Viticulture has been part of the Swan Valley since the first British settlers arrived in 1829. Before the close of the 1800s, a significant dried fruit and wine industry had been established. Charles Harper, President of the Bureau of Agriculture and owner of the Woodbridge Nursery and Estate, where extensive experimentation and grape cultivation was carried out, was one of its earliest promoters. His address to a gathering of viticulturists and politicians including Sir John Forrest in 1897 provides an insight into other industry pioneers and the varieties they were experimenting with.
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The
Woodbridge Nurseries ROOTED VINES Address: 8 minutes walk from Woodbridge Station E.S. Wigg &Son, Printers Perth, 1897. |
Mr. Charles Harper, M. L. A. President of the Bureau of Agriculture."In the vineyard stocks there has been a marked improvement both in the table and wine varieties. Among the choice sorts that have been introduced, speaking of table kinds, are Knights Centennial, Waltham Cross, Black St. Peter. Before we got these stocks the standard dessert varieties were White Nice, Chasselas, Crystal, and Whortley Hall and Sweetwater. There were many wine grapes grown of the better kinds. Now there are many acres planted with Carbinet, Mataro, Malbec besides Doradilla, which is an excellent grape, both for the table and the wine vat. It makes superior white wine. All vines thrive on the Swan; I cannot say that the desert stocks do better than the wine kinds, but the table grape is certainly very fine. I have never seen choicer grapes, either larger or of better flavour. If anything the ground is too rich for the wine grape. The crop is a very heavy one, but an earthly flavour of the wine has sometimes been suspected. Perhaps a more gravely country, with an ad mixture of lime and ironstone would grow a more perfect grape for the wine maker. A great deal of wine is made in the district. The largest vignerons are Mr. C. Ferguson, of Houghton, whose cellars are about five miles from Guildford, Mr. George Lennard, also an extensive grower and Messrs. Nanson and Co."
Harper’s aim was to attract government financial support for the industry, at a time when gold mining was the State’s main focus.
"...To make wine properly required a plant which was beyond the ordinary private resources of the small growers to purchase, especially as it was evident that the vigneron should use every pound of his capital in bringing additional land under cultivation. Under these circumstances, and in order to prevent a surplus production, which had been the bane of the viticulturist in the other colonies, the Bureau had drawn up a scheme by which it was proposed to ask for a State loan for the establishment of wineries in such districts of the colony as had a large area of vines under cultivation. It was with the object of showing the members of the Government, and as many members of the Legislature as it had been possible to invite, what these so called second class lands of Western Australian were capable of in the growth of the vine, that the excursion of that day had been arranged."
Sir John Forrest agreed with the importance of developing the rural industries as well as mining, and invited the Bureau of Agriculture to lay their scheme fully before the Government. He could promise them the sympathy of the Cabinet, he said, "even if the Government could not grant all the requests that were made."
As the new Century unfolded gold became less of a focus, while those who had steadily invested their energies in the viticulture industry began to see rewards. The Swan Express heralded these successes.
"This year was the first at which any serious attempt has been made by grape growers to export on a large commercial scale, and the export of grapes to London and other overseas markets is now an established business proposition. The cable reports of sales of large shipments to London by Mr. G. Barrett Lennard show that he has, after much experiment, and no doubt some initial loss, reaped his reward, the prices realised ranging from 19s. 6d to 33s per case. These are remarkably profitable returns, and as an enormous market exists overseas, the Hinterland of Midland Junction, which probably contains some of the finest grape growing country in the southern hemisphere, should, in the early future, become a vast vineyard producing thousands of tonnes of choice fruit for export."
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Grapes Wanted 500
Tons for Wine Making PRICES UP TO 15 pound PER TON. Get your contract at once if you have any for Sale. APPLY |
These successes in turn attracted immigrants from Southern Europe who started more intensive cultivation of vines on smaller holdings. The new immigrants, many from Dalmatia, greatly expanded the industry with their viticulture expertise.
After World War I the Valley continued to be subdivided for more intensive grape cultivation as part of an initiative to resettle returned soldiers on their own vineyards. Herne Hill, one of the original Swan River estates, was bought and subdivided by a charitable organisation known as the Ugly Men’s Association. Other estates including Baskerville and Caversham, were also subdivided. The soldier settlers, many with no prior viticulture experience, utilised the knowledge of earlier grape growers, to expand the industry further. The Swan Settlers’ Cooperative Association was set up to assist the owners of small holdings in processing and packaging of dried fruits for export - promotion of which became the main industry thrust of the 1920s.
On the 19 December 1924 the Swan Express featured a lecture by Mr. Thomas about his trip to Britain to promote Western Australian dried fruit to Britain over competition from countries such as South Africa and Greece. According to the article, Mr. Thomas in his visit to Savoy House, the headquarters of Western Australia’s Agent General, "insisted that display windows which fronted the Strand should be filled with W. A. dried fruit".
Although the dried fruit component of the industry received a high profile at that time, advertisements featured during October 1925, are reminders that grapes for wine making in the Valley continued to be in high demand.
The first viticulture classes at Midland Junction Technical School were conducted in 1931. They provided much needed revenue to keep the School operational during the Depression. Viticulture was the one industry in the Valley that continued to retain a strong export market at that time. The Viticulture Industry exporting dried fruits had been heavily promoted in Britain, Canada and New Zealand for many years and growers benefited. A series of lectures were delivered by advisers of the Department of Agriculture to practising viticulturists. The ‘students’ worked on experimental plots on holdings and it was anticipated that much information would be gained in later years from these projects.
During the 1990s the rapid expansion of the wine-making industry created a new demand for knowledge and skills in viticulture.
In 1998 a series of one day workshops were organised by Horticulture senior lecturer Theresa Putland and delivered by local viticulture expert Colin Gordon. Subjects covered included trellis design, varieties, nutrition and propagation. As a result of this interest, along with a government report calling for training to support Swan Valley industries, a course in Viticulture was established. The course was conducted on site through local wineries including the long standing Houghtons. ‘Cellar Operations’ as a separate course was also offered.
Because much of the grape growing industry has now moved to the South West, students make regular excursions as part of their training.
Today the wine making side of the viticulture industry receives the greater focus in the Valley, which has in turn attracted Tourism. These combined industries are supported through Midland College of TAFE’s Wine Tourism courses.