May 2020 - 1

Pandemic impact hits
agriculture, including
specialty crops
Caneberry growers
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get latest updates
8
14
20
Blueberry growers start
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sales
May 2020 | Volume 59 |
Issue 5
Tom Ferri, who pursues precision cropload management techniques on his Ontario farm, hosted the International Fruit Tree Association (IFTA) in 2019. He also spoke at IFTA's 2020 annual
meeting in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Photo: Gary Pullano
PRECISION CROPPING
By Gary Pullano
Managing Editor
Precise cropping of apple trees has
become more vital as high density
production systems continue to
proliferate in the industry.
The subject was on center stage at
this year's International Fruit Tree
Association's (IFTA) annual conference
and tours held in Grand Rapids,
Michigan.
A panel of growers who discussed
the topic of tree trimming consisted
of Bridget Engelsma of J Engelsma
Orchards in Walker, Michigan; Tom
Ferri of T&K Orchards in Ontario,
Canada; Jill MacKenzie of Whittier Fruit
Farm in Rochester and Appleton, New
York; and Suzanne Bishop, director of
research and Development with Allan
Brothers in Naches, Washington.
Ferri told IFTA conference attendees
his operation was searching for a tool to
take the guesswork out of apple thinning.
Adopting the precision crop load
management model about five years ago
has enabled him to be more aggressive
and more confident, said Ferri, who
farms 20 acres with his wife, Karen, and
brother, Joe, in the Georgian Bay region
of Ontario.
" We do things a little different
here because for Honeycrisp, Mutsu,
Cortland, we want apples that are 56s,
64s, and 72, " he said during an IFTA
visit to his farm in 2029. While that's
large for most markets, his buyers at
the Ontario Food Terminal in Toronto
want it. " We get paid a huge premium
for that. "
That means a target of 50 apples
per tree. In his super spindle systems
planted at 10 feet by 18 inches, that
results in about 50 bins an acre for
Honeycrisp.
Precision crop load management
based on the fruitlet growth model
minimizes hand-thinning costs and
allows him to pick premium fruit and
Apple growers
put premium
on accuracy
get reliable return bloom, he said.
He's one of only a few growers in the
Ontario region using the model, which
was developed by Duane Green of the
University of Massachusetts, along with
Terence Robinson and Alan Lakso at
Cornell University and Phil Schwallier
at Michigan State University.
" In 2013 when I first saw this model,
I knew it was going to be useful, " Ferri
said of the original program developed
by his brother, Joe.
" Crop load management is the most
important job in the orchard, " Ferri said.
" Well, on our farm it is. This precise
program has achieved high ceilings. "
See PRECISION, page 5

May 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of May 2020

May 2020 - 1
May 2020 - 2
May 2020 - 3
May 2020 - 4
May 2020 - 5
May 2020 - 6
May 2020 - 7
May 2020 - 8
May 2020 - 9
May 2020 - 10
May 2020 - 11
May 2020 - 12
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May 2020 - 40
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https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/FGN/buyersguide-2022
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/FGN/january-2022
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https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/FGN/november-2021
https://www.nxtbook.com/greatamericanmediaservices/FGN/october-2021
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