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
