Orchard plant protection guide for deciduous fruits in NSW

Summary

The 2024–25 edition of the Orchard plant protection guide for deciduous fruits in NSW is the latest in a series of annual publications that have supported the pest and disease management decisions of generations of NSW temperate fruit producers for over 60 years. The guide is recognised as a respected and valuable reference for temperate fruit industries.

Feature articles

Aphrika Gregson, Farm Chemicals Officer at NSW DPIRD, provides an update on Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) chemical reviews relevant to deciduous fruits in NSW. Her article includes details of APVMA reviews for active ingredients, including the insecticides chlorpyrifos, malathion, diazinon, fenitrothion and fipronil and the herbicides diquat and paraquat (page 7).

Jess Fearnley outlines the new NSW DPIRD-led Hort Innovation project ‘Extension and communication for the Australian cherry industry (CY22002)’ (page 6).

Our lead author, Kevin Dodds, explores the evolution of orchard sprayers from labour-intensive horse-drawn machines to modern tower sprayers. His article highlights the development of the next generation of narrow orchards as the catalyst for more targeted and efficient approaches to spray application (page 10).

Climate scientists and entomologists predict that climate change and associated temperature shifts will affect the distribution and activity of certain agricultural and horticultural pests. The NSW DPIRD Climate Vulnerability Assessment provides an overview of the findings for Queensland fruit fly and discusses the implications for temperate fruit-producing districts of NSW by 2050 (page 16).

The authors would like to acknowledge Dr Sally Bound of the Tasmanian Institute for Agriculture for her contribution to the section Chemical thinners for pome and stone fruits on page 132.

Distribution

The guide is available free to commercial fruit growers and is distributed to rural retailers and key industry bodies in pome and stone fruit growing regions. Additional copies can be obtained through NSW DPI Tocal bookshop (https://shop.regional.nsw.gov.au/collections/horticulture).