Reminder to remove unpicked fruit

Growers are reminded that unpicked kiwifruit should be removed from vines to help limit wild kiwifruit plants establishing in nearby areas, especially around native bush, or forestry.

Fruit ripening over the winter months provides a food source for birds (such as the wax-eye/tauhou) that then spread seed through their droppings, together with a small fertiliser package. A proportion of this seed can readily germinate.

Unpicked fruit needs to be dropped to the ground and mulched. This prevents mass-feeding by birds over the entire winter period.