My orchard walk – Old Oak Orchard

Published on March 3, 2021

Industry Best Practice

Yarra Valley based, Old Oak Orchards will host this week’s local Future Orchards® Walk, providing apple and pear growers with an opportunity to see and discuss what it takes to tap into Melbourne’s high-end retailers.

Image supplied – Nic Finger

Nic Finger of Fruit Help said he is delighted the Corbetts have agreed to open their gates to host the orchard walk.

“Old Oak is a very impressive orchard to walk around. The team aims to place all fruit in the premium end of the wholesale market and that attention to detail really shows across both older and younger plantings” said Nic.

The Corbetts have been on the premium-quality pathway for many years and have aligned their production and marketing to meet the challenging specifications it requires.

Producing very high-quality lines of fruit doesn’t come without its challenges. With the team working across their stall in the Melbourne market, the packhouse and on the farm; what customers want is at the forefront of their minds when implementing their management programs. Aggressive chemical thinning, block specific nutrition plans, tree vigour management and summer pruning/leaf plucking are all used as needed to produce premium quality fruit at high yields.

Those attending this Friday’s orchard walk can expect to see:

Young plantings of:
- Kanzi (single and twin systems at the same age side-by-side)
- Sweetango
- Envy (M9 vs M111 side-by-side)
- Miapple
Mature and young plantings of:
- Pink Lady
- Granny Smith
- Golden Delicious
- Gala
Range of machinery from mechanical hedgers through to platforms, and
Vigour management trials and strategies used across the farm.