Research and technology is an important part of growing high quality pine tree stock

On taking over Murrays Nurseries in 2011 Patrick undertook a review of the production system with a strong focus on sustainability, improved seedling health, seedling specification and ensuring the resilience of the bare-root propagation method. This has led to research in a number of key areas.

Murrays Nurseries Conducts Trial to Reduce Fungicide and Fertiliser Use

Murrays Nurseries has been conducting its own independent trials into reduction of use of fungicides and fertiliser. Fertilisers and fungicides negatively affect mycorrhizal fungi - a fungus which improves the ability of a plant to uptake moisture and nutrients. While SCION has undertaken validated trials we have conducted our own nursery trials and had good feedback from clients. We believe reducing or even eliminating fungicides and fertilisers is possible.

Reduced Fungicides
We made the initial changes below and found we were not getting most fungal diseases:

• Increased intra row spacing
• Reduced the preventive spray programme significantly
• Removed any fungus infected seedlings
• Single destination packaging materials (Nursery/Client specific boxes)
  
  

We found we were able to move to a responsive spray regime and improved yields giving us a risk buffer on contracts within three years. An effect of no preventive chemicals was Botrytis infection became a problem due to topping residues falling into beds and decaying.

• So we introduced a preventative botryicide, Trichoderma Atroviride LU132
• With application before and after our topping programme we achieved good control with two years
• We are planning to design and build an application system into a new lateral root pruner
• Efficacy appears to impacted by very high autumn rainfall
  
  

We had to intervene for Botrytis with Copper oxychloride on half of this season’s crop due to 625mm higher rainfall than a good growing season. Murrays Nurseries has now produced just over 5 million seedlings without any chemical fungicides over two growing seasons, had we not intervened for botrytis this season, it would have been 8 million. An independent Nursery Health Survey for the last three years has reported excellent seedling health.

Reduced Fertiliser
We are also under-taking fertiliser free propagation trials with only a pre-plant application of Dolomite.

• The 2016 trials of 80,000 seedling had no observed difference in growth, but were not measured
• This season we produced 500,000 seedlings without supplementary fertiliser
• Non-fertilized RCD was 6.42% less than fertilized RCD when comparing difference in means.
• Non-fertilized height was 4.06% less than the height of fertilized trees.
• A Clonal cuttings trial of 8,000 FG clones produced excellent tree-stocks without fungicides or fertiliser.
  
  

Trials will continue in the same beds with a control seed lot for the next five years as I am encouraged by the small difference in growth considering the poor growing season we had, and there are many options to improve RCD if we get a similar outcome next year. One interesting observation of the Fungicide and Fertiliser free propagation is the Mycorrhiza mycelium is at ground level and we have the lateral root development occurring very high on the root stem. 

Read More about trials scion has been undertaking in this area

Murrays Nurseries Involved in NZ Dryland Forests Trial

Since 2015 Murrays Nurseries has been involved with a New Zealand Dryland Forests project to minimise growth strain in eucalypts to transform processing.  Almost 9,000 E bosistoana and E argophloia seedlings were established at the nursery in February and November 2015. The breeding programme is selecting superior trees that produce high quality, durable timber. The younger we can identify superior trees, the faster we can make significant genetic improvement in wood properties.

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Murrays Nurseries Moves to Automation

The pinus radiata market has marked peaks and troughs. This has led us at Murrays Nurseries to develop smarter and better ways of doing things including investing heavily in automation of key processes. We have had equipment specifically designed for Murrays Nurseries including seed sowing machinery with GPS for greater accuracy. This can ensure positioning of seed down to 20mm accuracy so lines can be repeated from one year to the next. This allows for the automation of other processes such as root pruning, topping and spraying. The results are obvious: while it took 74 hours to prepare and sow a 1.5ha block in the 1970s it now takes us six hours as a single pass.
“In the past someone had to steer a tractor and someone else had to operate the machine to do this job. This could result in damage due to human error and the fact two people were doing the job. Now it’s all automated with one person sitting in a tractor. We are working to develop other automated machinery,” explains Patrick.
​Our focus on automation has led to industry wide interest as it has enhanced our business considerably for both our benefit but ultimately the benefit of our customers.

Seed Bed Optimisation Trial

We also have conducted trials on decreasing inter row spacing and increasing intra row spacing with the aim of a square bed arrangement. This will provide benefits such as:

• Improved RCD and uniformity giving higher yields (lower seed cost)
• Less variance expressed between individual crosses (no isolation/rejection of individual crosses)
• Improved airflow and light
• More balanced lateral root system
• Improved lifter selection/performance
• Cost neutral or possibly improved bed meter yields
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These trials have resulted in us designing and engineering a 10 row Vacuum seed sower and the installation of RTK GPS system with Implement Steer for precision sowing. This will increase nursery capacity and allow for the future automation of most of the production system. We hope this precession platform is able to provide the potential for the introduction of Robotic harvesting.