7.Fruit production Flashcards
Name the two groups of fruit and state the differences
Top fruit
- Fruit borne on trees
- Relatively frim
- Can be stored well for weeks in suitable conditions
Soft fruit
- Grown on all other plants (bushes, herbaceous perennials)
- Have soft fruit
- Often limited storage times
Examples of top fruit
- Apples
- Pears
- Plumbs
- Cherries
- Peaches
Examples of Soft fruit
- Strawberries
- Raspberries
- Blackcurrant
- Grapes
- Blueberries
How are fruit divided into specific categories
- Their use - dessert/ culinary
- Harvesting season - Early/Mid/Late
- Storage capabilities
Considerations when selecting fruit
- Type of fruit - flavour
- Category
- Geographical region
- Resistance to pests/disease
- Plant quality - AGM supplier
- Yield
- Vigour/ultimate size of plant
Describe a suitable support system for a NAMED summer fruiting berry.
Post and wire
- Raspberry ‘Glen Moy’
- 2m high posts are set in a row 3-5m apart with wire strained between them at distances of 50cm, 1m and 1.5m
- The wires must be kept taut between the posts to support the raspberry canes which are tied to them
Example of triploid
Culinary apple: ‘Bramley’s Seedling’
Difference between Unrestricted and restricted plants
Unrestricted
- Will produce limited fruit/flower
- More natural
Restricted
- Makes pruning/harvesting easier
- Maximise benefit of growing on sheltered wall
- Easier to fit tree’s into smaller space
- Branches are trained to limit sap flow and increase fruit/flower
Name a restricted top-fruit tree form
- Espalier (Pear) =‘Catillac’
- Cordon (Apple) = ‘Lord lambourne’
- Fan (Plumb) = ‘Jubilee’
What does AGM stand for and what is certified stock
- Award of Garden Merit
- Reputable supplier
- Produced by registered growers according to certain conditions
- Usually have an annual inspection
- Ensures pest/disease free plants
What is grafting and why is it done on fruit tree’s
- Base roots = one plant
- Top plant and fruit from another (scion)
- Usually done in winter when plant is dormant
- Creates plants of a different size to how they occur naturally
- Produces different rates of growth to naturally
- Some roots perform better on certain soil types
- Generally to produce stronger, healthier plant with higher yield of fruit
State the difference between Self-sterile and Self-fertile tree’s
Self-Sterile
- Unable to self fertilise their flowers
- Need to be planted near other compatible varieties which flower at the same time and can fertilise them
Self-fertile
- Can self fertilise
- Usually produce more fruit if planted near other compatible varieties
Pollination groups/ fruit trees
- Plants which flower at the same time so cross pollination can occur
- Many top fruit varieties need to be pollinated by other varieties
- Other varieties are chosen which flower at the same time
State the difference between Diploid and Triploid Apple tree’s
- Diploid = Two sets of Chromosomes
- Triploid = Tree sets on Chromosomes
- Vigorous growth
- Disease resistant
- Difficult to pollinate - They are self-sterile so need to be fertilised by other varieties but they do not fertilise others
Key maintenance tasks for Soft fruit
- Base and Top dressing - suitable for plants on poorer soils
- Mulch in spring with compost, manure, straw etc
- Add nutrients/feed if required
- Mow surrounding grass and keep away from plant
- Weed - by hand, use herbicide or mulch/geo textile to prevent
- Irrigation may be needed in summer months and for young plants
- Support - as plants grow they may need physical supports, key for berries with weak stems
- Check for pest/disease and use cultural control methods to prevent or manage
- Prune - Yeild productivity increased when pruned well
Pruning of Top fruit trees - Formative
- Young tree’s
- Limited number of larger branches req
- Space for light/ventilation req (prevents fungal disease)
- Removal of leaders (young branch tips) to encourage lateral growth
Pruning of Top fruit trees - Established Maintenance
- From 8-10yrs old
- Reduce growth of new shoots at expense of flower/fruit
- Aimed at maximising yield but always allows regenerative growth
Pruning of Top fruit trees - Winter
Spur fruiting (Fruit borne of side shoots, apples/pears)
- Prune new growth on leaders by ⅓
- Remove crossing branches
- Remove dead/diseased material
- 1st winter - prune lateral branch to 4 buds
- 2nd winter - prune lateral to just above buds
- 3rd winter - A stuby spur system form with plenty of new buds
Tip fruiting (Flowers/fruit form at tip of shoot)
- Prune as above but leave lateral shoots with flower buds at the tip
- Prune all others 3-4 buds from base to encourage more laterals
Pruning of Top fruit trees - Summer
- Key for apples/pears/plumbs
- Shorten leaders to 2-3cm
- Prune lateral shoots to 3 buds
- Remove crossing branches
- Removed dead, diseased material
Key factors for pollination of fruit plants
- Good fruit depends on good pollination
- Pollinators depend on sheltered locations
- Must have protection from frost at flowering times
- Should be planted near several compatible varieties
Key factors for Harvesting fruit
- Should be picked on a dry day
- Healthy, blemish free fruit saved
- Damaged fruit should be removed and used in jams/preserves
NPK Requirements for fruit
Nitrogen = Not often needed, encourages leafy growth to the detriment of fruit
Phosphorous = May be required on poor soils as helps root development
Potassium = Encourages fruit and flower so often useful
