The family legacy of a five-generation apple orchard in the Adelaide Hills is holding onto hope with a new side venture. Gavin Plummer and his wife Sheree plan on continuing the family name with a pick-your-own apple and cherry business at their 20-acre property in the Adelaide Hills after the Plummers were squeezed out of the industry by soaring costs and a supermarket-led price hike.
The business is called Plummers Pick Your Own.
“The Plummer name has been going for 124 years, I don’t want to just let it die,” Gavin said.
Caring for the orchard in the off-season on the side of working at the local winery, Gavin says “There’s always plenty to do!”
The do-it-yourself model gives locals and city-dwellers alike a chance to get their hands dirty and pick a variety of apples including Bing, Summit, Lapins, Van, Simone, Sir Hans, Stella and Sir Douglas. The cherries ripen later in the year, ready to fill bellies around Christmas time.
Giving the idea a go for the first time last year, Gavin and Sheree had a booming season.
“People love coming up and making a day off it!” Gavin said.
“A lot of people came back two or three times.
“Families just like to come and get some fresh air.”
Gavin says they like to give visitors an experience.
“We like to take them up into the orchard and show them how to pick the apples properly,” he said.
“It’s also good for kids to know where apples [and cherries] come from and where they grow.”
At its peak two decades ago, Plummers produced around 5400 tonnes of apples a year, making it one of the state’s largest growers at that time. Growing up to 80 hectares of apples and four hectares of cherries, the property sits around 20 km from Adelaide’s CBD with breathtaking views.
The Plummers owned the orchard for 124 years but decided to sell it after a decade of seasons with little profit. Citing rising costs and labour and supermarket price-gouging as the main cost-bearing problems, the Plummers warn that more local growers are likely to leave the industry – as it’s in crisis.
“You just don’t get enough money back from your fruit from supermarkets with the middleman to warrant all these costs,” Gavin said.
The family sold off the orchards to five separate buyers, with only one reportedly staying in the apple-growing game while the rest plan to use the land in other ways.
“We are just trying to get out of it now without too much debt,” Gavin said.
“Hopefully walk away with not too much over our heads.”
In a Facebook post, the family said “It’s so very sad and disappointing to see what has happened in this industry over the last 15-20 years… Let’s hope we can continue doing pick your own Apples and keep our Plummer name going in the industry.”
Follow the Plummers Pick Your Own FB for updates on their upcoming seasons: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086587765450
And visit their website for more information: http://www.cherry-picking.com.au/
Plummers Pick Your Own is located at 1358 Lobethal Road Forest Range, Forest Range, SA, Australia, South Australia.
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