IFTA California here we come...

 

Yup, July 16-18, 2024 IFTA Summer Tour California's Central Valley. Sacramento to Fresno. I got to admit, I went mostly for a change of scenery, as I felt I really needed it. Specially to escape the humidity here in Massachusetts. Fortunately, the week I -- and about 60 +/- other Tour participants, including a pair from as far away as Kenya (Africa) where they grow Mangoes -- was substantially cooler (less hot?) than it had been out there. We "enjoyed" full sun and temperatures mostly in the mid-upper 90's. It did get hotter (100?) though as we went south from Sacramento to Fresno.

OK, lacking notes, here is what I remember and a few take-home messages. All the pictures are mine, but I am going to draw too from IFTA's handout and our good industry publications -- Good Fruit, American Fruit Grower, and Fruit Growers News -- in attendance.

DAY 1 - SACRAMENTO RIVER DELTA

A morning stop at UC-Davis for an autonomous robot demonstration. Frankly, I was not terribly impressed, but it was interesting to find out these 'bots' are being used by California strawberry growers during harvest to save trips previously made by the pickers to unload their harvest. So they could concentrate on just picking. Sounds like a win for labor efficiency?

Autonomous 'bot' at UC-Davis. Meh...

Afterwards, Rivermaid Trading Company on the Sacramento River Delta. California's number one pear producer. Pears looked pretty good but what do I know about pears? Pleasant guest surprise was UC's retired advisor Dr. Rachel Elkins who came down from Lake County. Rachel and I are friends from the NC-140 Regional Rootstock Research Project. It was good to see her and I had no idea how great she spoke to growers on almost any pear subject, including here some of her early work on IPM in pears. Nice.

Nice looking pear orchard at Rivermaid, Red Anjou? Nope, but a look-alike?

Great Extension talk on pear IPM, after lunch I grabbed this selfie with friend Rachel!

Lodi Farming, Inc. where I saw some apples, a new early variety being introduced by Zaiger that was going to be harvested within the week. It was OK. But, Jeff Colombini (2013 Good Fruit Grower of the Year), President was kind of high on olives being grown in a somewhat hi-density fashion, to be harvested and quickly pressed into EVOO. Low labor needs (mechanical harvest) and well adapted to dry conditions. Nothing for me to take-home here, although he did note much of the EVOO sold in this country is not 'extra-virgin' being adulterated with inferior olive oil? But I am not a big olive oil aficiando either, we buy Costco (Kirkland Signature) EVOO. Good enough for me.

In an apple orchard at Lodi Farming! Yea!

But President Jeff really likes the future of olives for EVOO which we got an education on!

DAY 2 - LODI

After an overnight in Lodi, and this got a little confusing but two businesses that may have been related or not? I found a rather stark difference between the two though in terms of growing philosophy. Chinchiolo Stemilt California vs. Prima Frutta. I guess they are not the same, maybe they are just close to each other? Both the focus was on cherries. One, Chinchiolo, more a traditional grower of steep-leader cherries, albeit younger plantings and somewhat hi-density. Rootstock details escape me, Krymsk? Not fans of Gisela. Very nice looking blocks of cherries IMHO. A bit of heated discussion on early training, it was kind of amusing. The other (Prima Frutta?) was doing a lot more with planar training and pruning on 'trellis' but I found it under-whelming, seems to me they were trying to copy what we saw cherry growers doing in Washington on previous IFTA tours. Labor and expense better yield better quality and returns? I dunno. Did I mention this Coral Champagne cherry is their hot new early cherry? I think? All cherries were harvested already BTW. I hope I did not get these two operations mixed up?

Nice looking cherrry orchard (sans cherries) at Chinchiolo-Stemilt

Somewhat heated -- but tame by old IDFTA standards! -- discussion on young cherry tree training and pruning

Prima Frutta cherry orchard. Read the text to see what I think? But who am I to tell anyone how to grow cherries in California?

