Olive crops thrive under downpours
As one of the Hunter’s biggest olive groves prepares to begin its harvest in earnest, the rain is pouring down. Unlike the region’s wine, this year’s wet conditions in the Upper Hunter are not going to threaten the crop at Pukara Estate near Muswellbrook, owner Bruce Eglington says. “The soil is very forgiving; free draining,” he said. “Moisture makes it a little difficult to press but the oil varieties tend not to bloat.” It is Pukara’s sixth harvest after its establishment in 1999 and rain has never been a serious issue, Mr Eglington said. “We’ve pretty much been in drought ever since we started,” he said. “The last two years have been extremely challenging.” Compared with the frenzy of the wine harvest, getting the olives off appears positively laid-back. Mr Eglington said the grove set a model yield of between seven and eight tonnes a hectare, or about 100,000 litres a year, when it started. Newcastle Herald, April 26.
