A stones throw from the fast-flowing Murrumbidgee River, '5 miles from Gundagai', Tom Robertson has been using Beaulieu R.U.M. Liquid Plant Food as a nutrient for his grapevines. For the past two years this has allowed Tom to cut his fertiliser inputs to the point that he will not use any artificial fertilisers next year. Tom has decided that he is ready for the transition to a R.U.M.-only regime to grow his 20 acres of Chardonnay grapes. "I have been cutting back on the inorganic nutrients a bit more each year and balancing this by increasing the amount of R.U.M.", he said.

"The payoff has been that we've maintained quality in the grapes without losing yield. We sell our grapes to Southcorp who are very fussy. In fact, we get paid mainly on the results of quality tests rather than quantity." Last Autumn Tom took advantage of the 3-week 'post-harvest flush' to put 4.5L/ha R.U.M through his under-vine drip system to stimulate vine root development. Then, between the 10cm shoot stage and flowering, Tom applied another 5L/ha R.U.M. per week for three weeks.

After budburst, another 1L of R.U.M. went into the spray tank to act as a non-chemical wetter. Running his busy vineyard management company means that Tom sees a fair bit of the local vineyards and he was happy to observer that "our vineyard was one of the only two in the whole area that avoided powdery and downy mildew last season."

Tom admits to being a "bit of a spray freak" but always ensures that there is some R.U.M. in the spray tank when he heads into the vineyard.

Delungra wines hit the bottle

Greg Thomas explains the finer points of growing Shiraz grapes to Peter Irwin (Managing Director, Beaulieu R.U.M.)

Delungra, near R.U.M.'s hometown of Inverell, in norther NSW, is not a name you'd normally associate with grape-growing and wine-making.

But, around the 1890's, 17 or so wineries and vineyards flourished in the area before competition from the bigger wineries 'down south' saw them eventually close. "And not because of any disease problems", adds Greg Thomas, whose New England Estate Wineries are now re-establishing a century of old tradition.

Greg reckons that with the 28" rainfall and early summers there's no reason why quality wines can't be produced in the area. Greg and his wife Sheree have been using Beaulieu R.U.M. Liquid Plant Food exclusively on their 1000 acres of new Shiraz, cab, sauvignon, merlot and chardonnay with great success.

"R.U.M. has put heaps of vigour into our vines and the yields have been really good considering their youth." Applications of 4L/ha R.U.M. prior to budburst, post-budburst, and at the 10 and 20cm stages via the fertigation are made through the extensive under-vine irrigation system. "We're aiming for the export market with 90% of our vintage, so chemical residues are a 'no-no'", says Greg. "That's one of the real benefits of using a natural nutrient like R.U.M."