After what was arguably one of the best lunches ever on an IFTA tour, Zaiger Genetics. Yup, that Zaiger, birthplace of bac-spot susceptible peaches and nectarines which I say "just don't do it" here in the humid east. Although I wish we could, they of course are pretty famous for peach/netarine/plum/apricot/interspecific hybrid varieties with exceptional sweetness. We just can't grow them here in MA! Bac spot! OK, we had a walking tour of their breeding/testing orchard and were treated to a tasting. To me, Zaiger looked a bit "tired" but I also think they have been doing this for a long time and know what they are doing. Just not spending a lot of money to do it, which is OK. More hype here about those 'cherry' plums! Gotta admit, pretty good off the tree.

A two Manhattan lunch?

Leith(?) Zaiger, Floyd's daugher introduced us to Ziager Genetics

Field variety selections grown in pots at Zaiger (many) and one of those cherry plums

Some pretty tasty stone fruits (and one apple) at Zaiger

Off to Fresno for Day 3 (tomorrow), but I have to mention the excellent hospitality we were treated with at Sun Valley Packing House upon arrival to the Fresno area, BBQ steaks, beer, wine, etc. all in a nicely decorated on-site venue. A converted packing house? Good times, good people. No pictures though :-(

DAY 3 - FRESNO

UC Kearney Ag Research & Extension Center, famous for their work -- specifically Kevin Day and Ted Dejong of UC -- on higher density peach training systems, such as the perpendicular-V (which has now lost favor) and the Controller series of peach/nectarine rootstocks. I remember when I was at Michigan State University Extension Bill Shane invited Kevin to the Southwest Michigan Research & Extension Center for a perpendicular-V peach pruning demo way back in 1999, Kevin made quite an impression on me. It was good to see him, and he showed us the 'Peach and Nectarine Orchard of the Future' on various rootsrtocks, particularly the Controller series out of UC Davis. Kevin has a no BS way of explaining things, my take-away was quad-V on one of the Controller rootstocks -- 6?, 7?, 9?, some confusion there -- provides advantages (shorter and somewhat more compact) peach trees for California (and beyond?) growers compared to the Nemagard standard peach rootstock they use out there.

Retired UC Extension advisor Kevin Day in the 'peach and nectarine orchard of the future'

HMC Farms -- a bit of a blur, it was getting hot. Long time standing and listening in a nicely trellised (and tall!) plum orchard, and then seeing some netting over nectarines, largely there to keep the skin of nectarines from blemishing with water. I much prefer to grow peaches here as they don't have that problem that nectarines have! Good luck growing a clean nectarine around here! Note I am providing website links here to all our orchard hosts if you want more information, you are not going to get if from me!

The 2-D 'trellised' plum orchard at HMC Farms, set up for platform pruning and harvest. Thank you random IFTA participant for 'letting' me take your picture!

I had to sneak out of the plums to see what I thought was a nice peach orchard at HMC Farms

Netting over this nectarine block to keep the fruit finish clean? Was kind of a test?

Kingsburg Orchards -- This guy was pretty entertaining in their nectarine orchard (second pic) which was pretty impressive a week away from harvest. I need to note here the family nature of many of these farms/orchard, not so much corporate but pretty big, multi-generation families. A bit different(?) than Washington apple orchards which are increasingly corporate (non-family) owned?

"This guy"at Kingsburg Orchards in a nice nectarine block (with no blemishes)

Warmerdam Orchards -- OK, now it was getting hot, particularly when standing in an older cherry orchard that was a bit wet (and humid) from irrigation and no breeze. There was some interesting things going on here -- like netting pulled over the cherry trees in the fall to help with chill hours and acclimation so as to get good bloom in the spring -- but I was increasingly disengaged. For obvious reasons?, chill hours, big old cherry trees, not a particular interest of mine.

How did I miss getting a pic of the "netting" they were using over these cherry trees at Warmerdam Orchards, but you can see some of the wires. I thought it got kind of rambling here but I was kind of hot and tired of looking at cherries (with no cherries on them) :-)

Family Tree Farms Research Center -- "The Most Flavorful Fruit in the World." OK, maybe. An interesting visit for sure to end the tour. Had to take in a bit of religion from David Jackson (not pictured below) who was quite entertaining and I could use a little religion from time to time. "Nothing grows well if your shadow is not on the soil" he said, how true. Um, if I had not known previously, I would have said this was Zaiger Genetics. Another tasting here of "the most flavorful fruit in the world," I would not argue, although some of the peaches and nectarines were cloyingly sweet. This showroom is where they bring potential customers in from across the world to sample "the most flavorful fruit in the world." A small group of potential buyers was there from Korea (South presumably) sampling "the most flavorful fruit in the world." Getting the message? They are good at it...

