Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/654468
16 MARCH 15, 2016 Good Fruit Grower www.goodfruit.com New results are in on Bartlett pears grown on Tatura trellis in Australia. by Bas van den Ende and Mick Conti N ew results are in on an experiment in a commercial orchard near Ardmona, Australia, to test the biological limits of pear production by sustaining excep- tionally high yields of good quality, can- ning-size pears (larger than 65 mm or 2.5 inches). In an earlier Good Fruit Grower article ("Proliferating pears," September 2015), we reported how Bartlett trees on Tatura trellis produced 123 tonnes per hectare/bins per acre canning-grade pears in 2014-15 by changing tree management rather than the rootstock. The follow- ing season (2015-2016), the trees produced 114 tonnes per hectare/bins per acre. Tree management included winter pruning to develop short, horizontal fruiting wood containing spurs and short laterals with terminal fruit buds. Trees were sprayed twice with the growth regulator paclobutrazol (PP333) in early spring to control tree vigor and improve fruit set and fruit growth. Other management practices were repeated from the previous season. Two foliar sprays of paclobutrazol reversed the effects of flower inhibition and increased the proportion of floral buds that set three or more fruit per bud. Part of the flower promoting phenomena by this compound is attributed to alterations in vegetative shoot growth rates and improved light relations within the canopy, resulting in more competitive sinks for assimilates and nutrients. • Bas Van den Ende is a tree fruit consultant in Aus- tralia's Goulburn Valley. Mick Conti is an orchardist in Ardmona. 110+ bins Good to Know The canopies in the highly productive trees at Ardmona consist of horizontal fruiting units, which contain spurs and short laterals with terminal floral buds. Each tree has four leaders, two on each opposite side. There are no branches, only fruiting units that were created over three years. www.antlespollen.com p: 855-POLLEN8 (765-5368) 209-595-2056 (David) 425-466-5631 (Brian) WENATCHEE • YAKIMA • MODESTO Featuring Vericet Gold!