This property was formerly owned by the late Dr. Pike, of Launces ton, and the old orchard faces the Lilydale-Lebrina road, but the younger anbd largest section of the orchard is up on top of the hill and most of it cannot be seen from the road. Some months ago the orchard was badly damaged by severe hailstorm and a great deal of work was entailed in picking the damaged fruit. The trees are still heavily laden, and Mr. East considers that thinning out the damaged fruit has enabled the balance to grow to a marketable size. Two years ago cases of Jonathans were picked off 99 trees, and the crop this year is quite as good.
Mr. East also expects to pick at least 1000 cases of Cleopatras from 180 trees. There is a very heavy crop of Worcesters and the crop is clean and does not show any sign of the dry season. Mr. Davey is particularly proud of the fine crop of Worcesters.
In the past considerable difficulty was experienced in obtaining water for spraying purposes on the top orchard, but two years ago Mr. Davcy arranged for the Lilydale Water Supply to be extended to the property. An ample supply of pure water is now avail able for for domestic purposes, watering of stock, and for spraying. Mr. East is very enthusiastic about a water supply, and states it has fill ed a long felt want.
A large packing shed has been equipped with a modern grader, stamping machine, etc. An enormous amount of work is entailed in picking, carting, and packing the fruit so that the manager and his staff will have a busy time for the next few months.
The fruit industry provides a great deal of employment, and one Lilydale orchardist employs 15 hands during the packing season. Some of the growers are experiencing difficulty in securing competent packers.
A WELL-KEPT ORCHARD (1936, February 18). North-Eastern Advertiser (Scottsdale, Tas. : 1909 - 1954), p. 3. Retrieved February 17, 2020, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article152315922