Balance key to success with apples

Biodiversity and balance are keys to successful organic apple growing, says an international organics expert, Dr Franco Weibel.

Growers should "play" with levels of weeds and insects among their trees to minimise disease and maximise production, said Weibel, from the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture in Switzerland.

Organic orchards should not be nice tidy rows without weeds. Nor should they be wild and overgrown, he told Marlborough organic pipfruit growers at the regional research centre.

After visiting two orchards in the region, Weibel said the Marlborough industry, although barely two years old, was progressing well.

HortResearch scientist Marc Greven said Marlborough growers and researchers were still assessing which insects and plants were beneficial for apple growing, but had limited resources to experiment.

- NZPA