Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/622402
www.goodfruit.com Good Fruit Grower JANUARY 15, 2016 7 GB eliminated internal browning after six months in storage at 0.5°C (33°F). Sugar used Comice pears in his trial and duplicated Dhingra's fruit pressure results. Delayed harvest Another benefi t GB brings to pear growers is delayed harvest. When sprayed prior to harvest, it extends the amount of time fruit can stay on trees. How much time is an open question. Dhingra has anecdotal evidence of a grower who left his pears on his trees an extra two weeks after treating them with GB. That result will be tested with more research, he said. It's worth a look because added time on the tree means a longer picking season and the fl exibility that brings, as well as heavier fruit. The longer storage and shelf life means more time in front of consumers' eyes. Firmer fruit translates to less damage in packing and shipping. Future research will likely look at what benefi ts come with postharvest applications as well as larger fi eld trials to evaluate the product's effectiveness. David Weinstock, Ph.D., is a freelance writer whose articles have appeared in Farming, Growing and other publications. • JAN FEB 5% 10 % 15% briX perceNtAge Postharvest Brix CA room open JANuArY 7 Postharvest color treAted* uNtreAted uNtreAted treAted JANUARY 27 21 DAYS LATER fi rmness, color for d'Anjou pears treatments with gb were at 2.5, 5 and 10 pounds per acre *d'Anjou pears treated with glycinebetain (gb) at 10 pounds per acre JAred JohNsoN/good Fruit groWer illustrAtioN before harvest were fi rmer and greener than untreated pears when they came out of storage. While the Brix level on the to match the level of untreated pears within a few weeks. W W W.W I L L A M E T T E N U R S E R I E S .C O M ( 503 ) 263-6405 TOLL FREE: ( 800 ) 852-2018 Prunus avium/P. mahaleb M.106/M.7/M.26/B.118 Gisela Series Kyrmsk Series OHxF Series Geneva® Series M.9 Clones CANBY, OREGON are planted with the most popular seedling, semi-dwarf and dwarf varieties: Like our rootstock, our service will grow on you. All Fruit tree rootstock is Oregon certified virus-free. We also grow a great selection of rootstock varieties for apple, peach pear and plum including: MALUS ANTONOVKA MALUS DOMESTICA PRUNUS PERSICA 'LOVELL' PRUNUS CERASIFERA PRUNUS MARIANA PRUNUS MYROBALAN PYRUS CALLERYANA PYRUS COMMUNIS PYRUS USSERIENSIS PROVENCE QUINCE APPLE PEACH PLUM PEAR