A well orchestrated tasting of the "most flavorful fruit in the world?"

I want to close by saying it was hard getting home for a lot of people on Thursday night/Friday because of the airline data system meltdown. I was on Southwest so was largely unaffected (just a little delayed) but I met up with my friends from Summit Tree Sales in the Fresno airport who had been trying to get a flight out for over 12 hours. I felt pretty bad for them, but it was some good company.

Thanks Dawn and Matt for keeping me company during my rather (comparatively) short stay at the Fresno airport while they were enduring a lengthy ordeal (during the Delta Airlines meltdown) trying to get home!

One more thing, I thought the folks at Ag Association Management -- Shane, Sheri, and Bethany -- our IFTA management company did a great job of accomadating various people's needs and running things smoothly (including hotel check-ins) over the three Tour days. Bethany ran the IFTA Facebook show, great job there. And of course thanks to Greg Lang (IFTA Education Director) for lining up and introducing us to our hosts at the eleven orchards we visited. 

©Jon Clements 2024

The NEWA Fire Blight Tool: too much information, too little explanation?

This time of year -- apple and pear bloom -- I/we get lots of grower questions (and I get precious little sleep) about how to interpret the fire blight risk values displayed in the NEWA Fire Blight Tool. I contend it is a case of too much information, too little explanation. Can I boil it down to a simpler take on the risk values? Sure, let's try.

First, you need to understand that on the left, you have Cougar Blight, and on the right you have "NEWA Blight" aka Maryblyt. (Figure 1.) Two different tools. Cougar Blight was developed in arid Washington, while Maryblyt was developed in the more humid east/northeast. Which do you think might be a better tool here? Yea, the one on the right.

Figure 1. Cougar Blight TRV left column, 'NEWAblyt' (aka Maryblyt) EIP right column.

Cougar Blight is much simpler, only accumulating heat units based on -- you got it -- temperature. YOU have to decide whether you had a sufficient wetting event -- be it rain, heavy dew, or even a dilute spray application (fungicide or PGR's only, no insecticides durin bloom) -- to get a fire blight infection. Here's all you need to know about Cougar Blight:

The Cougar Blight V8 (Version 8, not the motor in your 60's Camaro) Daily TRV column header for Cougar Blight means Total Risk Value. No, not Tree Row Volume here either. Arghhh.

1. Use  fire blight "occured in the area last year"
2. MARGINAL = 0-149 TRV (keep checking back); HIGH (pay close attention, have the strep and sprayer handy) = 150-349 TRV; and EXTREME (you will get a fire blight infection if it gets wet and you don't spray streptomycin) = above 350 TRV.
3. Oh yea, you have to have open blossoms too. D'oh!

Simple, you have to go from there, but EXTREME should make you too getting any sleep iffy.

NEWA Blight (aka Maryblyt) is a bit more complex. Study the table below (Figure 2.), and know this: when all FOUR of these requirements are met you WILL have fire blight infection unless you get out there and spray strep (unless you already did just prior the infection event).

BLOOM: flowers must be open (D'oh!) = BLOOM;

DH: (Degree Hours) must accumulate sufficiently >65 degrees F. 

TEMPERATURE: average daily >60 degrees F.;

WETTING: there must be a wetting event, rain or dew, but don't discount a dilute spray application is equivalent to dew (but NEWA does not know you did that, did it?)  Got it?

Figure 2. Simple graphic of how Maryblyt assesses risk of infection.

