About Us

Birdwood Nursery 2009

Despatch

Our greenhouses ensure year round production.

Hygiene is paramount.

Birdwood Nursery Fruit Trees commenced operating in April 1978 when Peter Young, then Extension Officer with the Qld Dept of Primary Industries identified a need in the horticultural industries throughout Australia for high quality, disease free fruit trees. The nursery is owned and operated by Peter & Sandra Young, joint Directors of Jayciel Pty Ltd trading as Birdwood Nursery. Initially, the nursery was purpose built to produce Avocado trees tested free from Phytophthora cinnamomiroot rot disease as part of an industry scheme namely the "Avocado Nursery Voluntary Accreditation Scheme" (ANVAS). Birdwood Nursery was a foundation member of ANVAS and was directly involved in developing the nursery hygiene standards.

Identifying the need for tested soil pathogen fruit trees in all industries, Birdwood commenced growing all fruit trees under the ANVAS Guidelines. The basic principle of ANVAS is that of prevention with all plants container bench grown in steam pasteurised potting media and irrigated with chlorinated water. Root and media samples are regularly tested for freedom of root diseases. In March 1993, Birdwood also joined the "Nursery Industry Accreditation Scheme, Australia" ( NIASA) that has further developed nursery accreditation to encompass all aspects of "Best Practice" Nursery Management Guidelines and Procedures.

A significant contributor to Birdwood Nursery's success has been the continuous selection of superior root stocks from within the Sunshine Coast Region and used exclusively by Birdwood. The Sunshine Coast area is a variable subtropical region exposed to short periods of extreme weather conditions of excessive hot and cold, together with very wet or extended dry conditions during summer or winter. Long lived, 50 to 80 year old surviving feral seedling trees of Avocado, Peach, Persimmon and Cherimoya that have stood the test of time have been selected and field tested and have proved to be some of the best in the world.

Birdwood Nursery has an enviable reputation as a very reliable supplier of wholesale quantities of highest quality fruit trees to commercial growers and retail nurseries throughout Australia including accreditation to supply Western Australia. Export demand is also high with only limited export orders currently supplied due strong domestic product demand.

Joining the Australian Nurserymen's Fruit Improvement Company (ANFIC) in 1993 has given access to new fruit varieties and root-stocks from breeding programmes within Australia and throughout the world. New varieties that produce regular crops of superior quality fruit, of both early and late maturity cultivars, ensures better returns to commercial growers and a longer and more regular supply to the consumer. Also new disease resistant root stocks ensure growers use less chemicals and achieve higher yields.

Birdwood Nursery has had steady annual growth rate that has kept pace with product demand and development of propagation and growing technology within the nursery. Mechanisation and expansion is currently underway to accommodate strong interest in new Avocado, Mango and low chill Stonefruit cultivars being planted in Australia to service rapidly expanding demand throughout Asia for Australian fruit.

The nursery is situated at Woombye just south of Nambour in the lush hinterland of the Sunshine Coast, SE Qld, 100km north of Brisbane. Total land area is 24.67 hectares on 3 separate titles, each with road frontage.

Staffing levels are currently 21 permanent and 9 casual with 5-10 additional casuals as seasonal workload dictates.

Currently annual production is in excess of 200,000 fruit trees and increasing. Approx. 70% of production is supplied to commercial fruit growers with the balance going to retail chain stores and garden centres. Our current product range and propagation methods include:

• Lychee are marcotted (air layered)
• Avocado, Mango, Persimmon, Loquat, Kiwifruit, Stonefruit (winter), Passionfruit, Apples, Pears, Carambola, Custard Apple, Jackfruit, Feijoa, Casimiroa, Rollinia, Shahtoot Mulberry, Pecan, Black Sapote and Wampi are grafted
• Acerola Cherry, Bay Leaf, Blueberry, Fig, Mulberry, Pear rootstock, Wax Jambu, Pomegranate, Grape, Olive, Macadamia, Raspberry and Keriberry are cutting grown
• Stonefruit (summer) and Citrus are chip budded only
• More Avocado rootstock are clonally propagated each year as demand dictates
• Curry Leaf, Brazilian Cherry, Ceylon Hill Cherry, Chilli, Coffee, Grumichama, Cherry Guava, Jaboticaba, Miracle Fruit, Papaw, Panama Passionfruit and Tamarillo are seedling grown