Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/622402
32 JANUARY 15, 2016 Good Fruit Grower www.goodfruit.com G rowers of early-season peach varieties in California's Central Valley may be able to conserve water without signifi cantly affect- ing yields by cutting postharvest irrigation in half. An added benefi t is that defi cit irriga- tion lessens the amount of mid-season vegetative growth, reducing the amount of pruning and labor needed. These are but a few of the results of a series of related stone fruit irrigation studies led by U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service scientists at the San Joaquin Valley Agricultural Sciences Center near Parlier. Although the work began nearly a decade ago, Drs. James Ayars and Dong Wang said the information they're gleaning about more effi cient irrigation practices for stone fruit growers is especially relevant after four years of drought. "Drought's a way of life in California," said Ayars, a research agricultural engineer. "Hopefully this will be a wake-up call, and people won't revert back to their old ways." Early-season peach varieties are typically harvested in late May or early June, but about two-thirds of the irrigation is applied after harvest during the hottest part of the growing season. Ayars likened the water use to a bell curve, with harvest occurring at the beginning of the upward trend. His trials involved a four-acre block of Crimson Lady peaches, which mature typically in late May. The trial also involved three different types of irriga- tion: furrow, subsurface or buried drip, and microspray. Although some older orchards still use furrow irriga- tion, he said most of the newer ones rely on microsprin- klers or drip irrigation. One of the challenges with furrow irrigation is you have little control over the depth of the water applied. "For the most part, you can't put on small amounts of water, and that's the advantage of drip or any pressurized system — you have good control on the depth of appli- cation," Ayars said. "You can still fi nd furrow irrigation around here, but more and more people are moving to microsprays and microsprinklers or surface drip." STRATEGIES for saving water California peach growers could apply half as much water without affecting yields, research suggests. by Vicky Boyd w w w . p h y t e l l i g e n c e . c o m 2 0 6 - 7 1 9 - 5 3 1 7 Phytelligence The Rootstock Bottleneck Stops Here! APPLE CHERRY PEAR PEACH ALMOND WINE GRAPE MORE! MORE! WE CAN WORK WITH YOUR NURSERY! WE ALSO OFFER THESE SERVICES: DNA Based Identification - Genetic certification Plant Repository Service Virus Screening pacaglab.com ◆ 503.626.7943 ◆ Leaders in the Analysis of Water, Soil and Plant Tissue ◆ Maximum Residue Level (MRL) Analysis, both Domestic and International ◆ Custom MRL Fruit Profile for Tree Fruits, Berries, and Grapes. Fruit Profile is Designed for Global GAP/audit or Sales Samples. ◆ Comprehensive Pesticides Profile that Covers over 250 Compounds in Fruits and Other Agricultural Commodities. ◆ National Organics Profile for Certified Organic Growers and Processors ◆ ISO 17025 Accredited, PJLA Accreditation #64422 Pacific Agricultural Laboratory Specialists in Pesticides Residue Analysis Since 1995