The Yeomans family’s orchard has stood the test of time for 160 years, growing cool-climate fruits such as cherries, peaches, plums and nectarines on the New South Wales Northern Tablelands.

But the region’s last commercial orchard was hit hard by last weekend’s cold snap, when a spectacular snowstorm caused “unprecedented” damage.

Hail nets at Greenhills Orchards were ripped apart by snow, and trees were severely damaged or pulled out of the ground altogether.

Torn netting above a heavy blanket of snow, with a few small trees peeking out from under the snow.

In addition to ripped netting and collapsed poles, the storm damaged the orchard’s water supply. (Supplied: Greenhill Orchards)

Sixth-generation grower Warren Yeomans said close to 70 per cent of their best and most productive trees were under the netting.

He described the damage as “unbelievable”.

“I think I need to find a few new adjectives, but I haven’t found any yet,” Mr Yeomans said.

“This is not something that happens every few years; this is a once-in-a-lifetime or maybe once-in-a-century type activity … it’s unique.”

A pile of snow lays on a ripped hail net with more snow, ripped nets, and damaged trees in the background.

The heavy snowfall collapsed all of the orchard’s hail nets, damaging trees. (ABC New England: Jonathan Hawes)

Replacing the nets will be an expensive exercise, and the family estimates the total damage bill will be $500,000.

“Basically, you are looking at upwards of $60,000 a hectare, so that’s a big cost,” Mr Yeomans said.

The back of a man's head as he looks at torn nets and snowfall covering a field of trees.

The snowstorm caused hundreds of thousands of dollars of damage to Warren Yeomans’s orchard. (ABC New England: Jonathan Hawes)

Road to recovery

Standing amid the damage, Mr Yeomans’s son Tom struggled with how to begin the recovery.

“We’re a few days in and only just starting because it was really hard to know even where to start,” he said.

Large amounts of snow sit heavily on nets over orchard trees, weighing the nets down and tearing it in parts.

The heavy snow in Uralla blanketed the orchard’s hail nets. (Supplied: Greenhill Orchards)

“Thankfully, a lot of the trees, even though they’ve lost more than half of their branches, will actually survive.

“[But] they’ve lost significant production potential, and they’ll probably never grow quite as well as they would’ve.”

In the coming weeks, the Yeomans will consult with engineering experts on how to reinstall their 6-metre-tall hail net structure.

A man works to unfasten and remove protective netting from a collapsed wooden pole.

The Yeomans will salvage what they can from the torn and collapsed netting. (ABC New England: Jonathan Hawes)

Disaster declaration calls

The Yeomans family has called on the NSW government to make a disaster declaration, which would unlock concessional loans, grants and subsidies for businesses affected by the recent snowfall and floods.

NSW Farmers Association president Xavier Martin said the state government had been told about the situation across the Northern Tablelands, and the impact of flooding across the North West.

A woman and a man are talking while standing in a field next to collapsed nets and a wooden pillar that has nearly fallen over.

Designed to protect the trees from crows and hail, the netting was crushed under the snow’s weight. (ABC New England: Jonathan Hawes)

“There is a very good awareness … of what happened and what it means for the landscape, and for all of us making a living out of stewardship of that landscape,” he said.

“Day-to-day, I’m in meetings where in recent days we’ve been discussing the response.”

Member for Northern Tablelands Brendan Moylan has also appealed to the NSW government for urgent financial support.