Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/57720
GOOD STUFF A selection of the latest products and services for tree fruit and grape growers. Canada, has developed a metal tree limb spreader that is suitable for cherry orchards as well as apples. Breadner developed his first tree spreader for his own apple orchard in 1988. Other cherries D growers urged him to go into production, and he has been supplying orchards in North America with his V spreader ever since. In recent years, cherry growers have been look- ing for tree spreaders, but they don't want sharp points on them that could damage the tree and result in gumming. Breadner, whose business is called Treeform, has introduced a new spreader that doesn't pierce the bark. It is available in lengths of 4, 6, 8, 12, 16, and 24 inches. For sam- ples, e,mail treeform@sympatico.ca or visit his Web site at www3.sympatico.ca/treeform. Antibiotics approved with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Organic Program standards and can be used against fireblight in organically grown apples and pears. FireWall (streptomycin sulfate) was approved earlier, and the two products can be A used in a resistance management program as they have different modes of action, according to AgroSource. Avoid the Orchard of No Return Replant disease can take the profit out of any orchard. Soil fumigation services offered by Trident manage replant disease and other soil-borne pathogens. Trident offers custom applications of Telone® C17, Telone C35, and Pic-Clor 60. groSource, Inc., has received verification from the Washington State Department of Agriculture that its bactericide FireLine (oxytetracycline hydrochloride) complies L Limb spreader for ennis Breadner of Clarksburg, Ontario, The metal Treeform limb spreader is designed not to pierce the limbs R registration due this year Merivon esearch conducted last year indicates that Merivon fungicide from BASF will be active on many fungal pathogens that infect pome and stone fruit crops, accord- ing to a press release from BASF. The product is expected to receive U.S. Environmental Protection Agency registration this year. Merivon contains a mixture of pyraclostrobin (the active ingredient in Cabrio) and Xemium, a new carboximide active ingredient that is easily absorbed through leaves and transported throughout the plant. Research has been conducted around the country on Merivon's efficacy against apple scab and powdery mildew in apples; powdery mildew, brown rot, cherry leaf spot, and botrytis in cherries; and blossom blight, shot hole, and powdery mildew in peaches. Luna fungicides una (fluopyram), a fungicide from Bayer CropScience, has received registration from the EPA. There are three Luna products—Luna Sensation (fluopyram plus trifloxys- trobin), Luna Tranquility (fluopyram plus pyrimethanil) and Luna Experience (fluopy- ram plus tebuconazole)—each of which includes dual modes of action. The Luna products are designed to control a broad range of diseases, including scab and powdery mildew. They are registered for use on apples, cherries, and other crops but are not yet sold in all states. For more information, go to www.lunafungicides.com. Antirot post sleeves B ritish entrepreneurs Richard (pictured left) and Jim George developed a protective fencepost sleeve called the PostSaver after the European Union ruled that only environmen- tally friendly preservatives could be used to treat timber fencing. The bitumen-lined sleeve is designed to prevent ground rot. It comes in 12 sizes and has been sold to a wide range of businesses, including vineyards. The brothers, from Malvern, England, appeared on the U.K. reality TV show Dragon's Den and declined offers from a panel of multimillionaires to invest in their business. Since then, sales of their antirot fencing post sleeves have soared. For more information, go towww.post saver.co.uk. It's a cinch oped by a Michigan fruit farmer and inventor to thin blossoms from peaches, cherries, and nectarines. "I can't keep up with making them," said "T • Row and broadcast applications available • Specializing in tree fruit, hops, grape, berry, and nursery crops Telone® II, Telone C-17, and Telone C-35 are registered trademarks of Dow AgroSciences LLC. Telone II, Telone C-17, Telone C-35, and Pic-Clor 60 are restricted-use pesticides. inventor Phil Miller, Manistee, Michigan. "It's really caught on fire. Growers in Cali- fornia are really hot on it." The Cinch is an aluminum rod, three, four, or five feet long, with holes drilled in it that hold lengths of a soft, pliable plastic tubing. When attached to a portable handheld drill, or to an air or hydraulic power source, the rod rotates and the tubing whips off blossoms. Miller said he experimented with various materials, including weed whacker string, until he found the tubing that removes blossoms without doing tree damage. He's worked on it for about five years, he said, and a patent is pending. This handheld device can reach to thin away interior blossoms, the least desirable Soil Fumigation Specialists Serving the Northwest for 27 years orchardfumigation@tridentag.com NORTHWEST, WA: Tim Purcell..........Mobile 360-630-4285 EASTERN WASHINGTON: Robert Rauert....Mobile 509-728-2004 EASTERN WASHINGTON: Jason Rainer.......Mobile 509-731-5424 THE DALLES & HOOD RIVER, OR: David Sbur ..........Mobile 971-563-8848 46 MARCH 15, 2012 GOOD FRUIT GROWER ones on a peach tree. "It targets the area you want it to," Miller said. "The person who has it in his hand is in control. And it is affordable. The mom-and-pop operations are going to use this. It's a real labor-saver." Cost of the Cinch is $165 for the three-foot rod, $225 for the four-foot rod, and $325 for the five-foot rod. There are also charges for taxes and shipping. Miller can be contacted at 930 Merkey Rd., Manistee, MI 49660, by phone at (231) 723- 2646, or by e-mail at millerproduce@hotmail.com. www.goodfruit.com he Cinch" is a handheld, mechani- cally powered thinning device devel-