Gardening: Fruit fly needn't stop us

By Meg Liptrot

Herald on Sunday·

7 Mar, 2015 03:00 PM4 mins to read

Excess harvest can easily be turned into jams, chutneys, or even soups for winter.

Fruit harvesting is a topical issue where I live. Once again, we're in the the eye of a biosecurity storm and troops of fluorescently clad officers are walking door to door, setting traps and spraying in an effort to curb the spread of the dreaded Queensland fruit fly.

Our environment centre in New Lynn was on the outskirts of the fruit fly discovery in 2012, which ended relatively quickly. This time, the flies were found a decent distance from our house in Grey Lynn (we're in zone B) but I weakly joked with the officers about the coincidence.

At the time of writing, 10 fruit flies have been trapped in zone A, including a number of larvae, so efforts have been scaled up. At least we are familiar with the protocol this time. No fruit can be taken out of the bullseye area of zones A and B. No composting of said fruit or veges is allowed. Instead, fruit and vege waste must be bagged and deposited in yellow biosecurity bins on each street. Each house has a bin in the hot spot where the flies were found.

If populations were established here, this Aussie fruit fly would do considerable damage to our export industry and also to home gardeners growing their own fruit and veges.

The range of fruit the fly likes is surprising - from tomatoes, capsicums, avocados and pumpkin, to sweet fruit including stone fruit, some pip fruit, passionfruit, berries, feijoa, guava and citrus.

The Grey Lynn Farmers' Market and other fruit and vege suppliers nearby can still sell their produce, but those who buy it cannot take it outside of the clearly signposted zone. Those of us growing fruit and vegetables can't share our produce with friends or family outside the zone either.

My neighbour is growing some great veges this year, and is disappointed she can't share her produce. But she has made delicious tomato kasundi (chutney) in the past, so she is keen to turn this year's restrictions into a positive opportunity and make kasundi again. She might even delve into soup making.

So think laterally; there is still plenty we can do with our excess harvest.

• For more information on the Queensland fruit fly go to: biosecurity.govt.nz/pests/queensland-fruit-fly

Community initiatives

A group that has been proactive in the face of the fruit fly outbreak is the Community Fruit Harvesting project, posting in-depth information on its Facebook page for members.

Community Fruit Harvesting was a finalist in last month's Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year awards in the Community of the Year category.

The charity was founded in 2011 by Browns Bay gardener Di Celliers, who wanted to harvest unwanted fruit from backyards and orchards in the community and distribute it to the needy.

Recipients include the Auckland City Mission, which supplies 70 food banks around the city; the Salvation Army, Hospice NZ, schools, student support centres, Women's Refuge and refugee outreach centres.

The idea has since spread around the country as far south as Dunedin and to Whangarei in the north. In Auckland, the project has more than 250 volunteer pickers and 52 preserve makers, harvesting from more than 200 locations.

Community Fruit Harvesting relies on the offerings of local fruit tree owners and orchards. Grapefruit, limes, lemons, plums, pears and apples are the usual crops on offer. Over the past year a bigger variety of fruit, including figs, ugli fruit, oranges, strawberries, grapes, apricots and tomatoes, has been donated.

Fruit is made into jam, relish, fruit leather or cordial. To ensure excellent quality, preserve makers are given strict guidelines for maintaining a sterilised operation and avoiding bruised or diseased fruit.

During citrus season in spring last year, two events made good use of this abundant, underused fruit. The Big Squeeze encouraged communities to raise funds for local charities through lemonade and citrus stalls.

Citrus for Christchurch saw a large group harvesting grapefruit from an organic orchard in Bethells Beach to send down to the chilly south. Air New Zealand flew 500kg of grapefruit down and Countdown transported another 250kg. The fruit was delivered to the Salvation Army who helped distribute it to other foodbanks around the city.

• To volunteer, go to pickfruit.co.nz