A guide to managing the orchard floor

How does orchard floor management using cover crops (living mulches) and other locally sourced composts influence soil health and apple fruit yield and quality?

This was the key question of the PIPS3 Program’s Improved Australian apple and pear orchards soil health & plant nutrition project (AP19006). The project set out to test key principles of a sustainable production system with different orchard floor management strategies aimed at promoting long term orchard resilience. It examined and demonstrated a range of orchard floor management strategies in the Huon Valley (Tasmania), Adelaide Hills (SA), Manjimup (WA) and Orange (NSW).

The publication, A guide to managing the orchard floor- minimising the environmental impact of apple & pear production, provides information relating to the orchard floor and summarises the findings from the three-year (2020-2023) apple and pear research and development levy funded project through Hort Innovation.

Importantly, it provides insight into the questions being asked for industry, to fill knowledge gaps, by the next-phase, five-year PIPS 4 Profit Program’s Building sustainable soils Project (AP22003). These include longer-term benefits of increased soil organic matter and overall soil health, practical implementation of the trialled tree line management practices, and economic analysis of the long-term profitability of orchard floor managements and associated IPDM strategies.

More on the outcomes of the PIPS3 Program’s Improved Australian apple and pear orchards soil health & plant nutrition project was published in the AFG Summer Edition this year: https://apal.org.au/news-and-resources/apal-publications/#afg-summer-2023/44/

Click on the link to download a copy of the publication: A guide to managing the orchard floor- minimising the environmental impact of apple & pear production

The PIPS 4 Profit Program’s Building Sustainable Soils (AP22003) and PIPS3 Program’s Improved Australian apple and pear orchards soil health & plant nutrition (AP19006) projects have been funded Hort Innovation, using the apple and pear research and development levy, contributions from the Australian Government and co-investment from the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian Horticulture.