Avos & Tunnel Houses?
I’m sure many of you Kiwis have driven along the highway and seen a kiwifruit orchard with a big, long tunnel house or covering over it. But what do these actually do for the plants and their fruit?
A Quick Snippet of History
Tunnel houses in NZ started to become popular after the kiwifruit disease PSA entered the country, putting many orchards and families through very tough times. This disease would kill the kiwifruit vines, decimate the plant's health, and reduce its ability to produce fruit. However, PSA could only enter through the leaves of the plant with the help of water! Some orchardists began covering their orchards to protect them from rain, which prevented the plants from becoming infected.
The Post-PSA Discovery
After the PSA pandemic, growers began to notice that tunnel houses did more than just protect the plants and fruit from rain and wind. They also seemed to provide perfect growing conditions for many plants, including berries! It’s like indoor growing—but with all the benefits of the outdoors.
Phil Reed, one of our founding orchardists, was one of the first Kiwis to switch from running orchards to building fully recyclable and sustainable tunnel houses to protect kiwifruit. But in the last 6 years, he has started experimenting with growing avocados in these tunnel houses—and here’s what he has discovered!
✅ Fewer Sprays & Fertilizers – Less rain means less leaching! 🌱
✅ Bigger, Juicier Avocados – I had the pleasure of trying one of these tunnel-grown avocados, and when I cut into it, juice dripped off the knife! I’ve never seen that happen with an avo before. 🥑
✅ Lower Operational Costs – Picking avocados can be expensive due to reliance on hired equipment like cherry pickers and pole pickers. But with lower, well-pruned trees, Phil can pick the avocados by hand from the ground!
Exciting News!
Orchard Stall will soon be offering tunnel house avocados on our fruit box website! 🍏🥑 Keep checking in and watching for our updates—we can't wait to share them with you!
