About Us

My main focus is the management of crop and canopy for maximum performance and profitability. This involves optimising the inputs of orchard system design, labour and technology. Precision Hort sums it up. My background in commercial horticulture, research and consultancy helps me to provide expertise across a broad range of horticultural subjects.

I am very passionate about all living plants and trees, and love spending time in orchards and vineyards observing constant changes in the field. I have a varied role at Fruition that extends across the provision of technical services to our clients, research, lab work and design.

At Fruition my main focus is Soil and Water. This role is analyzing weekly moisture data gathered from Neutron Probes and providing accurate irrigation advice. Monitoring of soil moisture is also completed via Sentek continuous probes. I also complete site assessments and due diligence on potential properties for clients.

Until recently, there has been no way to quantify variation, nor have we had tools to address variation within orchard blocks. Growers have to treat whole blocks as uniform objects, knowing full well that they are not. With the Green Atlas Cartographer, we find ourselves in a space where we can now quantify variation, and variable rate applications are beginning to allow the treatment of said variation. I view my role as helping to deliver services that progress our clients towards a future of managing their orchards better, from lowering inputs through more targeted applications to growing optimal crops through more appropriate loading of trees/vines.

Having been involved with technology in post-harvest and how it can be utilised to improve efficiencies it is exciting to explore how technology can be applied at an orchard level. My role at Fruition is to support our precision horticulture services. This involves the operation and data processing for our Green Atlas Cartographers. I enjoy the challenge of applying new technology into orchard management systems and making sure data collected is presented in a form where it is beneficial to clients.

I have a background in Viticulture, and this has given me a huge passion for plant physiology, sustainable practices and land stewardship.  My role at Fruition is primarily to provide growers with technical information that assists them to make better management decisions. I also assist the wider team at Fruition with ongoing projects and trials for both industry and individual clients.

All aspects of viticulture interest me, but my focus over the last few years has been in practical applications of precision viticulture technologies.  Recent advances in remote sensing and data handling have meant that things which were once only research tools can now be integrated into daily vineyard activities.  With over 50 years involvement in Horticulture and 35 years of experience in the NZ Viticulture industry, I am well positioned to assist growers to make the most of these new and emerging technologies to ensure efficient, cost-effective production.

I keep the business and admin wheels turning and make sure the office runs smoothly. I like to interact with clients and keep everyone on their toes. For variety and fresh air, I help out with some extra auditing, sample collection and soil moisture monitoring jobs. I’m responsible for maintaining everyone’s favourite - our Health & Safety system.

From P&D assessments to fruit counts and packhouse audits, Donna and Gaeline are our experienced and multifaceted Tech Team. Their skills, knowledge, and reliability are crucial to the provision of all Fruition services.