Ecodamia | Spray Free Macadamias
Ecodamia is the business and farm of Stewart Neilsen and his family, located in the sub-tropical locality of Greens Creek, near Gympie, about two hours north of Brisbane.
Stewart worked as a hydrographer with a state government agency prior to purchasing the established macadamia farm in 2019. Since moving to the farm Stewart and his family enjoy being closer to nature and are demonstrating a strong commitment to transforming the farm from its previous conventional farming methods to a completely 'spray free' environment. When asked what the term 'spray free' meant in the context of his orchard, Stewart said that it means "zero herbicides, zero fungicides and zero insecticides".
Stewart does not use any synthetic fertilisers as he believes they adversely affect soil health. Organic fertilisers (e.g. manure, rock minerals) are used sparingly. Soil health is promoted by continually maintaining a diversity of living plant-life throughout the orchard. Organic matter across the orchard floor is preserved from sources within the orchard (e.g. mulched / mowed understorey plants and tree prunings, macadamia husk and shell) and sometimes supplemented from external sources (eg. green waste mulch). The high levels of organic matter and diverse plant-life combine to promote microbial activity and in turn nutrient cycling within the soil, thereby negating the need for large applications of fertiliser. Since adopting this more natural ecosystem style management approach, the health of much of the orchard has improved markedly, despite often challenging climatic conditions.
Ecodamia's YouTube channel and website showcase Stewart's dedication to environmental stewardship (Stewart the Steward!) and the importance of fostering and protecting natural habitats for beneficial plant and animal species on the farm. Like most horticulture crops, macadamia flowers need to be pollinated to produce a crop each year. Stewart believes that being a southeast Queensland native plant, there are a wide variety of native insects, birds and mammals that have co-evolved with macadamias and can aid flower pollination and that the presence of European honeybees is not essential.
The Ecodamia farm is situated on hilly terrain and features 10 hectares of macadamia orchard, which produces an average of about 10 tons of nut-in-shell each year. The orchard is largely unirrigated, so yield varies significantly from year to year depending on prevailing climatic conditions. More than a dozen different macadamia varieties have been planted, with approximately 2700 trees on the farm in total.
Macadamia trees are perennial and can live for well over 50 years. They produce flowers in August and September each year and after pollination, 'nutlets' begin to form on the flower racemes. Over the months from October to December the nuts grow, eventually reaching maturity by January and February when the inner shells have hardened and oil content has increased. Depending on the variety, the nuts are harvested through the year up to September when the trees flower again and the cycle continues.
When the nuts are mature and ready for harvest, they drop off the tree and are collected from the ground with a specialised orchard tractor. Soon after harvest the nuts are dehusked, removing the fibrous outer husk which covers the inner shells. The nuts in shell are then dried in a ventilated storage area to cure the kernels before final processing. During the final stages, Ecodamia macadamias (raw, salted or flavoured) are dehydrated at a relatively low temperature rather than being roasted, which produces a fresh tasting yet pleasantly crispy nut.
Ecodamia is a small family farm and due to a range of reasons, including the lack of organic nut processors in the area, Stewart processes and packs the raw nuts and other macadamia products on farm in a small processing facility. This allows control over all aspects of production and ensures that all macadamias sold are grown and processed without sprays and using regenerative farming practices.
Shop our range of Ecodamia products and try them for yourself! We've got whole, raw and salted nuts, along with some delicious flavoured varieties and nut butters. As Stewart rightly says, "Macadamia nuts are Australia’s most successful commercialised native food... they are nutritious and delicious. Australians should eat more of them!" [source].