Bushfires in orchards: a guide to preparedness, response and recovery

Abstract

In the Spring and Summer of 2019–20, the south-eastern states of Australia experienced one of the worst bushfire seasons in recorded history. From August 2019 to the end of February 2020, the Black Summer bushfires burnt close to 19 million hectares, destroyed 3,000 homes and killed 33 people across New South Wales (NSW), Victoria (VIC) and South Australia (SA) (Filkov et al. 2020). Agriculture and forestry industries suffered significant stock, crop, forest, pasture and infrastructure losses. Temperate fruit orchards in the Bilpin and Batlow districts of NSW and the Adelaide Hills of SA were among the most severely affected intensive horticulture industries.