Crops
Olive grove irrigation: less water, better placed
Olives need less water than most orchard crops, which makes every megalitre you do apply count for more.
Overview
Olive water requirements, in plain words.
A mature olive grove in Riverland conditions typically needs about 5 to 9.5 megalitres (ML) of water per hectare a year. The exact figure depends on climate, soil, variety, planting density and management, including whether a cover crop is grown. Many growers deliberately apply less than the trees would use, so the system has to deliver small amounts evenly.
New groves
Layout, rows and drip design planned together from the start.
Vineyard conversions
What can be reused from the existing drip system, and what can't.
Established groves
Reviews and repairs so the water goes where you intend.
What we do
How we help.
Drip built for deficit irrigation
When you apply less than the trees would use, uneven delivery shows up fast. We design for even pressure and flow, so every tree gets what the schedule intends.
- Dripper spacing and flow matched to the soil
- Even pressure along every row
- Shifts laid out so each block runs on its own
- Filtration matched to the water source
Grove layout
Row spacing, tree spacing and block size affect harvest access, drainage and the irrigation design. We plan them together from an RTK survey.
- Feature and contour surveys to RTK 2 cm
- Rows and roads set for harvest machinery
- Slope and drainage review
- Staking of rows and pipelines
Converting a vineyard to olives
Part of an existing vineyard drip system can often be reused, but row spacing and water demand change. We check it before you plant.
- Mapping of the existing system
- What can stay and what has to change
- Pumps and filtration checked for new flows
- Upgrade design and budget
Automation and water records
Deficit irrigation depends on knowing what each block received. We supply and support IRRInet and WiseConn automation, and report water use by block.
- Automation supply and installation
- Call out repairs and troubleshooting
- Flow meter reports
- Water use by block, week on week
What you get
What an olive grower gets from us.
- Water budget and peak demand figures
- Grove layout from an RTK survey
- Drip design built for deficit irrigation
- Pump station, filtration and fertigation design
- Vineyard conversion check and budget
- Automation supplied, installed and supported
- Water use reports by block
Questions
Olives, answered.
Do olives need irrigation?
For a commercial grove in Sunraysia or the Riverland, yes. Olive trees survive dry conditions, but rainfall there is too low to carry a commercial crop on its own. Olives do need less water than most orchard crops, and many groves use deficit irrigation to reduce it further.
How much water does an olive grove need per hectare?
A mature grove in Riverland conditions typically needs about 5 to 9.5 ML per hectare a year. It depends on climate, soil, variety, planting density and management. A grove with a cover crop kept through the season uses more than one with bare ground between the rows.
What is deficit irrigation in olives?
Deficit irrigation means applying less water than the trees would use, either through the season or at chosen stages such as pit hardening. Growers use it to save water. How far to push it is a decision for you and your agronomist. Our part is a system that delivers the smaller amounts evenly, and records that show what each block received.
Can I convert my vineyard to olives and keep the drip system?
Often in part, but check before you plant. Olive rows are usually wider than vine rows to suit harvest machinery, and the water demand and dripper layout change. We map the existing system, check the pumps, filtration and mains against the new layout, and tell you what can stay and what has to change.
Where do you work on olive groves?
The team works from Mildura across Sunraysia, the Riverland and New South Wales. Field technicians are based in Sunraysia. Travel is quoted up front.
Related
Planting or converting to olives?
Send the property location and what you are planning. Nick, Matt or Aaron will call you back with a scope and a price.