RESEARCH & EVENTS
Shaping the next generation of Australian almond orchards
By Tim Pitt, Dane Thomas, Paul Petrie and Kavitha Shanmugam( SARDI) Roberta De Bei, Jill Stanley and Ken Breen( PFR Australia)
AUSTRALIAN almond growers are being invited to help shape a new national research project focused on developing more productive, resilient and resource efficient orchard systems suited to Australian conditions. The newly commissioned Efficient Almond Orchard Systems project( AL25001) is a five-year initiative funded through Hort Innovation’ s Almond Research and Development levy. It will be delivered by the South Australian Research and Development Institute( SARDI), through Flinders University, in partnership with Plant & Food Research Australia( PFR). Building on recent research outcomes and commercial experience, the project aims to support informed orchard development and redevelopment decisions across the Australian almond industry. With a significant proportion of Australia’ s almond orchards expected to be replanted over the next decade, growers are increasingly seeking planting systems that are optimised for local environments. These systems need to improve resource use efficiency, support effective pollination and labour management and consistently deliver high yields of quality almonds that achieve strong returns in both domestic and export markets. This project aims to provide practical, evidence-based guidance to inform those decisions.
Project partners are seeking industry input from the outset A defining feature of AL25001 is its strong emphasis on industry codesign. Early project activities focus on understanding what matters most to growers and ensuring the research addresses realworld challenges and opportunities. This includes maintaining relevance to existing, more traditional orchard systems, as well as to emerging systems that may evolve through the program. Insights gathered from industry will directly inform the design of field experiments, prioritising and integrating researchable questions that test:
• orchard layouts
• canopy architectures
• cultivar combinations
• alternative nutrient and water management approaches.
Field trials will be conducted at the Almond Centre of Excellence and within a commercial orchard, ensuring outcomes are grounded in both research and commercial conditions. The objective is to generate practical guidance
Closely planted( 3 x 6.5 m) self-fertile pollinators. ACE Experimental Orchard, 2026( 8 th leaf)
that growers can use with confidence when establishing new orchards or redeveloping existing plantings. The draft research program will soon enter a refinement phase, incorporating industry feedback before the main research phase begins. As part of this co-design process, a series of interviews will first be conducted with a range of almond growers and processors to help identify key issues, priorities and knowledge gaps. Insights from these interviews will then inform a 2 – 3 hour codesign workshop to be held in the Sunraysia region on Tuesday, 14 April, which will be open to all almond industry stakeholders. The interviews and open workshop will provide participants with an opportunity to discuss priorities, ask questions, and collaborate with researchers to help shape the focus of upcoming trials. The ultimate aim is to develop a research strategy that is closely aligned with industry needs and delivers outcomes that can be readily applied in commercial orchard settings. Growers interested in helping shape the future of Australian almond orchard systems are encouraged to participate in the April 14 workshop. Registration details will be circulated via the Almond Board of Australia, or you can contact Tim or Roberta for more information by emailing tim. pitt @ sa. gov. au and roberta. debei @ plantandfood. com. au
Acknowledgement The AL25001 project is funded through Hort Innovation’ s Almond R & D levy fund and contributions from the Australian Government, with co-investment from the South Australian Government and the New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science Limited.
30 In A Nutshell- Autumn 2026 Vol 27 Issue 1