Now, there are some nuances and significant calculations to NEWAblight/Maryblyt, you don't need to worry about that, NEWA takes care of it. The important thing, any time Infection Potential EIP value (right column) goes above 100, you really need to stay on top of when the color goes ORANGE because then three conditions above have been met, and all it's going to take is some wetting to have an infection which cold turn into a fire blight epidemic. (Yikes!) As NEWA says "risk is 'HIGH' and forecasted wetting events should be carefully considered and a bactericide applied just before or after a rain"when it is ORANGE. If it turns RED and says "Extreme or Infection and antibiotic should (must?) be applied just before or after a rain." Must. Must. Must.

I am going to stop for fear of making it more complicated. It's not really. You just needed that explanation. Excellent references on Cougar Blight and Maryblyt from which I deduced all this for you are below. Read them. Please don't call me anymore... :-)

Cougar Blight Model

Maryblyt 7 Manual -- A Predictive Program for Forecasting Fire Blight Disease in Apples and Pears

RIMpro – to spray or not to spray using ‘virtual’ vs. weather station weather data

 RIMpro from their website (rimpro.cloud) “is a decision support system (DSS) for the sustainable management of pests and diseases in fruit and grape production. Every day, the cloud service together with the weather data system help thousands of growers and consultants worldwide to make the best decisions to protect their crops.” 

In 2023 I subscribed to RIMpro using both a hardware based weather station connected to NEWA (newa.cornell.edu, as Belchertown-2) and their virtual weather data service Meteoblue (meteoblue.com). My intent for using both was to be able to make a comparison of the weather station vs. virtual weather data ‘after the fact’ in terms of making spray decisions to manage apple scab, fire blight, and codling moth. It’s obvious the two sources of weather data  are going to differ, but that was not the point in making these comparisons. So I won’t belabor that, but I will discuss how using the two different sources of weather data may have made an impact on the decision-making process to “spray or not to spray” to manage the above-mentioned pests. The answer, of course, and as always, is “it depends.” Realize also this comparison was made at the end of the growing season when all the weather data was “in.” No attempt made to compare the forecasts in the midst of the growing season. (That’s a whole nother story.)

Apple scab

I just looked at primary scab using 1-April as a green tip date. Weather data that factor into the scab model include temperature (I presume but it does not show up in the RIMpro data file?), rainfall (to trigger spore release), and leaf wetness (duration). Looking at timing of spore maturity and last available spores to cause infection, there is not much difference there in the RIMpro chard (Figures 1 and 2) with an end date of approximately 10-June. I don’t care so much about that as long as they are close, but what I do care about is the RIM value(s) which are a measure of infection risk, being low, medium, or high. In Figures 1 and 2 I placed the arrows where I figured, based on what I know about RIMpro and primary scab management with fungicide sprays of some sort -- be it protectant, or protectant plus kickback fungicide – would have been required to manage a primary apple scab infection. Count how many fungicide spray black arrows there are in either plain old UMass Orchard or UMass Orchard-MB (MB = Meteoblue, virtual weather data). I count seven for each weather data source. No difference in number of sprays, right? (I'm sure my assumptions about spray timing will be argued.) But, what bothers me a bit, is it appears the RIM value is much higher for MB in several infection “events.” Looking at the raw weather data RIMpro uses, it’s clear that MB  “overestimated” by a factor of approximately two times both rainfall and leaf wetness compared to the weather station. “Overestimated” is assuming the weather station is correct? In particular, it’s likely the leaf wetness hours were the primary contributor to the difference in magnitude (as measured by the RIM value) of the infection events. Begs the question, which is correct, the leaf wetness sensor on the weather station – and we know there are issues there – or the modeled leaf wetness by MB? Good question. (Here's more on how RIMpro models leaf wetness duration for virtual weather station.) Just look at the duration of light blue which signifies leaf wetness in the weather data charts (Figures 3 and 4). What’s my inclination here? Well, looks like the MB output is a bit more conservative in the approach to manage apple scab = better safe than sorry? Know what I mean? Although not affecting the timing of fungicide sprays, the rate of fungicide might be adjusted upwards? I can see the plant pathologists out there shuffling in their seats.

