The spring of our discontent?

It's been a prolonged spring in Massachusetts. Preceded by a long and very cold (near record) winter. Following a hot summer in 2013 with a very large apple crop. Now we're paying the price? I have been asked about the tree fruit crop situation here in Massachusetts. I just want to say it's all over the place, so let me try to explain.

For starters, the 2013 apple crop was a large one, and it was a hot summer. Apples reached the tipping point after several large crop years -- typically biennial apples such as Cameo, Golden Delicious, Goldrush, Honeycrisp and others which bore a large (too large!) crop of fruit in 2013 have a lot of "blanks" (no flower parts, see below) in 2014. And, by-and-large, bloom on other varieties such as McIntosh (our primary variety grown) is variable, but we will have fruit. Macoun looks good, while Cortland bloom was lacking at best? As apple bloom progressed, quite a few flower spurs with malformed buds and/or single blooms were observed -- what the heck? Theories abound, ranging from incomplete/late flower bud development last year, winter injury (although it did not get absolutely cold enough to suspect damage?), an April cold snap when the buds were pushing (although according to critical temperatures, damage should not have occurred)? Quite a few Honeycrisp flowers at the UMass Orchard in Belchertown had just one flower (see below). Apple bloom just did not look good. (Queasy feeling begins.) Although I was pessimistic (as usual, cup is half-empty) I kept thinking it usually turns out better than I expect, and indeed now that we are seeing fruit set (finally) it looks like there is actually potential for a good apple crop here, other than the exceptions already noted. Somewhat interesting, considering how wicked cold the winter was, is the fact we got through bloom with no real frost/freeze threat (except back in early April).

Honeycrisp "blank" flower, 14-May, 2014 at UMass Orchard

Honeycrisp single flower, 14-May, 2014 at UMass Orchard

Let's move on to stone fruit -- peach and cherry. They have not fared so well. A good sign of trouble was mid-winter cold approaching or exceeding -10 F. Damage to flower buds of peach is highly site- and variety-dependent, but begins at -10 F. This spring, it looks like the potential peach crop ranges from no (zero) crop, to maybe what will be a good crop with modest hand-thinning. Some locations/varieties will need very little, if any, hand thinning to produce a decent peach crop. I estimate flower bud damage to range from 100% (again, depending on variety and site) to 50% (maybe lower). I don't think any peach orchard escaped unscathed. Not since 2004 have we lost a peach crop (or partial crop) to mid-winter cold.

Good peach flower bud (top) and bad (winter injured) peach flower bud (bottom)
at UMass Orchard, 5/14/14

Sweet cherry, well, I was pretty pessimistic, but set looks better than I expected. It is, however, variety-dependent. Clearly there was some damage, but I don't have it well-documented. Past history suggests you will start to see sweet cherry bud damage at about the same mid-winter cold temperatures as you see with peach. I want to share one observation, which is confounding but probably fully explainable -- my perception is that you see better bud survival on the weaker wood of peach and cherry, vs. the kind of wood that we would like to think produces the best fruit, i.e., those nice long, pencil-diameter size shoots. I suspect the weaker wood/buds is actually more hardy, having less nitrogen and hardening-off sooner in the late fall to early winter. It might not wake up quite as readily during mid-winter warm-ups too. Kind of frustrating when we attempt to grow "good wood."

Rainier sweet cherry fruit set at UMass Orchard,  5/27/14

Finally, seeing some wood/shoot damage to stone fruit (peach and plum) from presumably the mid-winter cold. It was dry last fall, so going into the winter these trees might have been pre-disposed to damage with a harsh winter.

Winter-damage peach tree in eastern Massachusetts, 29-May, 2014

That is the current situation as I see it -- I will give apples a B+ and stone fruit a C- at this time, however, am not averse to giving them extra credit and improve their grade as the growing season progresses. I constantly have to remind myself as the season goes along that more-and-more fruit suddenly "appears" (don't dismiss chemical thinning of apples!) and that years with a "short crop" are often the most profitable. (As long as you have some fruit!)

Near record cold...

