The Wi Pere Trust is leading the way in sustainable orchard management. After establishing a cover crop in their apple orchard in 2023, they sought to expand their efforts to an organic kiwifruit orchard. Radice Soil Solutions provided baseline testing and follow-up assessments to guide their next steps.

Comprehensive Soil Assessment

To provide tailored recommendations, we used:

Nutrient Testing: Comparing results from 2022 and 2024 revealed trends and areas for improvement.Microbial Analysis: Evaluating microbial diversity highlighted a bacterial-dominated environment with low fungal biomass.Visual Soil Assessments: Observing compaction, drainage issues, and organic matter loss provided additional insights.

This approach ensured a full understanding of soil conditions, nutrient dynamics, and biological activity.

Findings

The apple orchard showed significant improvements in organic matter and nutrient balance due to the cover crop.The kiwifruit orchard revealed challenges such as low fungal biomass, poor predator populations, and compaction.Soil microbial populations needed rebalancing to enhance nutrient cycling and structure.

Supporting Long-Term Soil Health

Recommendations include promoting fungal populations, improving soil structure, and enhancing microbial diversity to support healthy plant growth and long-term resilience.

Laying the Groundwork for Sustainability

The Trust’s commitment to soil health showcases the power of informed, proactive management. These efforts are creating healthier orchards and a brighter future for their land.

Below you can see the improvement we achieved in only 12 months from project's inception