Drought strategies for orchards during drought

NSW Department of Primary Industries November 2019, Primefact 1707, First edition

Kevin Dodds, Development Officer – Temperate Fruits, Tumut

Jessica Fearnley, Development Officer – Temperate Fruits, Orange

Jeremy Bright, Development Officer – Macadamias, Wollongbar

www.dpi.nsw.gov.au

Water is a critical input in any fruit production system. It plays a vital role in plant processes, including nutrient transport, cell turgor and growth, photosynthesis, and temperature regulation. Modern temperate fruit orchards use irrigation systems to ensure adequate water supply to the soil and crop as required. These systems rely on stored or pumped water being available. In severe drought, on-farm water resources can reach critically low levels, placing crop and tree performance at risk.

Efficient water use in the orchard is always a high priority, especially when rainfall and water resources reach potentially limiting levels. During droughts, orchardists must implement all possible management strategies to maximise water use efficiency and minimise the negative effects of reduced water on crops and trees.

See the document below for strategies growers can consider implementing to mitigate the effects of drought.