Orchard Life

Sanders Apples is located in Three Bridges in the picturesque Warburton Valley about 1.5 hours from Melbourne.

The passion for apple growing began 4 generations ago with my Great Grandfather Arthur William Sanders who purchased 5 acres of land in Donvale in the early 1920’s. He further expanded the property to an additional 5 acres, which was surprising as he had hardly any knowledge of the fruit growing industry. In 1928 my Grandpa Hugh Sanders was born and after seeing his father struggle on the orchard he decided to spend his teenage years working on local orchards gaining the knowledge and experience he would later take back to the family orchard in his 20’s. By 1968 Hugh decided he needed a larger property and he purchased 22 acres in East Doncaster. By 1976 urban sprawl had reached East Doncaster and Hugh look a huge leap of faith to relocate to an already established orchard in Three Bridges where you find it located today.

The Three Bridges property started as a small 35 acre apple orchard which has been expanded to around 100 acres of apple trees by Hugh and his 3 sons Kevin, Bob and Peter Sanders over the years. My Grandpa Hugh worked well into his 80’s before his health deteriorated and he sadly passed away in 2014.

Kate Sanders – 4th Generation

U-Pick and Tour Manager