YOUR INDUSTRY
Bryce Matuschka
Helicopters and picnics lead Tauranga avocado orchardist to go coastal Bryce Matuschka owns three avocado orchards. By Claire Ashton The first is a fully established 22-hectare orchard in Pyes Pa, Tauranga, and the other two are in different stages of maturity in Hot Water Beach, Hahei. Across his orchards, he has three to four fulltime staff with around ten hydraulic ladder pickers and eight ground pickers come harvest time. Picking is staggered, with the Orua Lane beach orchard picked in September, Purangi Road orchard in October, and Pyes Pa in November. It is the Purangi Road orchard I visit first, which Bryce bought around three years ago, consisting of 48 hectares in total, with 15 hectares in avocados and the rest being milled pine and grazing. Bryce spotted it when he was recruited by a friend to scout for an orchard to purchase. When they went up in his friend's helicopter he spotted two with potential – one 34
The ORCHARDIST : MAY 2021
in Flaxmill Bay and the other in Purangi Road. His friend opted for the Flaxmill Bay property, and Bryce bought Purangi Road. He loves the privacy and position of the house up a long winding driveway – and the pool was a definite bonus too. The property has a two-hectare irrigation lake and good shelterbelts of both pine and cryptomerias to protect against the sou'wester, with a double layer of both species on the boundary as this helps to create warmer temperatures in the orchard. The Hass tree stock is from Lynwood and Riversun in Gisborne and around the orchard are piles of mulch and chicken manure at strategically placed locations, ready to be used when needed. The previous owner had created a system of colour-coded zones for the overhead irrigation
