Part article taken from The Fruit Grower magazineFruit tree nurseryman Nick Dunn has served the stone fruit industry well over many decades with the induction of improved varieties and rootstocks. The desire for improvement continues with the introduction of a range of new cherry varieties from renowned German breeder, the Grab Nursery, for whom he has established distribution rights for the UK. “Growers should be aware of promising varieties such as Belise, Georgia (which is resistant splitting) and a white variety such as Vanda, Tamara, Skeener and waiter from this same breeder, UK growers has access to some of the most promising cultivars in Europe.”
Nick also revealed an exciting new plum rootstock – Weigi – that is likely to supersede the Gisela benchmark. “The Weigi series is a cross between Gisela 5 and Weiroot and promises tree compactness, precocity and vigour, whilst bearing high yields,” he said. Nick also drew attention to apricots, currently gaining popularity with consumers in the UK, citing the promising varieties Robada, Pink Mary, Bergeron and Helena du Rousillion, which is resistant to bacterial canker, all propagated on the rootstock Wavit, equivalent to the traditional Pixie. “Wavit is also used for propagating plum varieties, so is most promising,” added Nick. Leading agronomy providers Agrovista have added to their disease prediction models with their new Fireblight (Erwina spp) Growers Choice Interactive (GCI) program. The bacterial disease is a constant challenge to the cider industry in the west of England and Wales, where 100% losses of trees are known. A Bacterial disease transferred by pollen, it has few controls and the prediction model is invaluable for anticipating when and where pressures will occur.
“The program monitors weather conditions and gathers data via its RIMPRO facility around the sensitive flowering periods and carries a 10 day forecast,” explained by Agrovista Fruit Agronomist, Alex Radu. “Growers have the fungicide copper oxychloride with which to respond and jet 5 or sodium hypochlorite as cleaners,” said Alex.
“This disease is well known for its capacity to infect garden species, especially Rosaceous plants, so has to be watched carefully”.
The overall cost of applying granular biological controls to soft fruit crops in tunnels has increased with the wider use of such technology. Koppert has developed the Rotabug spraying system, which they demonstrated at Fruit Focus. Kopperts Tony Girard explained that the four drum hand propelled unit will treat four rows at a time at walking pace, and when applied within polytunnels there are no restrictions due to windy weather. A tractor mo9unted eight unit Rotabug applicator can apply granular predators to 20ha per load. Applying 6kg/hour. The rig can be mechanically raised and lowered, has an on/off control and can be used at ground level or with tabletop systems. “We are seeing 80% to 85% savings in labour costs and overall efficiencies giving a 60% cost saving over conventional methods of application”, Tony explained.
Nick also revealed an exciting new plum rootstock – Weigi – that is likely to supersede the Gisela benchmark. “The Weigi series is a cross between Gisela 5 and Weiroot and promises tree compactness, precocity and vigour, whilst bearing high yields,” he said. Nick also drew attention to apricots, currently gaining popularity with consumers in the UK, citing the promising varieties Robada, Pink Mary, Bergeron and Helena du Rousillion, which is resistant to bacterial canker, all propagated on the rootstock Wavit, equivalent to the traditional Pixie. “Wavit is also used for propagating plum varieties, so is most promising,” added Nick. Leading agronomy providers Agrovista have added to their disease prediction models with their new Fireblight (Erwina spp) Growers Choice Interactive (GCI) program. The bacterial disease is a constant challenge to the cider industry in the west of England and Wales, where 100% losses of trees are known. A Bacterial disease transferred by pollen, it has few controls and the prediction model is invaluable for anticipating when and where pressures will occur.
“The program monitors weather conditions and gathers data via its RIMPRO facility around the sensitive flowering periods and carries a 10 day forecast,” explained by Agrovista Fruit Agronomist, Alex Radu. “Growers have the fungicide copper oxychloride with which to respond and jet 5 or sodium hypochlorite as cleaners,” said Alex.
“This disease is well known for its capacity to infect garden species, especially Rosaceous plants, so has to be watched carefully”.
The overall cost of applying granular biological controls to soft fruit crops in tunnels has increased with the wider use of such technology. Koppert has developed the Rotabug spraying system, which they demonstrated at Fruit Focus. Kopperts Tony Girard explained that the four drum hand propelled unit will treat four rows at a time at walking pace, and when applied within polytunnels there are no restrictions due to windy weather. A tractor mo9unted eight unit Rotabug applicator can apply granular predators to 20ha per load. Applying 6kg/hour. The rig can be mechanically raised and lowered, has an on/off control and can be used at ground level or with tabletop systems. “We are seeing 80% to 85% savings in labour costs and overall efficiencies giving a 60% cost saving over conventional methods of application”, Tony explained.