Tamieka Preston
It may seem as though it’s been the longest winter ever – but you know for sure the season has changed when you can bite into a deliciously tree-ripened, locally grown peach – and that time is finally here.
Normally Gingin Nursery owner Michael Liddelow would have been picking trays of peaches for a few weeks now, but the cool weather and heavy rainfall this year have delayed the season. The good news is – peaches on Michael’s heavily-laden trees are ripening now.
Michael will pick almost 3.5 tonnes of stonefruit from the 2500 trees on his block in the Gingin industrial estate, just off Brand Hwy in Gingin. He bought the 5 acre property, which has abundant water, 14 years ago, and since then he’s transformed the sandy block into a veritable garden of eden, with a wide variety of fruit trees, as well as poultry, veggies and plans for a marron dam – all part his long-term goal of a self-sufficient life.
Running his plant nursery alongside the orchard provides additional income to the sluggish fruit market. “Prices for trays of fruit haven’t changed much since I bought this place – they were low then, and they’re still low now,” he laments. But good fortune may be peaking over the horizon. “Eastern states buyers are already sniffing around looking for produce due to storm damage suffered by the big South Australian and NSW orchards this season.”
Michael will soon be flat out harvesting peaches and soon nectarines and apricots. All will be available directly from the nursery at wholesale equivalent prices.
Be sure to stop at this hidden treasure in the lead up to Christmas! Not only can you stock up on delicious local stonefruit but kids are welcome to pick a free bucket of mulberries from what has to be the most enormous tree ever, while you do a spot of Christmas shopping in the nursery!
