YOUR INDUSTRY
Whitney Conder is orchard manager and sole grower on a cherry block near Clyde in Central Otago
Summer work sparks career choice An orchard full of cherry blossoms, buzzing with the sound of pollinating bees is among Whitney Conder’s happiest places. By Elaine Fisher As the orchard manager and sole grower on a cherry block near Clyde in Central Otago, those sights and sounds hold the promise of next season’s bountiful harvest. “Fingers crossed we have a kind growing season this time,” Whitney says. A successful season is very much hoped for given that the orchard was among the hardest hit in the region by storms that decimated a large proportion of export fruit in January 2021. “We had produced some of the biggest fruit I had seen,” says Whitney. “However, when it rains like that, the biggest fruit are the worst affected. What we did harvest was beautiful, but just not at the quantity we wanted.” With one weather event wiping out 12 months’ work, it is Whitney’s love of horticulture which keeps her committed and working in the industry. 34
The ORCHARDIST : OCTOBER 2021
“I started at the entry level into horticulture as a fruit picker during my summers as a uni student. The lifestyle really appealed to me, and sparked something,” she says. Whitney grew up in the deep south, where her family were farmers in the Central Southland region. In 2014, she took time out from hands-on orchard work and took up the role of operator trainer for the innovative New Zealand fruit handling and packing technology company, Compac. “I specialised in small fruit sorters, mostly cherry graders. This took me to many different places including the US, Canada and South America.” Training operators in South America tested Whitney’s language and technical transfer skills.
