Project Description
Crop Management & Pollination
Featured stories about crop management and pollination appear in this issue.
Assessing the club
In order to assess a managed variety program, the grower should ask the following questions, suggests Bob Brammer, president of Crane & Crane, a packer
First Bite
The Oppenheimer Group is the exclusive marketer for Pacific Rose in North America. A couple of decades ago, deciding which variety to plant was simple.
Thin hard, thin early
Regulating crop load to achieve consistent, maximum yields and high fruit quality is a daunting task for apple growers. "The crop-load challenge to fruit growers
10 ways to protect bees
Beekeepers have had it tough lately, with colony collapse disorder now added to their other challenges of varroa and tracheal mites, brood diseases, and small
Causes of Colony Collapse Disorder
Colony Collapse Disorder is the all-encompassing title given to the myriad problems facing honeybees and their keepers, such as viruses, varroa mites (virus spreaders as
Good Point
Pacific Northwest apple pollination is inextricably linked with California almond pollination. Virtually every commercial beekeeper that supplies bees to Northwest apple orchards also pollinates California
A global view of varieties
Lynnell Brandt is involved in the international introduction of new tree fruit varieties. New apple varieties must be managed on a global basis, says Yakima,
Honeycrisp patents
The U.S. patent on the Honeycrisp apple expires in November of this year, which means that no royalties will be collected on Honeycrisp trees propagated
Open releases are slow to pay back
Dr. David Bedford, apple breeder at the University of Minnesota, makes crosses for the breeding program. It takes only two to three weeks a year
Pink Lady, the brand pioneer
The owners of the Pink Lady brand were among the pioneers of branded apple varieties. Pink Lady is the brand name for Cripps Pink, an
Reviving Central Asian orchards
This slit on apple wood has been opened up to reveal overwintering leafhopper eggs. They typically lay 8 to 12 eggs per slit. In spring,
Club varieties a gamble
Planting a managed apple variety is a big gamble with high stakes, and growers should be wary about planting them if they can't take the
Good Question
Red Delicious, though still Washington State's number-one apple variety, continues its steady decline. Production this year is barely half the volume produced in 1994. Meanwhile,
Big investment, little information
Planting a new, managed variety is a risk for growers because of the great investment they have to make and a lack of information about
Basic bee biology
An understanding of basic honeybee biology can help orchardists make the best use of bees for pollination, says a Michigan State University entomologist. Honeybees are
What's hot?
An advantage of planting bench grafts is that they can be ordered just a few months ahead of the planting date. However, the grower takes
Extending the cherry season
Kiona (PC 8007-2) was recently released by Washington State University. It matures a little before Tieton. The Dalles in Oregon is a unique tree fruit
More dwarfing cherry rootstocks
Lapins cherry grown on the Russian rootstock Krymsk 5. Cherry growers in The Dalles, Oregon, are rapidly shifting to dwarfing rootstocks, partly because of concerns
Solutions lie in research
The tree fruit industry is at a tipping point as leaders try to re-engineer it to address the challenges of today's economy, observes Washington State
Beyond Bordeaux
France's Bordeaux wine region is home to some of the earliest made wine and some of the most expensive. When Washington wine producers first began
Apple Lines
One constant in the Washington apple industry is change. And consistent with change is preparation for the future through anticipation, research, planning, market development, and,
Last Bite
William P. Sawyer was proud of the fruit he grew and packed, and he made that clear on his box labels. These are probably the
Bordeaux wines heavily regulated
In France, the appellation or AOC (appellation d'origine controlee) is more than just a definition of name or an indication of origin. The AOC identifies
Sports update
Managed variety programs allow a variety owner to control any sports that are found, which apple breeder Dr. David Bedford of Minnesota believes is in
Thinner winner
In more than 200 chemical thinning trials that the Washington Tree Fruit Research Commission has conducted on apples over the past eight years, Crocker's Fish
Bee buzz
National Pollinator Week is in June. Bee foodMegaBee is the name of a new bee diet developed by U.S. Department of Agriculture entomologist Gloria DeGrandi-Hoffman.
Winners and losers
For apple growers who are hoping that new varieties will be the key to staying profitable in the future, Steve Lutz has some sobering thoughts.