Popular Essex dealer event celebrates of launchspecialistdivision

Fruit And Viticulture

also very pleased with the number of people who came to the show for the rst time, especially to see the machinery we o er. They included existing vineyard and fruit farm owners, and many who are considering diversi cation into the industry, and they regard the scale of our operation with backup through 19 depots a signi cant advantage.”

David Williams was there Popular event

The show is held at the Ulting, Essex headquarters of Ernest Doe & Sons Ltd, and the 2023 event in early February was the 63rd Doe Show – but also marked the start of celebrations for the dealer’s 125th year of trading.

The dealer’s 19 depots serve customers across East Anglia and the South East. The main franchises are Case IH – sold through Ernest Doe Power depots – and New Holland, which is available from Ernest Doe branded outlets. A large range of carefully selected complementary brands is available from all the locations.

Launch of specialist division

Last year, in response to increasing customer demand, a specialist division dedicated to serving fruit growers and vineyards was created, based at the dealer’s Ulting depot. The Doe Show was the rst opportunity to view a range of machinery from the newly assembled list of quality franchises catering for this growing market, and to meet the dealer’s team of industry specialists. The stand also featured machinery which has already proved popular with orchard and vineyard owners from long-established brands, Teagle and KRM.

Lots of interest

“We had a superb show,” con rmed Ernest Doe & Sons fruit and viticulture specialist, Tom Wheatley. “The grape harvester was a star attraction and although a lot of the attention was from people who hadn’t seen one before, there were also several genuine enquiries from vineyards considering a purchase.

“The two new tractors generated the most sales enquiries, and the spectacular FrostFan impressed potential users, including vineyards and fruit growers, because of its ability to protect large areas at minimal cost. Many of those who visited the stand are existing customers who already use Case IH and New Holland specialist tractors, but they were visiting the show to view the new line-up of attachments and implements. I was

Fruit and vineyard sprayers

Ideal sprayers come in mounted or trailed versions, with tank capacities from 200–3,000 litres. “We have models for orchards and vineyards, as well as cannon sprayers. Cannon sprayers can accurately apply treatments to fruit and other crops grown at ground level in wide beds, avoiding the need for wheelings through the crop from conventional boomtype sprayers. Ideal also offers recirculation sprayers which recover excess spray, resulting in reduced chemical use and bene tting the environment,” said Ernest Doe & Sons fruit and viticulture specialist Tom Wheatley.

Great range of products

Case IH and New Holland both recently announced new narrow fruit and vineyard tractors, with class-leading cabs and an extremely capable speci cation. Pre-production versions of the tractors had been displayed at trade events previously, but the Doe Show featured full production machines which recently arrived into the dealer’s stock, for the rst time.

As well as new tractors and the New Holland Braud grape harvester, the display included specialist products from recently added franchises - Dondi, Ideal, Provitis and FrostFans. “The addition of these quality brands means we can offer a full package of machinery to our customers,” explained Tom Wheatley (right), pictured with Ernest Doe Power general sales manager, Ed Perry. “The products are top quality offering the best performance and we are very pleased to be able to sell and support them.”

Dondi weeders and cultivators

Low-cost frost protection

New Zealand-built FrostFans offer low-cost mobile frost protection across large areas. There are two models – the 250H protects areas up to 4ha, and the larger 650H version provides protection for up to 6ha. The fan and direct-coupled diesel engine are carried on an extending arm, and the assembly is trailer mounted.

The fan can start and stop automatically according to air temperature, or with control by a timer. Control and monitoring through a smartphone app is an option. Operating modes include static, revolving and oscillating. “There are no drive belts or chains to fail in cold weather,” explained Tom. “The arm is hydraulic driven and an on-board battery, charged by a solar panel, powers the pump. Keeping the engine and fan unit separate from the hydraulics avoids complex drives. It’s very simple but extremely effective, and with diesel consumption at only ve litres per hour, it’s a more cost-effective solution for frost control than ground-level alternatives.”

Family-owned manufacturer, Dondi offers a range of inter-vine mechanical weeders, tine and disc cultivators, and low-disturbance subsoilers. The company’s export manager, Paolo Pettirossi (pictured on the right with Tom) is the son of the owner, and he assisted the dealer team as the products were displayed for the rst time. “Our products are chosen for their high performance and premium build quality,” he explained. “Dondi started manufacturing in 1850, although machinery for orchards and vineyards is a more recent addition.”

Products on the stand included a low-disturbance subsoiler, and several vineyard weeders – including the new Olea 2 model (pictured), which is designed for wide-gauge vineyard and orchard use with hydraulic working width adjustment up to 4.5m, and automatic retraction of the two hoe bodies, controlled by mechanical feelers.

“Modern, specialist tractors represent a big investment for their owners, and our products are designed to utilise their capabilities,” continued Paolo. “We use oil supplied by the tractor hydraulics rather than tting separate implement-mounted systems. There is no point duplicating everything on the attachment when the tractor already has everything needed. It saves money and ensures maximum productivity.”

Specialist application

Provitis is the most recent addition to the brands on offer, and an agreement to sell the range of trimmers, defoliators and pre-pruners was completed just a few weeks before the event. A Provitis trimming unit has already been sold, for permanent use with a New Holland Braud grape harvester tractor unit.

The combination has been ordered by Suffolk-based Elveden Estates to maintain trees for instant hedging. Elveden Instant Hedging produces hedging plants for customers all over the UK, and customers include retail, landscape designers and large-scale landscaping projects including new roads and railways. Fourteen varieties of hedge plants are grown currently, and there are 57,000m of hedge to trim. “We trim regularly to maintain shape and keep the plants dense,” explained Instant Hedging and Christmas Tree foreman, Ben Samson. “It would take one person up to nine months to trim the rows once, but the New Holland will do the job in less than week, and we will probably trim all the trees once per week through the growing season, just taking off small amounts of new growth each time.”

Ben is pictured (on the right) with nursery worker, Laurence Payne.