Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Areas where organic fruit production is widespread also offer educational
advantages. Organic orchardists in Washington and California, for example,
enjoy abundant technical support from state universities, Cooperative Ex-
tension educators and specialists, private crop consultants, and analytical
laboratories. In areas where organic fruit production has not become widely
established, technical support will be more limited and not necessarily of the
best quality.
Your orchard operation may or may not require utilities, including elec-
trical power, natural gas, telephone, and Internet. Develop a production and
marketing plan before you start looking for an orchard site. If you plan to
transport all of the fruit to a packing house or other outlet, you may not need
utilities. If you are planning to store your fruit on site or process it there, you
are likely to need some utilities for refrigeration, lighting, heating, and other
operations. Before investing in an orchard site, determine if the needed util-
ities are available and what their costs will be.
Labor and the Law
Producing tree fruits is labor-intensive. Pruning, thinning, managing veget-
ation, controlling pests and diseases, and harvesting are the most labor-in-
tensive operations. For a home or small market orchard, labor can usually
be handled by the owner, the family, or a few employees. Large orchards,
however, usually require much seasonal labor.
Before investing in an orchard site or establishment, be sure that you
have a sufficient pool of laborers willing to work in your orchard at the times
you need them and at wages you can afford. One advantage organic growers
have over conventional growers is that potential employees often prefer to
work in orchards free of toxic chemicals.
Depending on your area and goals, you may have to consider legal con-
straints to developing and setting up your orchard. For a home orchard, this
is seldom an issue, although some subdivisions, even in rural areas, have cov-
enants and restrictions that can interfere with establishing an orchard. Be-
fore starting a commercial enterprise, be sure that you will be allowed to
 
Search WWH ::




Custom Search