Daily (morning) lows (degrees F.) for 01/04/14 in Massachusetts. Peach (and other stone fruit) bud damage will occur at -10 F., depending on variety and preceding weather (which has been cold). There was likely some bud damage to less hardy peach cultivars, however, we probably escaped relatively unscathed. But ask me again in April, and the winter is not over yet. Thanks to http://newa.cornell.edu for the data. JC

Amesbury, -5

Ashfield, -11

Belchertown, -6

Belchertown-2, -8

Bolton, -7

Boston (Weld Hill), -3

Deerfield, -11

Dracut, -12

E. Bridgewater, -12

Harvard, -11

Northboro, -6

Seekonk, -4

Sharon, -11

S. Deerfield, -11

Stow (Shelburne), -11

Stow, -11

Tyngsboro, -13

Waltham (UMass), -7

Westfield, -13

Pittstown (NJ), 1

Calais (VT), -20

Update: For what it's worth, here are the past week and past month temperature graphs. Note the 60+ a little over 2 weeks ago.

2013 Fruiting Wall Apple Update

In 2013, my Fruiting Wall Apple (FWA) vs. Tall Spindle Apple (TSA) experiment was picked on September 11 at the UMass Cold Spring Orchard. As a refresher, these app. 8-year old Silken apple trees on M.9 rootstock were converted to the FWA in 2011, thus this is the 3rd year of harvest. There are 100 trees total, 56 are FWA and 44 are TSA. There are 3 full replications of 13-15 trees each FWA and TSA, with another FWA of 14 trees. This past year, I did give the FWA a quick dormant prune by removing 1, 2, or 3 of the more "onerous" branches in each tree. Then the FWA got hedged in early July with a hand-held electric hedge pruner. TSA got pruned per TSA rules,. i.e., remove 1, 2, or 3 of largest branches, singularize branches, limit tree height.

OK, I am going to make it easy on myself, here are the "raw" data from the 2013 harvest:

2013 ‘Silken’ Fruiting Wall Apple (FWA) vs. Tall Spindle Apple (TSA)

Converted to FWA in 2011

Yield in 2013

FWA = 3.7 bins X 15 bushel bins = 55 bushels = 2,220 lbs.

TSA= 3.7 bins X 15 bushel bins = 55 bushels = 2,220 lbs.

FWA = 2,220 lbs. divided by 56 trees = 40 lb. per tree

TSA =  2,220 lbs. divided by 44 trees = 51 lb. per tree

FWA spacing should be 3 ft. X 10 ft. = 1,450 trees per acre

TSA spacing should be 3 ft. X 12 ft. = 1,200 trees per acre

FWA = 1,450 trees X 40 lb. per tree = 58,000 lb. per acre = 1,450 bushels per acre

TSA = 1,200 trees X 51 lb. per tree = 61,200 lb. per acre = 1,530 bushels per acre

app. 5% reduction in yield for FWA vs. TSA

Those are the facts. I am still reasonably convinced after three years of working with the FWA that you will typically reduce yield (somewhat) per acre, and fruit will be somewhat smaller. There are mixed opinions amongst the harvest crew which trees were easier to pick? I think the FWA has the potential to put less load on trellis. (More compact trees.) Not necessarily sure who should convert, probably a bigger orchard where labor savings are paramount and somewhat smaller fruit can be marketed. What this study fails to show is what effect on fruit quality and packout, hence maybe profitability? I will leave the big research jobs like that to Cornell, but if it were my orchard, I'd buy a one-pass hedger and wouldn't hesitate to convert most of my orchard to the FWA. JC

Typical bin of FWA 'Silken'

Typical bin of TSA 'Silken'

Top 10 Reasons to NOT Grow Sweet Cherries in the Humid Northeast!

It's been a bit trying to grow sweet cherries this year given it has been one of the wettest Junes on record here in New England! I have always said sweet cherries like hot, dry, sunny weather. (Like in Washington.) Well, it's been hot enough but not nearly sunny or dry enough to grow sweet cherries successfully (IMHO) here in the humid Northeast. After struggling for several years with uncovered sweet cherry orchards at the UMass Cold Spring Orchard, I am about ready to give up. So, I came up with my Top 10 Reasons to NOT Grow Sweet Cherries in the Humid Northeast! (One reasonably successful sweet cherry grower here in Massachusetts came back quickly after I told him of my intention with the statement "Only 10???!!!" Ha Ha, I too could actually think of more, but I will stick with 10 for now.) Of course, anyone is welcome to refute by leaving a comment...

So here we go, my top 10 reasons for NOT growing sweet cherries here in the northeast...

