands of visitors each year while those with a keen interest in horses, will find a well established horse breeding and racing industry up the road, so to speak, in Cambridge.       Te Toko Station is set high in the hills of the King Country, just a 20 minute drive beyond the caves. With its sprinkling of limestone rock formations and border of native bush, it is a truly picturesque spot. Five years ago Kim’s parents, Bob and Judy, handed over the day to day management of the property to Kim. But you can’t keep a good keen farming man down! At nearly 70, Bob still gets out and about on his quad bike just to keep an eye on things. With several thousand Perendale sheep and 500 cattle, there’s plenty to do. The Osborne’s have owned and farmed the station for 36 years and have covenanted a considerable amount of native bush to preserve it for future generations. Kim has continued to make more of the station accessible by creating tracks around its amazing landscape. Its steep drops and weaving paths delight visitors.  Buy Perendale wool from Te Toko Station or contact us with your enquiry. Checkout the Te Toko Station Gallery

Briar Patch

Location:	Christchurch, Canterbury, South Island, New Zealand
Size:	12 acres (approx. 4 hectares)
Family:	Janette Eason-Savage
Animals:	Llamas and black sheep

This is where the story begins…. Briar Patch was originally Janette’s 12 acre farmlet on the outskirts of Christchurch. This is where she began breeding llamas and black sheep in 2005. Sadly, the Christchurch earthquake destroyed Briar Patch’s office in the centre of Christchurch City, but this story has a very happy new beginning! When the Briar Patch farmlet was sold in 2011, Janette’s partner Kim Osborne from Te Toko Station, managed to persuade her to relocate to Te Toko Station. So, Janette packed-up the Llamas and black sheep and headed 560 miles (900 kilometres) north to live with him at Te Toko Station at Waitomo Caves. The Briar Patch llamas and black sheep haven’t looked back! They’ve long since settled into their own special paddocks close to the homestead. Buy Llama and black wool from Briar Patch at Te Toko Station or contact us with your enquiry