Apple Orchard Systems
A New Publication from IDFTA
An orchard system is both a strategy and a recipe for the establishment
and efficient management of trees in an orchard with the goal of producing
sufficient yield of high quality fruit to be profitable. Apple growers
must make critical decisions about the components of orchard systems,
e.g., rootstock, tree density and tree quality, before a new orchard can
be planted. To help producers with these decisions, an Apple Orchard Systems
Workshop was held at the International Dwarf Fruit Tree Association (IDFTA)
annual conference, February 15-16, 2003, in Syracuse, New York. The proceedings
of the workshop, titled Apple Orchard Systems (Compact
Fruit Tree, Vol. 36 Special Issue, June 2003), includes 12 chapters
prepared by six specialists in apple orchard management. There are chapters
for each of the components of orchard systems: tree density, rootstock,
tree quality, tree support and tree training.
|
 |
The decisions an orchardist must make before an orchard is planted will have
a greater impact on performance and profitability of the orchard than the routine
management of the orchard after it is planted. The goal of the workshop was
to provide the information necessary to both plan in advance and then manage
a new high density apple planting.
Workshop topics include tree physiology, balancing vegetative growth and fruiting
and the economics of orchard systems including estimates of net present value
and internal rate of return. Understanding tree physiology, particularly the
importance of sunlight interception, which is correlated with yield, and sunlight
distribution, which is related to fruit quality, is critical to making decisions
about tree spacing, tree height and spread. Knowledge of the trees' response
to specific pruning and training techniques is necessary to encourage early
cropping, sustained heavy cropping and achieve high fruit quality.
The 12 chapters have been written by the following international authorities
in pomology and tree fruit economics: Dr. Stuart Tustin, HortResearch, New Zealand;
Dr. Terence Robinson, Cornell University New York State Agricultural Experiment
Station, Geneva; Steve Hoying, Lake Ontario Tree Fruit Team, Cornell Cooperative
Extension, New York; Alison DeMarree, agricultural economist, Lake Ontario Tree
Fruit Team, Cornell Cooperative Extension, New York; Kurt Werth, fruit advisor
and director of SK Südtirol (Variety Innovation Consortium of South Tyrol),
Italy; and Dr. Bruce Barritt, Washington State University Tree Fruit Research
and Extension Center, Wenatchee.
Apple Orchard Systems is a valuable reference for both growers
who must make decisions about rootstock, tree density, tree support system,
tree quality and tree training and also for pomology students learning about
orchard management.
Apple Orchard Systems can be purchased for $24.95 plus $3.50
handling and a postage charge from the IDFTA Business office (14 S. Main Street,
Middleburg, PA 17842; fax 570-837-0090; idfta@ptd.net) or the IDFTA web site
(www.idfta.org).
IDFTA Home
Order
On-line!