A Travel and vacations forum. TravelBanter

If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Go Back   Home » TravelBanter forum » Travel Regions » Australia & New Zealand
Site Map Home Authors List Search Today's Posts Mark Forums Read Web Partners

Fruit Picking



 
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1  
Old February 3rd, 2005, 06:44 PM
gatts
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default Fruit Picking


hi, has anyone here every fruit picked while travelling? if so how was
it?
What other jobs are good for a bit of cash?
Thanks


--
gatts
------------------------------------------------------------------------
gatts's Profile: http://travelforums.org/forums/member.php?userid=461
View this thread: http://travelforums.org/forums/showthread.php?t=64676
This post was submitted via http://www.TravelForums.org

  #2  
Old February 3rd, 2005, 10:41 PM
Ian Hutchby
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

gatts wrote:

hi, has anyone here every fruit picked while travelling?


Yes, picked oranges in Mundaburra for 2 weeks

if so how was it?


Hard work for little reward.......as with most fruit picking the wages
were based on the amount picked in bushel rather than time spent so if
you have a natural talent for picking fruit then you will do well (there
is a definite knack to picking oranges as you have to remove them
without breaking the skins), but unfortunately neither myself nor the
two others I was picking with had any natural talent so although we
improved over the two weeks (roughly doubling the amount we picked in a
day) we still didn't even manage to pick anywhere near a decent amount.
The hours were long, we would get up about 6am have a breif breakfast
and then head straight to the orchard (we had to camp off site) we would
then pick oranges until 5 or 6 pm (we would stop when we got to the end
of a row) and then head back into town for a cup of coffee. The wages
we managed to earn during that two weeks most certainly didn't reflect
the amount of effort we put into it.
Two others in our group managed to get jobs in the packing shed which
was paid by the hour (if I told you our group was 3 males and 2 females
I think you can guess on what lines the work was assigned!) Being paid
by the hour they managed to get a reasonable wage for the 2 weeks (doing
a 12 hour or so shift each day soon adds up), they actually almost made
as much in 2 days as we did in a week!!

What other jobs are good for a bit of cash?


There are many manual type jobs that you can get. During my year in Aus
I helped dig a swimming pool, worked for a brush wood fencing company,
worked on a production line, worked in a print works, helped layout a
book as well as the fruit picking. If you just put a bit of effort into
it there are lots of opportunities.

Ian
  #3  
Old February 4th, 2005, 12:46 AM
Dwayne
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Fruit picking isn't that bad, tree pruning is harder work.
Dor most fruit you get a bucket that you strap over your shoulders. The
bottom of the basket is a flap that is connected to hooks (on the bastket)
via two knoted ropes. When you want to empty the basket you remove the rope
knots from the hooks and the fruit drops out. I've had 32kg of pears in my
basket once (and only once). You don't really need to work super hard, just
be smart about it. Climb the ladders when your basket is empty, rest the
basket on the top of the ladder. Don't fill the basket on the ladder, climb
down, fill with fruit from the bottom of the tree, then dump. Don't jump off
the ladder (it should be common sense, but people sprain their ankles every
year jumping down from ladders). For apples the price last year was $32 per
bin (each bin is a cubic meter). Keep in mind that the first few days will
be slow and you will be sore. After that your pace will quicken. After a
week, you will be in good enough physical shape to make good money. The
branches on apple and pear trees are hard and sharp, wear a long sleave
shirt. When you pick pears, lift them above the stem while turning them
upsidedown. Once the fruit is upsidedown lift it up to break the stem. If
you just pull them you will break off the top of the fruit and it cannot go
to market. Citrus trees have thorns, wear thin cotton gloves. If you're
thinning, grab the stem between your index and middle finger, place you
thumb on the bottom of the fruit and roll your thumb up into your index
finger. Kind of like snapping your fingers, but you thumb should more
perpendicular to you index finger.

Enjoy!

Dwayne


  #4  
Old February 6th, 2005, 03:27 AM
Big Jim
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Hello Gatts

This is the best time of the year to be picking grapes. Good pickers can
make $1,000 per week. A person used to working in an office may only make
$200 per week.

Regards: Jim Sibbick

"gatts" wrote in message
...

hi, has anyone here every fruit picked while travelling? if so how was
it?
What other jobs are good for a bit of cash?
Thanks


--
gatts
------------------------------------------------------------------------
gatts's Profile: http://travelforums.org/forums/member.php?userid=461
View this thread: http://travelforums.org/forums/showthread.php?t=64676
This post was submitted via http://www.TravelForums.org



 




Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is Off
HTML code is Off
Forum Jump

Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Fresh Fruit in Miami Beach? FXDWG USA & Canada 0 January 10th, 2005 02:03 AM
Why is Fruit So Expensive in Jap ? Robert Asia 16 August 29th, 2004 05:31 AM
Tropical fruit availability in Cuba howard Latin America 1 July 15th, 2004 09:33 AM
Cairo Airport Layover Help - Picking up airline tix and starting RTW. Help with Airport & Facilities Steve Air travel 1 January 11th, 2004 04:04 AM
Fruit picking in New Zealand Jens Lyn Backpacking and Budget travel 4 December 11th, 2003 06:15 AM


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 02:54 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004-2024 TravelBanter.
The comments are property of their posters.