Apple growers in Nelson are finding it hard to keep a steady crop of workers, as backpackers fail to stick it out for a whole season's picking.

Nelson has joined the Hawke's Bay in experiencing a worrying shortage of fruit pickers for this year's apple-picking season.

Motueka Fruit Growers Association chairman Simon Easton said in February there were a few backpackers around, keen to work the picking season, but now there was "virtually no one".

"Back in the day, they used to stick around for the whole season," he said.

"But now because of, I don't know, Facebook and Twitter, they seem to know what's going on ... so they just want to travel and get a job here for a week here, a week there, and that's no good to us as we need workers until May."

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Easton had recently employed five people on working holiday visas, and was now down to two.

"I can't remember the last time I had one last the whole season ... what's really frustrating is you ask them at the start of the season, 'Can you do the whole season?' and they say; 'Yeah, no problem'. Two weeks later, 'oh we're leaving'."

He said it was $300-400 investment to get a worker trained and up to speed, and then they left.

VIRGINIA WOOLF/STUFF Motueka Fruit Growers Association chairman Simon Easton wants an increase in the number of RSE workers allowed into the country during peak apple-picking season.

Easton tried to employ "every Kiwi that I can" but there weren't many who were keen. He hadn't had much success with Work and Income workers as many didn't turn up, or didn't have their own transport.

"I very rarely turn a Kiwi away but they're just not there."

In light of the emerging "backpacker" worker trend, and lack of New Zealanders willing to work in picking, Easton wanted a review of the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme.

He said there should be an increase to the cap on the number of workers that could be employed from the Pacific Islands.

"Increase RSE for the seasonal shortages, I'm not saying do it all year around, but the peak times for apples, when it's thinning, picking and pruning."

The RSE scheme allows for 11,100 workers from Pacific Islands, with the cap last lifted by 600 workers in late 2017.

Easton said there had been a big expansion in horticulture in Nelson Tasman, with larger operations and intensive planting resulting in "more apples coming off the trees".

He had a team of about 40 workers, and said he was coping for now.

"The weather has been kind for the last couple of weeks, but if we get two or three days rain, with not enough pickers it can really put you under pressure [to get apples off the trees]."

Fellow Nelson grower Julian Raine, president of Horticulture New Zealand, said it had been a "strange" season.

"I've been growing fruit for 35-plus years and the number of backpackers is a lot lower than what we'd normally see, and they just want to be there for a few days and basically move on."

BILL KEARNS/STUFF There are literally thousands of jobs out there, but no one to fill them.

Earlier this month, the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) declared an official labour shortage in horticulture in the Hawkes Bay, allowing for those with visitor status to get variations on their visas and pick up seasonal work.

Horticulture New Zealand Chief Executive Mike Chapman said a website has been launched called Worktheseasons.co.nz, to help connect workers with employers.

"In one month, with no advertising, employers logged 5000 vacancies on it," he said.

Just 200 people had logged in saying they were available to work.

He agreed with Easton there hadn't been the numbers of backpackers willing to work this season.

"If they're here they're off doing something else," he said.

Chapman said the yearly reviews of RSE workers only represented part of the labour force and while more workers from the Pacific might be part of the solution, there needed to be some "deep thinking" about how to increase the long-term labour force in horticulture.

"​Today, the problem is getting more people on the ground... we need to put the word out there's great opportunities for a couple months' work in Nelson."