SA Police say a cannabis crop in Adelaide’s northern outskirts is one of the biggest ever uncovered in the state and will take several days to be dismantled and destroyed.

Eight people have been arrested over the illegal crop, which was uncovered during a search of a property at Buckland Park on Tuesday morning.

Police today provided more details about the size of the seizure, which they said could include more than 10,000 plants.

Chief Inspector Darren Fielke, from the Serious and Organised Crime Branch, said the “sophisticated” drug operation included plants of various ages in greenhouses, as well as a significant quantity of dried cannabis.

“There was a significant-sized cannabis crop located in this area in February this year — around about 7,000 plants. We think this is going to be bigger,” he said.

“We’re still dismantling the crop. We don’t know how much dried cannabis is there.”

Chief Inspector Fielke said the quantity of the drug would have been worth millions of dollars in illegal sales.

He said bulldozers were at the Buckland Park site — which is located in an area known for its market gardens — to destroy the plants.

“What we plan to do is actually destroy … the plants on-site, so we’re just clearing an area to make it safe for us to do that,” he said.

“Given the size of the operation, we’d probably be here for another two to three days to fully process all of the plants and all of the associated exhibits.

“Over the coming days and weeks, we’ll have a more clear idea of whether this actually links to a broader criminal organised syndicate.”

Police said a tip-off to Crime Stoppers led to the bust.

Checks are currently being carried out on the backgrounds of the suspects, several of whom allegedly tried to flee the property when police arrived.

“We are working with ABF [Australian Border Force] to determine what their residential status is,” Chief Inspector Fielke said.