AUSTRALIA: Perth has a huge mango problem it needs to get rid of
2020-02-27
Original source: Peter Devlin, 10 Daily
Every cloud has a silver lining, in this case, it’s cheap mangoes.Continue Reading
AUSTRALIA: New mango varieties hit shelves after frustrating wait ends for growers
2020-02-21
Original source: Tom Major, ABC New mango varieties grown on a north Queensland farm have been given the taste test for the first time, with retail trials passing the first hurdle. The breeds, known by their plant breeding codes NMBP 1243, 1201 and 4069 are potential successors to popular varieties,Continue Reading
AUSTRALIA: Panama disease tropical race 4 detected in Far North Queensland
2020-02-08
A devastating fungal disease with the potential to wipe out banana crops has been detected on a farm in Far North Queensland — the heart of Australia’s growing district.Continue Reading
AUSTRALIA: Pineapple glut due to drought conditions prompts growers to urge more consumption
2020-01-28
Australians are being encouraged to eat more pineapple for the remainder of the summer to help growers deal with a glut in the market. In central Queensland, drought-affected crops are finally ripe for the picking and growers are run off their feet to get the fruit to consumers. But the late timingContinue Reading
AUSTRALIA: Fruit fly larvae reach Tasmanian shores on a Queensland mango
2020-01-23
Fruit fly larvae have been detected in Tasmania on a mango imported from Queensland. The infected fruit was found in Devonport during a routine inspection at a Biosecurity Tasmania control centre. It was imported in a shipment of more than 1,000 trays of mangoes that arrived on January 1,Continue Reading
AUSTRALIA: Philanthropic orchard owner gifts bumper crop to community to lift spirits amid drought
2020-01-23
In an incredible act of generosity, a Queensland man is opening his orchard, donating his bumper crop of more than 200,000 mangoes to local charities and drought-affected communities. Brian Burton never planned on becoming a mango farmer, but when he purchased Lake Barra Cottages between Gympie and Tin CanContinue Reading
AUSTRALIA: Farmer develops country’s first ever seedless lychees
2020-01-12
If you love a lychee but hate a seed, we have good news for you. Tibby Dixon, a farmer from Sarina Beach in Far North Queesland, has successfully developed Australia’s first ever seedless lychee. But it hasn’t been without hard work. Dixon spent USD5,000 on just one fruit tree from ChinaContinue Reading
AUSTRALIA: Packaging made from banana plants an a-peeling alternative
2019-11-30
Biodegradable ‘plastic’ bags made out of banana plants sounds a bit…bananas, but a couple of UNSW researchers have found a way to do it, and it could solve two industrial waste problems in one. Two researchers at UNSW Sydney have discovered a novel way to turn banana plantation wasteContinue Reading
AUSTRALIA: Lychee ‘super varieties’ to bring new flavours of popular summer fruit
2019-11-03
Six varieties of “standout” Taiwanese lychee trees have been planted on a Yeppoon farm after a long journey from Taiwan, a year in quarantine in Melbourne, a flight to Brisbane, and a road trip to Yeppoon. Ian Groves is the farmer at the centre of the trial and heContinue Reading
AUSTRALIA: Bushfires and strong winds knock millions of dollars off mango crop
2019-09-28
President of the NT Mango Industry Association, Leo Skliros, said a number of mango farms, which were busy harvesting, had lost trees to fire during a horror few days in Darwin’s rural area. “We’ve heard of one farm that’s lost one-third of their property, so probably around 2,000 [mangoContinue Reading
AUSTRALIA: Pineapple plants trucked across border for elephants as drought bites at Western Plains Zoo
2019-09-15
Taronga’s Western Plains Zoo is trucking in pineapple plants from a farm 900 kilometres away to help feed its elephants as the drought bites hard in New South Wales. The Dubbo-based attraction sourced the nutritious spiky plants from south-east Queensland’s Piñata Farms, which has been supplying them to itsContinue Reading
Australian Achacha growers join ISTF 2019
2019-08-30
Bruce and Helen Hill, owners of Achacha Fruit Plantations (AFP), are joining ISTF 2019. Achacha Fruit Plantations (AFP) grows the Achacha tropical fruit (Garcinia humilis, achachairú) at its Palm Creek Plantation, 45 km south of Townsville in North Queensland, Australia. Certified organic, using biodynamic methods, AFP has 16,000Continue Reading