Managing a small water resource is locally one of the biggest issues and Robert has engineered his own automatic water scheduling system. The smart use system is based on a relationship between evaporation and seasonally variable plant water use that triggers drip irrigation according to precise need. Oakleigh Orchards was also one of the earliest adopters of dwarfing root stocks and moved quickly into higher density orchard systems to achieve greater efficiencies with water, labour and land use.