About Claretrow

Claretrow is named after my daughter Claret, who was four when I registered the business name in 2019. She'd been following me around the backyard in Bendigo every weekend, poking seeds into whatever containers I'd scrounged from the hardware skip. My wife thought it was cute. I thought it was the start of something. The name stuck partly because she kept saying it back to me wrong, 'Claretrow, Claretrow,' like it was one word, and somehow that sounded more like a real brand than anything I'd come up with on paper. I wrote it down on the registration form before I talked myself out of it.

Before this I was doing part-time logistics coordination for a freight company out of Kangaroo Flat, three days a week, school hours only. It covered the gap but not much else. I'd been gardening seriously since about 2015, mostly food growing, and I started buying supplies in bulk to keep costs down. By 2018 I was spending more time researching drip irrigation fittings and soil amendments than I was doing actual paid work. My wife pointed that out more than once. She wasn't wrong. The hobby had quietly become the thing I was best at, and the job had become the thing I did to fill time between it.

— Grow something real. — Phillip, Phillip Blakely-Kidd

Our team

• Dervla Hutchings — Operations and Fulfilment Coordinator: Dervla came on board in mid-2021 after Phillip met her at a small business networking breakfast in Bendigo hosted through the Goldfields Business Network. She'd been running packing and dispatch for a candle company in Eaglehawk and knew the logistics side cold. She handles all inbound stock from suppliers, manages the pick-and-pack schedule, and coordinates courier bookings through Sendle and Australia Post. Nothing ships without Dervla knowing about it first.
• Tarquin Osei — Customer Service and Product Support: Tarquin joined Claretrow in January 2023 after four years answering product queries for a horticultural wholesaler based in Campbellfield, north Melbourne. He handles all inbound email and phone support, and writes the plain-language product FAQs on the website. He has a genuine working knowledge of drip irrigation layouts and soil pH, which means customers get straight answers rather than redirects. He works remotely from his place in Reservoir, three days a week.
• Brigid Salter — Digital and Content: Brigid started as a freelancer helping Phillip rewrite product descriptions in late 2022, then moved to a part-time retained role six months later when the website rebuild became a proper project. She looks after the Claretrow website, email newsletters, and product photography coordination. She grew up in Castlemaine, which is where Phillip first sold kits at the Saturday market, and she still lives there. She shoots most of the product and garden imagery herself using a second-hand mirrorless camera she bought from a photographer in Kyneton.

Frequently asked questions

How long will my order take to arrive?

Standard delivery is 3–8 business days depending on your location, and express is 1–3 business days. Remote and regional areas may take a day or two longer. You'll get a tracking number by email once your order leaves our Bendigo workshop.

Do you ship to all states and territories, including NT and TAS?

Yes, we ship Australia-wide including the Northern Territory, Tasmania, and rural postcodes. Bulky items like the Raised Garden Bed Kit may attract an additional freight surcharge for remote areas, which will be shown at checkout before you pay.

Can I return a product if I change my mind?

Yes, we accept change-of-mind returns within 30 days of delivery, provided the item is unused and in its original packaging. Opened soil conditioner bags, opened pest control concentrates, and irrigation kits with cut tubing cannot be returned for change of mind. Contact us first at hello@claretrow.com to start the process.

What is the Raised Garden Bed Kit made from, and is the timber treatment safe for food gardens?

The kit uses H3-treated pine, which is rated for above-ground outdoor use and ground contact in non-critical applications. The treatment used meets Australian Standard AS 1604, and the timber is considered safe for vegetable gardens once installed and allowed to off-gas for a couple of weeks before planting.

Is the Neem Oil Concentrate safe to use around pets and children?

Neem oil is generally low-toxicity, but we recommend keeping pets and children away from treated plants until the spray has dried completely, which usually takes about an hour. Always read the label and follow dilution instructions. If you have specific health concerns, check with your vet or GP before use.

Do you offer gift wrapping or gift messaging?

We offer a simple gift wrap option at checkout for $4.95, which includes kraft paper wrapping and a handwritten card with your message. Note that oversized items like the garden bed kit are excluded from gift wrap due to their dimensions.

Can I order in bulk or wholesale for my business or nursery?

Yes, wholesale pricing is available for nurseries, landscape businesses, and garden centres. Send your business details and estimated monthly volumes to wholesale@claretrow.com and Phillip's team will get back to you within two business days.

How do I care for the ash handle on the digging spade?

Wipe the handle down after each use and let it dry before storing. Once or twice a season, rub a small amount of linseed oil into the ash wood with a cloth and let it soak in overnight. Store the spade in a dry shed or garage rather than leaving it outside, and the handle should last many years.

Customer reviews

• 5/5 “Spade is genuinely excellent” I ordered the Stainless Steel Ergonomic Digging Spade and it arrived in four days, well packed. The ash handle feels solid and the blade went through my clay soil without bending. I've used cheaper spades my whole life and this one is a noticeable step up.
• 4/5 “Good irrigation kit, instructions could be clearer” The Drip Irrigation Micro-Spray System covered my 6m raised bed setup with a bit of tubing to spare. It took me about 90 minutes to set up, mainly because the instruction sheet assumes you already know what a pressure reducer is. Once I looked that up it all made sense and the system has been running well for two months now.
• 5/5 “Neem oil actually works” I've tried three different pest control products on my citrus trees this year and the Neem Oil Concentrate is the only one that dealt with the scale insects properly. The 500ml bottle is going to last me a long time at the dilution rates recommended. Shipping to WA took six days which is about what I expected.
• 4/5 “Raised bed kit is straightforward to assemble” The Raised Garden Bed Kit came with all the hardware included, which I appreciated because I was expecting to make a hardware store run. Assembly took about 45 minutes with a drill. My only minor complaint is that a couple of the timber corners had some rough spots that needed a quick sand, but nothing that affected the final result.
• 5/5 “Soil conditioner made a real difference” I've been working on improving a heavy clay bed for about a year and the Claretrow Soil Conditioner was the best 20L bag I've used. I mixed it in before my winter planting and the drainage improved noticeably. Ordered two bags and both arrived the next business day, which surprised me.
• 4/5 “Good product, reasonable shipping time to TAS” I was a bit worried about shipping time to Hobart but the spade arrived in five business days. The stainless steel head is rust-resistant and has held up well after a couple of months of regular use in my garden. Would order from Claretrow again.

From the journal

• Why I named the business after my daughter Clare — Claretrow is a made-up word, and if you say it fast enough it sounds like something a six-year-old would name a pet rabbit.
• The Heathcote supplier who still runs on phone calls — Greg has been composting sheep manure and red volcanic clay near Heathcote for fifteen years and his ordering system is a notebook by the phone.
• Setting up the drip system before the heat arrives — Our 25-metre micro-spray kit can cover a standard suburban vegetable bed twice over if you plan the layout before you start drilling holes.
• Packing orders in a spare room through a February heatwave — The spare room that is now the warehouse holds about 80 bags of soil conditioner and gets to 38 degrees by 2pm in February.
• Getting ahead of aphids with neem oil in early autumn — Aphids on brassicas in March are a Bendigo garden certainty, and neem oil works if you mix it correctly and use it at the right time of day.
• One decent spade that replaced three cheap ones in four years — I went through a Kmart spade, a mid-range Bunnings one, and a market stall special before I understood what I actually needed in a digging tool.