Figure 1 - apple scab model output using weather station data

Figure 2 - apple scab model output using MB virtual weather data

Figure 3 - weather data chart using weather station

Figure 4 - weather data chart using MB virtual weather data. Note the extended periods of wetness (light blue) compared to Figure 3

Fire blight

I am no fire blight expert. We did have a significant fire blight outbreak in 2023 at the UMass Orchard. I don’t quite understand why MB showed that two more infection thresholds were reached compared to the weather station? Using the MB approach, three streptomycin sprays should have been applied vs. one for the weather station  (Figures 5 and 6). Which do you think would have been the better defense? Well, after the fact, and given our observed fire blight outbreak by early summer, following MB might have been the better strategy? I note that the prediction of visible symptoms was pretty much right on in RIMpro, as fire blight was indeed seen on June 5 (Figure 7).

Figure 5 - fire blight model output using weather station weather data. Date of strep spray is estimated

 

Figure 6 - fire blight model output using MB virtual weather data. Dates of strep spray are estimated

Figure 7 - fire blight symptoms observed 5-June, 2024 at UMass Orchard

Codling moth

I am no entomologist. But I do know something about codling moth management based on adult flight, mating, and larvae hatch, the latter being the ideal time to control codling moth with a targeted insecticide. So, looking at both outputs I see little difference in suggested insecticide timing between the two sources of weather data (Figures 8 and 9). Likely because the model is largely based on temperature, and we know that virtual weather data is pretty good at predicting/adjusting temperature such that over time the two sources of weather data end up being pretty closely aligned. That is about all I have to say about codling moth, I’d feel comfortable using MB there. And you have to love RIMpro’s approach of tagging ‘virgin’ females and ‘mated’ females. Maybe I am the only one that finds that amusing?

Figure 8 - codling moth model output using weather station weather data

Figure 9 - codling moth model output using MB virtual weather station data

A final note about Meteoblue, you can subsctibe to a free daily email from them that gives you a succinct graphical image of the weather forecast specific to your location. I get it daily, and have found the forecast to be about as good as anything else, although far from the perfect forecast. I particularly like their graphic which gives you a one-shot-in-one-place-in-your-face picture of the forecast as seen in Figure 10.

Figure 10 - Meteoblue Meteogram forecast for Belchertown, MA on 19-May, 2023 

So, although RIMpro is not for everyone as it's a bit dense unless you are really into it, I do highly recommend it as a 'precision' pest management tool. RIMpro has other models too numerous to mention here, but the stone fruit brown rot model might be worth mentioning. And, it can be site-specific (anywhere in the world) using the MB virtual weather data. Colleague Srdjan Acimovic at Virginia Tech University is a big proponent of RIMpro, and he is hosting a webinar about RIMpro on 20-February, 2024. I will be there. Rimpro also just launched on the App Store for iPhone and iPad...

2023 - the year (that I would just as soon forget) in review

 OK, a little something different, not to sound cliche, but "2023 - the year in review." And this kind of sums up how I feel about 2023...Blow me one last kiss!

Month-by-tedious month, with some picts and comments...

January

Was the warmest January on record in Massachusetts, average temperature of 35 F. (max 55, min 32) at the UMass Orchard in Belchertown, MA according to NEWA. Trees have accumulated enough chilling hours to come out of dormancy and are not particularly at maximum winter hardiness either. So wait for it...

These Gala buds looked pretty good on 16-January. No snow to speak of.

Dr. Duane Greene gave the George A. Goodloing Memorial Lecture at the Mid-Atlantic Fruit & Vegetable Conference in Hershey, PA on 31-January.

February

...an arctic cold front brought record cold on 4-February, -13 F. at the UMass Orchard in Belchertown the day after we returned from Hershey. Following highs approaching 50 F. the last week in January. Bye-bye peach (and cherry) crop for 2023.

Peach buds hosed on 6-February at the UMass Orchard and across Massachusetts.

What a difference a day makes...

Honored at International Fruit Tree Association Annual Conference on 16-Februaryin Grand Rapids, MI after nine years on the Board of Directors. Along with Jeff Clerveringa and Dale Goldy, us "old guys."