Number 10.) Cherry trees love to die! Yes, I picked that up from a statement made by a NY colleague a while back, and I pretty much agree. In particular, if they don't like the site (wet feet) or just plain aren't happy, well they are toast. And it's often hard to put a finger on the cause, often I think it is canker. (More below on THAT reason.) Planting on raised berms has been reasonably effective in keeping the rootstock and tree happier and is recommended. Still, they need to go on your best, very well-drained sites. They still just might die.

Number 9.) Yes, we have dwarfing rootstocks, but they are not without problems. For one, Gisela 5 will runt out real quick and produce very small fruit if not grown on a good site (with irrigation) and pruned adequately and appropriately to promote new shoot growth. And choose your variety on Gisela 5 wisely -- self-fertile and heavy cropping Sweetheart on Gisela 5 is a bad choice. Regina, however, is a better choice. And Gisela 6/12 can produce rather hefty trees requiring significant pruning and requiring ladders to pick. (Although fruit size will benefit from the more vigorous tree.) I will have to admit in reality dwarfing Gisela cherry rootstocks make growing sweet cherries more tolerable and really don't belong on this list!

Number 8.) Cedar waxwings -- are largely a frugivore (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frugivore). They migrate through the Northeast (to Canada, and their breeding grounds, God bless the Queen) in late spring (June) in moderate size flocks and according to Wikipedia "When the end of a twig holds a supply of berries that only one bird at a time can reach, members of a flock may line up along the twig and pass berries beak to beak down the line so that each bird gets a chance to eat." I have not directly observed this cedar waxwing behavior (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FV3U9cFPWKY) in my sweet cherries, however, I can verify this is what the end result will look like on early ripening sweet cherries not covered by bird netting. Please do watch one of my more creative and visually stunning YouTube videos about my stilted attempt to shoo the waxwing http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ba3xGQ8U1tI.(Bonus point to whoever can name song.) They are a beautiful migratory songbird BTW, http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Cedar_Waxwing/id. Although their Conservation Status is listed as "Least Concern" that does not mean you can go out and shoot them as they are Federally protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 http://www.fws.gov/laws/lawsdigest/MIGTREA.HTML which carries a fine of up to $15,000 for misdemeanor conviction in violation of the Act. Believe me, it's not worth growing sweet cherries if you feel you need to shoot the Cedar Waxwings. Once the waxwings have moved on to their Canadian breeding ground (God bless the Queen), well then the other dicky birds, i.e., robins, starlings, etc. move in. Unless you grow many, many acres, and are willing to accept some depredation, bird netting is an absolute must to grow sweet cherries with any hint of profitability. 

Number 7.) Monilina sp. aka brown rot. Requires numerous fungicide sprays during bloom and when fruit ripen. Exacerbated by rain and humidity and bird pecks and splitting/cracking. Only one really good class of fungicides (the DMI's such as Indar) on brown rot, so repeated application(s) are bound to lead to resistance. (Monilinia already has demonstrated resistance to the DMI fungicides in some locations.) Yes, brown rot is manageable, but it's a pain in the butt in wet years requiring a lot of tractor-sprayer trips (like every few days) through the cherry orchard when fruit is ripening. Covered orchards are better, but not immune to brown rot on account of the increased humidity and longer drying time.

Number 6.) Did I mention when it rains, well, "Does a Bear Do His/her Business in the Woods? Subtitle: do Cherries Like to Crack and Split?" Heck yes. Rain covers are great at reducing splitting, however, they are expensive, require considerable maintenance, and unless care is taken to divert run-off away from the orchard root uptake on the margins can still lead to splitting. And did I mention how massively expensive and maintenance-intensive rain covers are? And if I was "lucky" enough to have acquired a rain cover for my cherries, it would be straight for the liquor cabinet the moment a severe thunderstorm warning is posted!

