A project comparing three methods to determine water use finds that they provide similar results. By Jenny Underhill. “We could estimate the water requirements of plums based on international work, but there wasn’t a dedicated study on plums in South…
A summary of Hortgro-funded research on water and irrigation. By Anna Mouton. Water scarcity was already a recognised risk in 1998 when Dr Theresa Volschenk and colleagues of what is now the ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij began investigating the Soil Water Balance…
Research shows that netted apple orchards need less water – but growers should read the fine print. By Anna Mouton. Deciduous-fruit growers are adopting nets to protect their crops against everything from hailstorms to sunburn. Can nets also help trees…
A Hortgro-funded project assessed the response of new and popular apple rootstocks to deficit irrigation. By Anna Mouton. Dwarfing rootstocks are quite literally the foundation of high-density apple orchards. They encourage earlier bearing that supports the rapid attainment of full…
A group of nine South Africans visited Israel on their way to the 30th International Horticultural Symposium in Istanbul, here’s what they learned about the Israelis’ irrigation practices. By Wiehann Steyn. Nine South African water pilgrims on their way to…
The Western Cape loses a dam’s worth of water due to invasive alien plants each year. Plant water-use experts, Drs Mark Gush and David le Maitre of the CSIR, share insight on this topic and how it affects fruit farmers.…
How much water do high-performing apple orchards need? By Esté Beerwinkel. A lingering drought and remarkably high-yielding orchards compel farmers to give their irrigation practices a second thought. A four-year project set on establishing how much water apple orchards need…
Every fruit farmer knows irrigation is an essential part in growing the perfect crop. Horticulture experts Stephanie Midgley, Wiehann Steyn and Michael Schmeisser explain why this is, and how trees actually use water. By Esté Beerwinkel. Plants need to take…
Good news for the pear industry – a project to quantify the water requirements of high-performing pear orchards has been approved for funding by the Water Research Commission. By Engela Duvenage. The project is set to begin in April 2022,…
A new Hortgro-funded study compares tree performance and root development in low- and ultra-low-flow drip-irrigated apples. By Engela Duvenage. Continuous low-flow drip irrigation is being used with great success by the South African citrus industry. A Hortgro-funded project launched in…