March

Our winters seem to be "back-end" loaded lately, it snowed and was rather cold. Average March temperature was 38 F. It was 35 F. in January and 32 F. in February. All right, it warmed up a bit. Passed the time co-hosting Northeast Plant Growth Regulator meeting and spoke on Precision Apple Cropload Management and Apple Varieties at Maine Pre-season Fruit Meeting in Lewiston, Maine. And oh yea, I got my FAA Part 107 UAV Pilot license!

Looks like the most snow we had all winter on 15-March.

Northeast PGR meeting 7, 8-March, Wilkes Barre, PA. The group toasts PGR meeting fixtures of past who passed in 2023, Butch Palmer, and Jeff Alicandro. I think Jeff would approve.

Welcome to Lewiston, Maine. Although I love the place... one smart daughter of mine went to Bates College.

April

Struggled a bit here to come up with memories. Oh yea, pruned my quad-v peaches hard (no crop). Planted NC-140 Porters Perfection cider apple trees with a little experimental overlay using Biosafe pre-plant program. First apple bloom was a little early?

Pruned quad-V peaches hard on 11-April to reduce height, what's to lose with no crop?

Zestar! first bloom on 24-April, a bit earlier than ideal...

NC-140 Porters Perfection apple rootstock planting ready to be planted. Unfortunately, this second batch to trees -- after Fedex lost my first batch -- were less than ideal in uniformity.

May

Ugh, things were looking good until May 18. Apple bloom was the first week. OK. Things were looking pretty good. Did my first drone flyovers using the Outfield-Orchard Management Platform to map apple blossom density. Post-May 18, when the temperature dropped to 28 F. during late petal fall to fruit set, it got pretty depressing. Oh well, there is always 2024. Carnegie Melon University (CMU) crew plugged away with their robot at the UMass Orchard despite the freeze-damaged apples.

View from up above of apple block in bloom on 2-May at UMass Orchard. Outfield makes novice pilot like me (upper right) looks pretty competent. No crashes (yet).

Gala apple cluster on 23-May is hosed from the May 18 freeze.

CMU with their robot measuring apple fruitlet size using computer vision to attempt to predict fruit set. Hampered by the freeze though, had to move out of this frozen Honeycrisp block.

Zestar! (left) and Honeycrisp fruitlets severely damaged post-18-May freeze event.

 June

Fire blight -- result of May 18 freeeze trauma event -- first visited, then stuck around (uninvited). Quick visit to see orchards and friends in MN/WI. By the end of June, rootstock bark failure in several orchards was coming to light resulting in tree decline. Not good. 

Fire blight symptoms first observed on 5-June, then it got worse on Crimson Crisp by end of month.

Joe Ferguson, yours truly, and Thomas Bernard at Ferguson's Pepin Heights orchard overlooking Mississippi River/Lake Pepin.

Rootstock shank bark failure was becoming commonplace in several orchards
 by end of June, mostly M.9 and several Geneva rootstocks, resulting in apple tree decline by tree girdling.

July

Attended Essex Junction High School 50-year Reunion in Vermont on 15-July. Lots of woe up there though. IFTA summer study tour in Nova Scotia. That's about it.

It turned out to be a disaster in much of Vermont

Overlooking the Minas Basin from the "Lookoff"
in Canning, Nova Scotia, Canada, 24-July

 

August

Attended Reality Research/MAIA field day out in Wayne County, NY. Midwest Apple Improvement Association arguably the biggest apple breeder/tester in North America now? Dr. Jason Londo from Cornell visits to look at rootstock/tree decline issues in Massachusetts. We are all still scratching our heads but lead theory is winter cold damage. 

Bill Pitts discusses new MAIA apple 'Sweet MAIA' (among many other things);
apple selection test plot planted by Reality Research/MAIA, pretty ambitious IMHO. 

Physiologist Jason Londo from Cornell examines rootstock failure at the UMass Orchard in Belchertown, MA on 1-September, Londo had visited orchards on 31-August so this counts as August :-)

September

Not much happened here, althought it was alternately hot (92 F. on 6- and 7-September, as hot as it got all summer) and wet (9-10 inches of rain!). Wrapped up 2014 NC-140 Honeycrisp planting over several picks, it was no fun giving the condition of the apples (freeze damage, rots, inadequate thinning, oh no!)