Number 5.) They have much better weather for growing sweet cherries in the PNW (Pacific NorthWest) anyways. I suspect Lynn Long will support me on this one. Greg Lang has to be shaking his head... :-)

Number 4.) Bacterial canker. With an emphasis on bacterial. Bacterial diseases of tree fruit are the least predictable, most fickle, largely endemic, most devastating, and often hardest to control. (Think fire blight of apples.) Sweet cherry are a willing host of Pseudomonas, which generally thrives in our alternately cool and wet spring and fall weather in the northeast, with plenty of wild hosts to sit and wait it out on. Look at this bacterial canker on Regina sweet cherry, planted three years ago on a site which, until now, had been mostly devoid of bacteria canker. Did it come in on the nursery? Has it built up on site? It has killed app. 20% of the trees. (Repeat after me, "cherry trees like to die, cherry trees like to die...") Not good. I think stressed trees (think water-logged roots), or previously infected trees (including nursery stock) are most susceptible. Be prepared to battle -- I don't use that term lightly -- bacterial canker on all fronts if you plan to grow sweet cherries in the northeast.  

Number 3.) Did I mention those Voen and Haygrove covers are ridiculously expensive and maintenance-intensive!

Number 2.) You can make more money growing apples in the same acreage and in less time. I will refer to the two best sources of information I have regarding economics of hi-density cherry vs. apple. They are Oregon State University and Cornell University. Regarding the hi-density cherry orchard, "This orchard will generate sufficient gross income to cover all cash costs in year 8 and all economic costs for the 25-year period in 16 years." (http://arec.oregonstate.edu/oaeb/files/pdf/AEB0032.pdf) For the tall-spindle apple orchard, and if I read Alison Demaree's cost of production spreadsheet correctly, I will phrase the same statement above with the apple numbers thrown in: "This apple orchard will generate sufficient gross income to cover all cash costs in year 4 and all economic costs for the 30-year period in 13 years." OK, case made. These are based on wholesale returns for cherries in the PNW (about $1 per pound) and Gala apples in NY (about $8 per bushel). Now of course selling fruit retail can make a huge difference, but I think the basic economic correlation holds, i.e., apples are always going to be more profitable (and potentially less risky) than cherries here. AND, there was no inclusion in the cherry economics for a Haygrove or Voen cover and bird netting. (The tall-spindle apple orchard is turn-key.) That would dramatically affect the comparison, thus I will go out on a limb and say "I could make a lot, lot more money growing Honeycrisp apples over 10 years on an orchard acre vs. trying to grow sweet cherries in the northeast."

And finally, the Number 1.) reason NOT to grow sweet cherries: Grow sweet-tart cherries! If you really want to grow cherries here, consider growing tart cherries. Please don't call them sour cherries. I don't even like tart cherries from a marketing perspective. Where's a marketer when you need one? We  should be calling them sweet-tart cherries! (Or, tart-sweet cherries?) I mean the likes of Balaton, Erdi Jubileum, and (maybe) Danube. Much easier to grow. Great on Gisela 6 rootstock. Arguably better health benefits than sweet cherries. Makes a great pie. Can be picked stemless. Can be eaten fresh or baked or processed into juice, sauce (great on vanilla ice cream), etc. Customers really seem to like them. Birds don't like them (much). Can't buy them in the grocery store for cheap after July 1 (like you usually can with PNW sweet cherries). Heck, can't buy them period in the grocery store. Far less of a headache. (Although I am not convinced Danube is well-adapted here in the northeast.) Don't need to be covered or netted! Every farm market/roadside stand/retail grower should be growing some sweet-tart cherries on Gisela rootstocks!

#ifta2013boston

I just returned from the International Fruit Tree Association (IFTA) 56th Annual Conference held at the Boston Copley Marriott from February 23 to March 2, 2013. Hereafter, I will refer to the Conference as #ifta2013boston as I started tweeting from the Conference and it looks like social media (see IFTA Facebook page) has started to catch on a bit with otherwise very progressive horticulturists/fruit growers. 

First, on Saturday, March 23 were two Pre-Conference Intensive Workshops. Altogether, there were about 200 attendees split between "Strategies for Improving Production Practices" and "Managing Pick Your Own Tree Fruit Operations." I spent time in both -- in the "Strategies" session Equilifruit disks were passed out and explained how to use by James Schupp of Penn State, and I won't forget Tom Chudleigh's comment in the "Managing" Workshop: "It's easier to increase revenue $10,000 than decrease expenses $1,000!" Thanks to Pre-Conference workshop organizers and moderators Mo Tougas, Phil Schwallier and Duane Greene for successfully kicking-off #ifta2013boston!

