"We thought we knew—then Phytech showed us the truth", Gorton Drive Estates Testimonial

Nestled along Kangaroo Lake in Victoria’s Swan Hill region, Gorton Drive Estates has been growing premium wine grapes since 1969. Today, second-generation viticulturist Chris Dent leads the operation with a deep respect for data and innovation.

In a recent conversation with Heino Malan, our Riverina & Mallee Territory Manager, Chris shared how Phytech helped unlock new insights into vine behavior—transforming irrigation strategies and improving both water efficiency and vine health.

Read the full testimonial below.

1. What challenges were you facing in your irrigation or crop management before using Phytech?

You don’t know what you don’t know! We had a number of capacitance probes located throughout the vineyard and used them in conjunction with other irrigation decision tools—including weather forecasts, vine growth stage, physical appearance, and dig stick readings—to determine irrigation requirements and evaluate irrigation effectiveness.

All of these tools required interpretation to determine what the vine required. I love data and believe that the more valuable data points you can have, the better understanding you have to make better decisions!

2. How has Phytech changed the way you make decisions on the farm?

Phytech was the first solution we introduced that actually measured the vine’s response to weather and irrigation. The first year of having Phytech was eye-opening—we began to truly understand how the vines responded to different weather events, irrigation events, and growth stages.

Initially, we irrigated just as we always had, but we made some profound discoveries that changed our approach moving forward. We found that we were over-irrigating early in the season (budburst to flowering), under-irrigating through veraison, and over-irrigating late in the season (berry ripening). In our second season with Phytech, we adjusted irrigation volumes at critical growth stages, which led to improved water use efficiency, more even vine growth, and fewer stress symptoms.

3. Can you share a specific example where Phytech helped you achieve better outcomes—such as yield, water savings, or labor efficiency?

Our biggest water savings came when we focused on how vines respond to the timing of irrigation throughout the day. As a private diverter, we typically irrigated at night due to lower power rates. But when we began experimenting with daytime irrigation, we found we could achieve the same vine response with fewer irrigation hours.

Anecdotally, we saw the same effect from 4 hours of mixed day/night irrigation as we did from 5 hours of night-only irrigation. This adjustment led to significantly lower water use, with only a slight increase in power costs.

4. What features or aspects of the system do you find most valuable?

The visuals and ease of use of both the phone app and desktop site are fantastic. We also really value the ongoing service from Phytech, who ensure the system is always running optimally.

5. In what ways has Phytech influenced how you and your team collaborate or communicate about irrigation or crop management?

We now regularly talk about our MDS (Maximum Daily Shrinkage) and whether the block is in the green, orange, or red zone. We’ve also adjusted the timing of fertigation to maximize uptake and the vines’ growth response.