Good Fruit Grower

March 15

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WA 38 will HAVE A NAME ashington State University is finalizing a plan for how its second apple variety, WA 38, will be commercialized. The university will send out an "announcement of opportunity" (similar to a request for proposals) inviting applications for the commercialization license. All interested growers in Washington will be allowed to grow the apple. The holder of the commercialization license will lead the industry's efforts to establish the variety in the marketplace. The commercialization plan was drawn up by the Cultivar Licensing Committee, an ad hoc panel set up to advise the university on the release of WSU apple varieties. Committee members include WSU faculty and apple industry representatives. Dr. Dan Bernardo, dean of the College of Agriculture, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences, said he expected the request for proposals to go out in March. The committee recommended that WSU choose a trade name for the variety, and Bernardo said the university was by Geraldine Warner working with consultants who do market analysis to select an appropriate name. The commercialization plan for WA 38 will differ from the one put in place for WSU's first apple release, WA 2. The Washington Tree Fruit Research Commission negotiated the commercialization rights for WA 2 and handled growers' WSU is seeking applicants to commercialize the variety. The commercialization plan for WA 38 will be different than for its first release, WA 2. applications for trees, but the license agreement between the commission and WSU was never signed, according to Dr. Ralph Cavalieri, director of the university's Agricultural Research Center. As a state agency, the commission was unable to be involved in promoting and marketing the variety. It intended to set up a nonprofit organization to manage the variety, but that didn't happen. Learned a lot WA 2 was released with no trade name, allowing growers to call the fruit what they wanted—a policy criticized by the industry because of the potential confusion of having an apple with multiple names. There are only about seven acres of WA 2 in commercial plantings so far. "I don't want to call it an experiment, but it was the first variety we tried to work on," Cavalieri said. "We've learned a lot, collectively—the industry and us— and I think the way we're approaching WA 38 is an improvement. "The big difference is we're going to put out this announcement of opportunity so it's open to anyone who wants it," he added. "There will be performance criteria, and they will execute all the details of developing the market and working with the growers." Although the Research Commission is closely involved in the breeding program and has been a major funding source, applicants for the WA 38 license will work directly with WSU, Cavalieri said. 32°, 31°, 30°, 29°, can help! Do these #s worry you? KDL KDL® 0-0-24 DEXTRO-LAC ® SERIES 28° Many tree fruit growing areas of the country experienced multiple and severe frost events in 2012. The extent of damage from a frost event depends on many environmental factors that growers can't control and the steps growers can take to mitigate frost. Irrigating can put heat into the orchard floor and wind machines can be helpful if there is an inversion layer. Foliar applications of KDL can also help condition buds and fruitlets to better tolerate subfreezing temperatures. KDL is a unique sugar-based potassium that when applied within 12-48 hours of a frost event has been shown to help improve frost tolerance and minimize damage. Growers normally should AVOID foliar applications of potassium during fruit cell division because potassium can antagonize calcium during this time and reduce final fruit quality. But when faced with the threat of significant crop loss minimizing the immediate frost danger is the priority. KDL can help! During spring as plants begin to grow new green tissue the demand for nitrogen is at its greatest. At this stage the nitrogen to potassium ratio strongly favors nitrogen. Young tissue high in nitrogen is more susceptible to frost damage. Applying KDL prior to a frost event can change the nitrogen to potassium ratio in the tissue and improve cold tolerance. This spring give your orchard the edge over frost – Apply KDL! Science-Driven Nutrition SM AGRO-K CORPORATION © 2013 Agro-K Corporation. KDL is a registered trademark of Agro-K Corporation. 8 March 15, 2013 GOOD FRUIT GROWER www.goodfruit.com

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