Fruit Surface Temperature on Honeycrisp apples on 7-September, not quite high enough for sunburn damage on apples.

It was wet, wet, wet!

It's a wrap says 'Suaz' with final harvest (after 10 years) of 2014 NC-140 Honeycrisp trial at UMass Orchard, quality was 'meh' so it was a bit of a slog.

October

Depending on site, apple crop was generally better than expected after the May freeze event. But it was far from perfect. First and second of five meetings/trips stretching into December.

Lee Kalcsits from Washington State University discusses tree decline issues at Tougas Family Farm in Northboro, MA on 11-October. Lee was a guest speaker at the UMass Cranberry Station in Wareham, his topic bitter pit of apples. How'd that happen? Maybe had something to do with Giverson Mupambi being his post-doc at WSU?

With some persimmon trees outside the Musser Fruit Research Center prior to attending the MyIPM app working group meeing at Clemson University, 3-October. My rental wheels while there had Massachusetts plated, glad I didn't get pulled over by 'Smokie!'

The UMass 'fruit team' along with colleagues from NY and CT hike 'The Pinnacle' outside of Bolton Landing, Lake George, NY prior to our annual New York/New England/Canada IPM working group meeting at the Fort William Henry Lodge and Resort in Lake George, NY (23- and 24-October).

Despite the tough year for growing apples, these Suncrisp look pretty good on 30-October at the UMass Orchard in Belchertown.

November

Meetings 3 and 4, Great Lakes Fruit Workers (GLFW) centered in Buffalo, NY and NC-140 rootstock research project annual meeting in Holland, MI. Gave two talks at GLFW -- one on apple tree decline and one on my work with Outfield (drone). Keynote address by retired (and highly respected) Cornell entomologist Art Agnello at Clarksburg Cider (which was yummy). Agnello's address was both entertaing (humorous) as well as serious considering some of the groundbreaking apple IPM work done by Art and his colleagues at Cornell over the past 40 (+/-) years. At NC-140 presented our Massachusetts state report and had a nice-day tour of Michigan State University Clarksville and Southwest Michigan (Benton Harbor, my old stomping grounds) fruit research stations. Oh yea, I snuck in a talk at the Connecticut Pomological Society Meeting in Middleton, CT on 'Honeycrisp disorders' and I started one cut pruning on most of my older apple variety (not going anywhere) plantings at the UMass Orchard in Belchertown. Several reasons for this, I won't go into the details... 👎

Art Agnello keynote at GLFW, Clarksburg Cider, 2-November. Art is a true professional IMHO and I greatly respect him.

NC-140 group at MSU's Clarksville horticultural research station on 7-November where we visited the Great Lakes Cider Apple Collection.

One-cut pruning by me commenced on 21-November at the UMass Orchard.

December

May have been the trip of a lifetime, off to Australia to attend the ISHS Symposium Precision Management of Orchards and Vineyards (PMOV). Way too much to detail here, but you may want to look at the Book of Abstracts. And I survived driving on the wrong side of the road without an incident! (I learned my lesson pretty quick while driving wrong way once shortly after leaving the Melbourne airport, fortunately a grassy turnaround once I realized my mistake when I saw the white arrow on the pavement pointing in the direction -- wrong way -- I was driving!) The highlight of my trip was the weekend after PMOV spent with Garry Langford in Hobart where he treated me to an amazing tour of the surrounding area. Alas, I think we spent way more time sightsseing than looking at orchards in Tasmania, but that was just fine and dandy with me. Hobart is a great little city if you every have the opporutunity, go there! And thanks Garry for the Aussie hospitality!

With Luca Corelli at PMOV. Luca was on the ISHS Symposium scientific committee and a long-time fruit researcher at the University of Bologna, Italy.

Sweet cherries with rain covers and apples on 10-December near Grove, Tasmania. Cherries have been very lucrative (Asian export market) in recent years for growers there, allowing investment in modern, multi-leader apple plantings.

Garry and Jon atop Mt. Wellington (1,271 meters above seal level) on 9-December, Hobart city in the background.

I have a Flickr photo album with full res pictures of all of the above and a few more bonus pics.