Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/52389
Horticulture MIXUP DELAYS rootstock production Nurseries propagating the new Geneva 214 rootstock found that it was actually the more vigorous G.222. by Richard Lehnert A mixup in the propagation process will add more than a year to the arrival of quantities of the long-awaited Geneva 214 rootstock, one that is being billed as a superior replacement for M.9. Last summer, an employee at Willow Drive Nursery in Ephrata, Washington, Richard Adams, noticed that plants in the nursery's new rootstock stool bed didn't look right. Genetic testing in September confirmed it was not G.214 but was instead G.222. Adams had been in school at Cornell University and was familiar with its Geneva rootstocks. "We caught it early, thank goodness," said Ken Adams, Richard's uncle and the president of Willow Drive Nursery. WORK PLATFORMS •7 models avail able with many options or can be custom-built to your needs. Contact Burrows Tractor for more information. BUILDS LABOR-SAVING ORCHARD EQUIPMENT PLANTERS TREE Capable of planting 500 trees an hour. • Adjustable planting depth of 6" to 18." • Two boxes hold up to 150 trees, depending on variety. • HP 60 to 95. We Carry Other Northstar Equipment! "Serving Area Farmers Since 1939" 1308 E. Mead YAKIMA, WA 509-457-8105 18 JANUARY 15, 2012 GOOD FRUIT GROWER 800-827-5138 burrowstractor.com QUALITY SERVICE QUALITY PARTS "Your Ag Equipment Specialist" "When he saw the plants, he knew they weren't labeled right. They have a unique look. "We don't know how the mixup occurred, and we're not sure it's a big deal. We had planted only a few hundred feet of bed, and we pulled it out quickly. We don't know how big a loss it will be in time." At least three other Washington and Oregon nurseries are in the same position. The situation is different at North Many growers saw the Geneva 214 rootstock (formerly known as CG4214) for the first time in the orchard of Ed and Mike Wittenbach in Belding, Michigan, during the International Fruit Tree Association's meeting in February 2010 when its release was announced. American Plants, the Lafayette, Oregon, nursery, which now has about 300,000 G.222 roots, worth about $1.50 each, and would like to recover its investment. It pro- duced them to distribute to nurseries to use in their stool beds to produce rootstock, thinking they were G.214. The rootstock came to them from Cornell University as plantlets that had been propagated by a tissue culture laboratory in Delphi, New York. 912 Columbia St. WENATCHEE, WA 509-888-0355 www.goodfruit.com "I saved big $ with Northstar Equipment!" richard lehnert