Then, on Sunday, despite the weather, the show must go on, but barely! With perseverance, an excellent Pre-Conference Demonstration by Greg Lang (Michigan State U.) and Lynn Long (Oregon State U.) in front of 100 cold, snowy-wet attendees on pruning dwarf cherry systems at Tougas Family Farm. And then Jim Schupp (Penn State U.) showed us how to prune quad-v intensive planted peaches. (Pictured right.) It's typical to have some kind of weather-related obstacle during these winter orchard visits, and we in Massachusetts did not disappoint!

Monday morning the Education Sessions commenced. Loosely titled "Innovation in Production" and "Innovation in Automation" these Monday sessions were attended by nearly 350 fruit growers and other industry representatives from at least 11 different countries. (But mostly from the United States and Canada.) I should note the overall theme of #ifta2013boston was "Insights into Innovative Orchard Technology." Dr. David Rosenberger of Cornell's Hudson Valley Lab delivered the Carlson lecture titled "Societal Changes are Creating Opportunities and Challenges for Fruit Growers." The Monday afternoon "Automation" session was organized by Tara Baugher (Penn State U.) and featured speakers working on the SCRI-funded "Comprehensive Automation for Specialty Crops."

All-day Tuesday, February 26 was the Field Learning Tour which went to three orchards in Massachusetts and one in New Hampshire. Six 50-passenger buses (thanks A Yankee Line!) were split between a North and South route but all visiting the same orchards. On the South Route (which I was on) we stopped at (in order): Belkin Lookout Farm, Natick, MA; Tougas Family Farm, Northboro, MA; Tower Hill Botanic Garden, Boylston, MA (for lunch); Brookdale Fruit Farms, Hollis, NH; and Parlee Farms, Tyngsboro, MA. So much practical pruning, growing, and marketing information on apples, peaches, and cherries at these typically diversified New England orchards. Terence Robinson (Cornell U., pictured at right) was instrumental in getting discussions going between our orchard hosts and tour attendees.

Returning to Boston Tuesday evening after a long-day in the orchards, enthusiasm for the cider silent auction to benefit the IFTA Research Foundation was still high as we enjoyed a New England boiled dinner of corned beef and cabbage during the 2013 IFTA Awards Banquet. Speaking of awards, here are the deserving recipients:

• Carlson and Outstanding Researcher Award  -- Dr. David Rosenberger, Cornell University
• Outstanding Grower Award -- Tougas Family, Northboro, MA
• Outstanding Extension Award (tie) -- Win Cowgill, Rutgers U. and Jon Clements, UMass Amherst
• Hall of Fame Award -- Art Thompson (deceased), U. of Maryland
• Industry Service Award -- Elwin 'Stub' Hardee (deceased) & Family, Hollis, NH

Thanks to Banquet emcee Tim Welsh and cider silent auction organizer Ken Hall for a fun and productive banquet! Announced near the end, the cider auction raised nearly $6,000 for the IFTA Research Foundation!

On Wednesday, Education Sessions resumed. For the morning, the topics were "Innovation in Technology and Varieties" and during the afternoon "Innovation in Climate Change Strategies & Production" were featured. A featured speaker during "Technology and Varieties" was Neal Carter of Okanagan Specialty Fruits who are trying to introduce non-browning Arctic Apples to the USA. His talk "Apples and Biotech -- Why They Fit" was followed by Nancy Foster with USApple's "View from the Hill." One of the best talks of the afternoon was Jeff Andresen's (Michigan State U.) "Climate Change 101 for Fruit Growers." Andresen (pictured left) painted a challenging picture ahead for fruit growers with increased likelihood of seeing earlier springs and more frost/freeze events like those that occurred during 2012.

On Thursday morning two buses (100 attendees) left Boston for the Hudson Valley of New York for the Post-Conference Study Tour. First stop before leaving Massachusetts, however, was the UMass Cold Spring Orchard where Redhaven peach and Honeycrisp apple NC-140 rootstock plantings were visited. Then onto Thursday PM stops in the Hudson Valley:

• Yonder Fruit Farms in Valatie and Hudson, NY for tall spindle apple planting established in 2012 and Delicious Pruning/Rootstock trial respectively
• Golden Harvest Farm and Distillery, Kinderhook, NY for Applejack and other spirits sampling
• Fix Brothers Farm, Germantown, NY for Orsi platform demo and older "tall spindle" apple pruning discussion
• Mead Orchards, Tivoli, NY for diversified fruit and vegetable farm marketing discussion

And then overnight at Poughkeepsie Grand Hotel for dinner on our own. (I heard the Bull and Buddha was pretty good!)

