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by H. Adem & Peter H. Jerie
May 2004
RIRDC Publication No 04/032 RIRDC Project No DAV-164A
Walnut production from the previous project (DAV-73A) demonstrated that commercial yields of 0.3t ha-1 are attainable four years after planting grafted trees. In years five and six, walnut yields were 1.3t ha-1 and 1.9t ha-1 respectively. With less than 5% of the domestic market supplied by Australian walnuts, considerable opportunity exists for import replacement and for the development of exports into the Northern Hemisphere.
Exciting new advances in R&D made in the last two years has created a new generation of walnut investors with plantations of 12,000 to 500,000 trees, in contrast to the traditional growers with 100 to 1,000 trees. New plantings are of high yielding, early-bearing cultivars planted in hedgerows which quadruple tree numbers for the same area of land.
Many walnut growers came from a background in business but had little horticultural experience prior to establishing a walnut orchard. Clearly there was a need for continued education and training in developing their skills in horticultural practice. The project leader, in collaboration with AWIA, has proposed a formal course of study for walnut growers conducted jointly by staff from DNRE and the TAFE system of education. Most participants in the project were owners of new plantings or investors keen to establish a new planting. Others accepted the latest research developments but needed support and training to fully implement the results.
Barriers which limited the expansion of the industry were the lack of planting stock, and lack of knowledge on orchard management by growers that included a limited understanding of irrigation, fertilisers and canopy management. A Business Plan was developed through a series of meetings held over a six month period in order to develop an appropriate model. The present project was a joint venture between RIRDC, DNRE and AWIA implemented through the industry’s business plan.
Many leading researchers from around the globe have visited Tatura and in turn the project leader has visited international centres of excellence. Networks established by the author enabled a number of people in the industry to visit centres of excellence in the USA and France, Italy and Spain to learn Best Management Practice.
On-farm activities included demonstrations on new propagation techniques to both growers and nursery managers. A discussion on the measurement of the available water in the soil and a demonstration of the installation and reading of tensiometers was held and followed up at subsequent meetings. Seminars were also presented on the management of nutrition in the walnut orchard.
Sessions included the identification of fertilisers, the availability of nutrients to the plant, interpretation of plant and soil analysis and fertigation techniques. Demonstrations of tree training were conducted in group sessions as well as with individual growers. In winter, pruning exercises were conducted on selected orchards and these were followed up in summer with a review of the effects of pruning had on the walnut trees.
The success of the project was measured in the number of participants entering the program plus the level of competency reached by the participating walnut growers. Tree management theory was provided through seminars and written material including publications in the Australian Nutgrower and handouts. Theory was followed up by practical classes where growers were instructed in propagation, fertiliser management, irrigation management, soil water monitoring and pruning.
Participants in the classes were then assessed for competency, on their own orchard, as they demonstrated each of the skills learnt. The program of training proved to be highly successful in taking the growers from a position of little or no experience in horticulture to a point where they could independently manage their orchards to a high standard.
Since the project began, approximately 500ha of new plantings have been established in Australia with approximately 2000ha planned for Victoria in the coming years. Other states are expanding their walnut industry and Tasmania alone has 600ha of new plantings with another 200ha in progress. The AWIA Consultancy Service has provided an effective vehicle to assist the walnut industry reach a critical mass thereby enabling it to replace imports and create export markets. A new 1000ha planting in northern Victoria, the biggest walnut orchard in Australia, is testimony to the success of the project.
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