Wednesday 2-13-08

This day began in the morning at Motueka. I was sad to leave this most beautiful town though it seems that each new place offers some new and original cast of natural beauty. Words really cannot describe the beauty of this country, though one general observation is that it is more tropical than most people imagine. In my mind I was picturing something resembling the UK with sheep galore, chilly winds and hilly greenscapes. But the sights and smells really have more in common with the Caribbean. Lots of fruit and bright, pungent trees and flowers. Though as I write this blog, recalling the events of a few days past, I am looking at snow-capped mountains out the window. It’s like some kind of wonderland.

Anyway, in the morning we stopped at Waimaea nurseries to talk about new developments in nursery work. We learned a great deal more about the club programs in NZ and how they’ve basically saved the industry here since Enza regrouped. The big club varieties here are Jazz and Envy which are both post pink lady varieties with very little potential in the northeast, even that we could get a license which we probably could not. Kiku is growing in popularity and Gala and Braeburn still have niche potential as a carryover from the old days. But, in general, the markets are dominated by club varieties with a mix of high-flavor European varieties like Cox and Tentation. As far as rootstocks go, there is very little mention of anything other than M9. One interesting bit of information is that nobody seems to care much about Honeycrisp, which is called Honey Crunch here and in Europe. The nurseryman we spoke to said that nobody in NZ wanted to deal with the hassle of Honeycrisp when they are seeing equal and higher success with Jazz and Envy which are easier to grow. We all had a good laugh about that one.

Discussions and tastings in the Orchard

Honeycrisp

A well feathered and balanced tree.

Most of the rest of the day was spent driving the long trek down to Hokitika. Though we did stop in the evening to see the “pancake rocks” somewhere near Punakaiki. The pancake rocks are formations of sedimentary rocks worn away by millennia of violent surf to make what looks like big stacks of pancakes. And there are some pretty rad blowholes there too. Check out the pictures…


In Hokitika we ate fish and chips and drank speights. A nice ending to a nice day.

Leighton Rice