Slim pickings: what explains the unusual apple shortage in this Blue Mountains orchard?

"At this time of year, Pine Crest Orchard in the Blue Mountains town of Bilpin would usually have about 1,000 visitors a day picking their own fruit from trees laden with apples. But this season, the trees are mostly bare and no one really knows why. Orchardist John Galbraith, who owns and runs the farm with his wife, Erica, said he and the other local growers in Bilpin have been left scratching their heads about why, despite heavy flowering in spring, no fruit has formed."

"We had what looked like good blossom but then watching the trees over the second week of October I started to realise the flowers had fallen off and there were no apples, Galbraith said. Instead of the petals falling off and leaving the centre of the flower (which becomes the apple), the whole flowers and stalk had fallen off and you could walk up and down the rows and couldn't find any apples, which should be at that stage the size of a pea, Galbraith said."

"A few possible causes were discussed including the weather it was quite windy at the time, which could have caused bees to be ineffective in pollinating the crops and varroa mite, which was first detected in Australia in June 2022 and has spread rapidly, affecting bee populations across the country. Varroa mite has caused a significant amount of wild bee hives to be destroyed, so there's"

Pine Crest Orchard and other Bilpin growers saw abundant spring flowering but almost no fruit formed, leaving trees largely bare at peak picking season. Flowers and stalks dropped before fruit set, so developing apples were absent. About 60% of Pine Crest's trees are apples, creating severe financial exposure for the family-run operation. Reduced pick-your-own availability has suppressed visitor numbers and harmed local tourism. A late-October workshop with growers and experts examined possible causes, including windy weather that may have hindered bee pollination and the spread of varroa mite since June 2022, which has damaged bee populations across Australia.

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