Established in 1963, Benara Nurseries has always been a Western Australian family-owned and managed company, with four generations actively involved in the nursery. Combined, the owners have over 200 years of experience in producing plants for the horticultural industry. Today, Benara Nurseries employ over 300 local staff, including 40 key staff that have been with the company for more than 10 years.
These years of experience and knowledge have culminated in the establishment of a main nursery in Carabooda with 220 acres under production, a secondary location in Wanneroo dedicated to the growth of seedlings and revegetation tubestock, and two separate wholesale Trademarts located north and south of the river. This combined presence means Benara Nurseries is WA’s leading plant producer, with the capacity to grow from 64 Cell to 500lt trees and service retailers, landscapers, contractors, landscape architects, local council parks and garden division, major developers, market gardeners, revegetation projects and commercial tree plantations.
In this time, Benara Nurseries has built a reputation for supplying premium quality plants in small and large volumes to strict schedules for local projects and customers Australia-wide including other production nurseries. To do so, the business has completed several accreditation programmes to ensure its success. These include the Nursery Industry Accreditation Scheme Australia’s (NIASA) ‘Setting the Standards, ‘EcoHort’, and ‘Landscape Tree Stock Specification’ – for which Benara were actively involved in the research project.
NIASA is a national scheme for production nurseries, providing a standard of professionalism. NIASA accreditation is considered the benchmark for best practice in horticulture. Areas covered under the scheme include: plant hygiene to prevent and manage pest and diseases, plant management practices for all areas of growing such as watering, root binding and fertilising.
These guidelines were developed over a period of years by respected industry representatives and researchers, and are regularly reviewed, ensuring they cover current production and environmental issues. Benara Nurseries is independently audited every year, to ensure we comply with these standards.
EcoHort is the industry-specific set of guidelines or Environmental Management System (EMS). It is a method by which a grower can demonstrate to industry, government and the community their sound environmental and natural resource stewardship.
Furthermore, Benara Nurseries is also working towards achieving the nationally recognized BioSecure HACCP certification. This is the on-farm bio-security program for production nurseries in Australia, and validates many of the best management practice strategies employed under the NIASA, while also seeking to identify internal (endemic) and external (exotic) threats to the integrity of a business’ bio-security processes and preparedness.
The BioSecure HACCP set of protocols and procedures enable a business to manage bio-security risks by establishing an effective internal quarantine process for both imported and exported plant material. It encourages industry businesses to maintain the strictest procedures possible and record the actions taken at critical control points. This sound risk management strategy ensures Benara Nurseries remains protected from biological risks.
The cumulation of these accreditations has helped to position Benara Nurseries as an approved Western Australian Local Government Association (WALGA) Preferred Supplier, contract growing quality plant and tree stock for councils and shires over more than 50 years.
To learn more about how long it takes to grow our trees, including how far in advance you should choose a species, click here to read our other blog.