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Two Hawke's Bay companies have collaborated to develop advanced orchard scanning technology, simplifying the process for growers to monitor their orchards.

Since 2019, Fruition Hawke's Bay has offered Green Atlas Cartographer orchard scanners, enabling growers to accurately count buds and fruit across their trees and vines. While the scanners provided detailed data, the information was not easily digestible for growers. To address this, Fruition partnered with agri-tech expert HortPlus to create interactive digital maps on its client portal.

Jack Hughes, Managing Director of Fruition Hawke's Bay, highlighted the maps' benefits, stating they allow growers to easily visualize orchard conditions and make informed decisions. The maps consolidate crop density data from the Cartographer scanners, presenting it on personalized heat maps of each orchard. This tool helps growers prioritize actions, optimize crops, and reduce costs.

Fruition is the exclusive New Zealand partner for Green Atlas scanners, with four machines covering 2,600 hectares of kiwifruit and apples in the 2023-2024 season. Hughes emphasized the scanners' ability to simultaneously collect data on fruit size, quantity, and leaf area, offering a comprehensive measure of crop load and tree capacity to meet market requirements.

The collaboration between Fruition and HortPlus is not new, spanning over a decade and resulting in various technological advancements for Fruition clients. Among these innovations is the Trappa app, which allows certified scouts to record pest insect data from pheromone traps in apple orchards. The data is automatically integrated into Fruition's client portal, aiding pest control decisions through the "hot trap" function, which highlights areas of high pest pressure.

Additionally, the partnership has made soil moisture data from orchard sensors accessible on the Fruition portal. This data informs growers about water usage and soil moisture levels, guiding irrigation decisions.

Mike Barley, Director of HortPlus, expressed pride in collaborating on cutting-edge technology within Hawke's Bay, noting the region's reputation as a leading agri-tech hub in New Zealand. He praised Fruition Hawke's Bay for its openness to new technology and commitment to adding value for New Zealand growers, making the partnership both natural and productive.

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