A fruit company on the Australian island state of Tasmania is nearing completion of its automatic retractable greenhouse, in one of the first ever trials growing cherries using such technology.

The project is being undertaken by exporter Reid Fruits with financial support from the Australian government.

Speaking to Fresh Fruit Portal, managing director Tim Reid said the intention was to mitigate adverse weather factors on the high-altitude orchard and extend the marketing window later than normal.

He said there were various forms of crop protection for cherry production worldwide, but the company only recently became aware of trials underway at Michigan State University in the U.S. using greenhouse technology developed by Canadian company Cravo.

"We were quite impressed with it and thought that it was the Rolls-Royce of systems we’ve seen to date, albeit at a higher cost per hectare," Reid said.

The decision was made to trial the technology over a four-hectare section of a new 36-hectare cherry orchard planted on a site around 450 meters above sea level in Tasmania.

Reid explained the majority of plantings on the island were at a far lower elevation.

Through a combination of late varieties and the cooler weather, Reid expects to export cherries through February - around a month later than the island's typical finish time.

"Currently our orchards are at sea level and consequently our season normally runs from mid-December until the end of January, or maybe just into February. But by going up to a higher elevation and planting late varieties on that site, we should be harvesting from late January when we finish on our original farms and go through to late February," he said

"The main role of the greenhouse will be to protect the crop against adverse weather factors the area is likely to experience at such a high altitude, like frosts. The fact that the trees are up in that sort of environment means it's a bit colder and consequently there's a higher risk of being damaged prior to harvest."

He said the new site was therefore the 'ideal place' to trial one of the Cravo greenhouses.

"We want to allow the cool Tasmania highland weather to have its natural influence on the growing of the fruit, so the fruit will grow firm and reach its full growing capacity in terms of size and flavor," he said. 

"Most of the other systems are closed off  - which can create issues with humidity - or they take a long time to close as they're not mechanized." 

The main cherry varieties grown in Tasmania are Lapins, Simone, Sweetheart, Regina and Kordia, and Reid said the latter two were the main ones planted under the greenhouse due to their popularity in Asian markets.

"Kordia is a difficult variety to grow due to light cropping but its heart-shaped appearance, intense flavour and long stem attracts a premium price, particularly in China," Reid said.

The greenhouse uses a computerized system to retract the roof automatically when necessary, covering the entire four hectares in two minutes.

Reid also highlighted the roof could be partially closed to protect the fruit from excessive heat, which can result in soft fruit.

In addition, by closing the roof after winter to increase the temperature underneath, farmers in early growing areas could use the system to bring their harvest date forward.

The high-tech system of course requires a large financial investment.

Reid indicated AUD2.4 million (US$1.8 million) had been spent on the project, excluding planting and irrigation costs, but highlighted almost half the funds had been secured from the Australian government through an innovation grant.

"A lot of people would scoff at the costs and think it’s over the top," he said.

"But in years when we get a crop from inside the Cravo and orchards outside don’t harvest a viable crop due to climatic issues, it pretty much starts to pay for itself.

"We think it would be great for the whole industry here in Tasmania, and industry the cherry industry anywhere, if this can be proven to be a good investment."

He added that as the Australian government was involved in the project, information about the outcome of the trial would be extended to the wider industry for their benefit.

Reid Fruits is heavily focused on export markets for its cherries, with close to 90% typically sent abroad, all via airfreight.

"We mainly ship to Asian countries. Tasmania's got a great advantage because of the proximity - we can harvest and have the fruit on the shelves of supermarkets or high-end department stores anywhere in Asia, the U.S. or Europe within four days," he said, adding the biggest markets included China, Taiwan and South Korea.

Reid went on to say the trees 'look fantastic' so far and had been growing well since they were planted in November following a wet winter. He does not expect to harvest fruit for another three years or so, and the trees will likely reach full production for around five years.

Based on the future results, he explained the greenhouse could "absolutely" be extended to cover more of the new orchard.

"We will be extremely interested to see how it goes. It's creating a lot of attention here in Australia and internationally," he said.

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