To pot or not
Why grow nursery trees in containers? By Anna Mouton. The traditional way to produce a nursery tree is to grow it in a field and lift it during dormancy. The biggest problem with this approach is transplant shock. Root damage…
Crop protection in the Orchard of the Future
A changing strategy for a changing world. By Marinda Louw Coetzee. Crop protection is changing due to increasingly stringent market requirements for ethical fruit production, as well as due to changes in orchard structure and ecology. The Orchard of the…
Paardekloof
Maximising returns on investment. By Anna Mouton. “To earn more money, you need to put more apples into the export market,” says Willie Kotze, technical adviser with Dutoit Agri. “You’re not going to win by trying to cut costs.” The…
Oak Valley
Growing greener Grannies. By Anna Mouton. “Granny Smith is a very high value apple,” says Graeme Krige, technical adviser at Fruitmax Agri, “but it has to be perfectly green or it’s out. It’s not the case that mild sunburn is…
Graymead
Innovation adds value. By Anna Mouton. “M.9 has been used successfully as a rootstock all over the world,” says Keith Bradley, general manager of agri-services at Fruitways Farming, “but there was always the perception that M.9 wouldn’t work in South…
Bokveldskloof
Work smarter, not harder. By Anna Mouton. “We have to improve the colour of our fruit,” says Hendrik Pohl, production manager at Bokveldskloof in Ceres. “And we have to increase our percentage class 1 fruit on the tree. We’re not…
Apple-growing in Australia
Fifteen years of the Future Orchards project. By Anna Mouton. The Future Orchards project was launched in 2006 to help Australian apple and pear growers improve orchard productivity and fruit quality. Fifteen years on, Fresh Quarterly spoke to apple grower…
Raising the bar
What comes next for the Orchard of the Future? By Glenneis Kriel and Wiehann Steyn. The Orchard of the Future programme was considered revolutionary when it was launched in 2010, but innovations associated with the participating orchards have since become…
Delivering on the Orchard of the Future programme
What was achieved during the first phase? By Glenneis Kriel and Wiehann Steyn. The Orchard of the Future programme aimed to future-proof the apple industry; to facilitate learning at different levels; to demonstrate new technologies; to get researchers into orchards;…
Back to the future
The birth of the Orchard of the Future programme. By Glenneis Kriel and Wiehann Steyn. Hortgro Science launched the Orchard of the Future programme in 2010 to stimulate discussion and spark innovation in the apple industry. Ten years later, Fresh…