Orchard cleanup tackled with JCB 215T

Ngāi Tukairangi Trust spraying supervisor, Justin Pewhairangi, has recently taken delivery of a brand new JCB 215T compact track loader from Dave Horgan at Power Farming Ltd.

e Trust has orchards based all over the North Island but mainly in Tauranga.

“Our kiwifruit orchards in Hawkes Bay were ooded during Cyclone Gabrielle and we are left with huge build-up of silt around the vines,” says Justin.

“Dave was a great help assisting us to select the right vehicle for our needs.” e JCB 215T has a small platform but is powerful and very stable on uneven ground. It has quite a low boom, and it was easy to modify the roof so it could t under the canopies, wires and structures around the vines.

Justin found the machine ideal for manoeuvring in the tight spaces between the vines. He was also surprised at how well it copes in the mud, outperforming all the orchard’s similar machinery.

“I also realised we could use it elsewhere for structure maintenance after the ood clean up.

“It has so many attachments available for tasks such as removing vines, planting and post ramming - it’s so versatile.”

Lower fuel emissions and a very fuel e cient diesel engine also add appeal to the JCB 215T. “Power Farming acted fast as there was only one left in the country when we wanted it, and we are grateful to Dave for helping us in our hour of need.”