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Fruit picking experience

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  • 24-02-2009 5:53am
    #1
    j14
    Registered Users Posts: 829 ✭✭✭


    Just wondering if anybody on here has ever had the chance to go fruit picking???

    If so I was wondering if you could share your experince.

    I was wondering:

    What you picked?
    Where you picked it?
    What was the accomadation like?
    Was the work worth the money?

    I'm not doing this for a second visa I'm doing it because I'm nearly broke and my lease is up on my apartment and I have to move out in 2 weeks.

    Thanks,
    J.


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    #2
    m*pp*t
    Registered Users Posts: 155 ✭✭m*pp*t


    j14, you just took the words right out of my mouth! If I get rejected from one more waitressing/counterhand/checkout operator job (that's been advertised as "casual") cos of my WHV I'll scream. So if anyone has any info on whether there are harvesting jobs out there (preferably in Western Australia as I'm based in Perth at the moment) I'd really appreciated it.

    I know that the harvest trail website (especially the towns and crops section) gives a general guide of where various stuff is grown, but I'm wondering if these jobs still exist in this [voice of doom and gloom] current economic climate [/voice of doom and gloom]. Cheers!

    (Link for anyone who hasn't come across it: http://jobsearch.gov.au/harvesttrail/towncroplist.aspx?State=WA)

    Sorry for hi-jacking j14.


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    #3
    hussey
    Registered Users Posts: 6,240 ✭✭✭hussey


    there are plenty of casual work outside of big cities
    have you tried there?

    Like newcastle or port macquaire etc?


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    #4
    aiecquest
    Closed Accounts Posts: 51 ✭✭aiecquest


    The best guide is http://www.harvesttrail.gov.au which lists down to regional level fruits, seasons etc.. which we have directed students to. Also, local tourist offices can often supply a list of local growers with contact details...saves travelling there to find out no work..... ciao Andrew


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    #5
    Doop
    Registered Users Posts: 1,470 ✭✭✭Doop


    Hey, just came back from fruit picking only did a month, but we had a great time, the craic was great the work was sh*t the money not great! towards the end i was making $100 a day, and i had to push myself to get that amount of money, the farm where we were was hugh which ment a good laugh with all the backpackers, had great partys on the friday nights, and met loads of new friends. But finished up there yesterday cos its the end of the season down here (Vic) for orchards.

    But theres loads of work, its pretty hard to find it when your in a city, ringing and emailing, you need to pick an area an get out there, go round the farms asking if they need workers (took us ages to work this out!).

    I think the websites etc are a waste of time, even ringing the harvest offices aint that helpful but if you walk into them, there more helpfull.

    Helps if you have a car but pleanty of people out picking dont have cars. Theres always the working hostels aswell but think they charge $100 odd a week, thats a days work! staying on the farm or a camp site is the best option


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    #6
    Chinafoot
    Closed Accounts Posts: 9,894 ✭✭✭Chinafoot


    Avoid oranges if you can....I still have nightmares about it.


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    #7
    Larianne
    Registered Users Posts: 35,954 ✭✭✭✭Larianne


    Chinafoot wrote: »
    Avoid oranges if you can....I still have nightmares about it.

    Why oranges?

    OP,

    Packed Mangoes outside Darwin in a place called Berry Springs and again in Katherine, further south in N.T. wasn't too bad. Don't pick them though. You can get Mango rash from handling the Mangoes and also you can get burnt from the sap when de-stemming. Accommodation was $10 a day but some places I think put you up for free in NT as they're desperate to get workers in the state.

    Worked on a banana farm in Tully, North Queensland. (2 hours south of Cairns). Just horrible working there (2 months). Was told by 3 different people not to work on Bananas but it was the only thing going at the time. For guys, you're expected to carry 80 kilos of banana bunches to the truck. It's a really tough job. I was stringing the banana trees (plants :rolleyes: ) together which wasn't too bad but Tully was a hole and most of the workers were misfits or on the run from somewhere so a lot of dodgy people around.

    Picking grapes or cherries seems to be the easiest fruits I've heard about. So I'd head to Western Australia or Victoria.

    As regards to Harvestline, it depends who's at the other end of the line. If you aren't having much luck with someone, hang up and ring again. Had to do that before!


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