Friday early morning we departed Poughkeepsie across the Mid-Hudson Bridge for Cornell's Hudson Valley Lab in Highland. At the HVL we were treated to indoor laboratory and outdoor field research being done by the HVL's scientists -- Rosenberger, who is also Director, on pathology; Peter Jentsch on entomology; and Steve Hoying on horticulture. It was all very informative and these researchers (and Extension educator Mike Fargione) at the HVL provide essential support for Hudson Valley fruit growers who maintain open space and provide locally grown food and economic development to the region.

After departing HVL continuing Post-Conference Study Tour stops included:

• Porpiglia Fruit Farms, Marlboro -- packing line, storage, and plantings
• Crist Bros. Coy Farm, Clintondale -- tall spindle apple plantings and hedging
• Wrights Farm Market & Bakery, Gardiner -- gourmet box lunch, cider donuts
• Dressel Farms, New Paltz -- modern storage and Cider Week, but no sampling, and we did not go look at one of the oldest tall spindle apple plantings in eastern new york :-(
• Crist Bros. Home Farm, Walden -- brand new Greefa pre-sorting line
• Fishkill Farms, Fishkill -- Eco Apples and year-round farm market (some crops organic)

After the day of orchard visits and a brief return to the hotel we had a brief ride to Locust Grove Estate and Samuel Morse Historic Site for an authentic Dutch-Colonial dinner hosted by Hudson Valley entertainers and cooks John and Cynthia Vergilii. It was really great and a fitting end to the Post-Conference Study Tour. Kudos to Steve Hoying and the Hudson Valley Young Growers for an informative and entertaining IFTA event no one will soon forget. Finally, on Saturday morning, back to Boston for travel home...

Of course I want to thank very much all the people who worked particularly hard and/or significantly contributed to make #ifta2013boston a success. They include: Mo Tougas, Phil Schwallier, and the IFTA Board of Directors; Tara Baugher for putting together the automation session; Rick, Glen, and Teresa who are IFTA's management team with AMR Management Services; Tim Welsh and Ken Hall for hosting the banquet program and cider auction; all our Pre-Conference Workshop and Conference speakers; all our Pre-, Post-, and Conference tour stop hosts; and Steve Hoying and the Hudson Valley Young Growers for arranging the Post-Conference Tour. 

For more of my pictures of #ifta2013boston see my Flicker album...

Fruiting Wall Apple

Today I picked 30 Gibson Golden Delicious trees planted in 2002 on B.9 rootstock spaced 2 ft. apart. (Essentially a super-spindle.) Last year, I divided those trees into two blocks of 15 each, and began the Fruiting Wall Apple (FWA) pruning regimen beginning with a dormant hedging followed by a Summer Solstice Hedging (SSH) on one block, while I pruned the other 15 trees to a hybrid tall-spindle/super-spindle pruning. This year, I did one SSH in late June on the FWA, and a more traditional dormant pruning on the Tall Spindle Apple (TSA).

The fruit yield I picked today was almost even between the two systems (FWA vs. Tall Spindle Apple), app. 10.5 bushels of nice quality Golden's came out of each block of 15 trees. (Call it a 20 bushel bin out of all 30 trees.) If I extrapolate the yield at the current spacing, which is 2 ft. between trees X 12 ft. between rows, that is 24 square feet per tree times 30 trees equals 720 square feet of orchard equals 20 bushels. One acre (43,560 sq. ft.) divided by 720 sq. ft. equals app. 1/60 of an acre. Thus, 60 X 20 bushels equals an app. equivalent yield of 1,200 bushels per acre. Not bad. If I could do it on a whole acre... :-)

But is that really fair to the FWA? Well, tree height was limited there to about 10 ft. while the TSA was 12-13 ft. Thus TSA rows would need to be 12 ft. apart as above to maintain th 1:1 tree height/row height ratio recommended. But the FWA could be planted 10 ft. between rows therefore using only 20 sq. ft. per tree, and assuming the same yield per tree could be achieved, then that maths out to app. 1,450 bushels per acre. No hand pruning. And I picked the whole thing with only the assistance of a 2 ft. step-stool.

Is that the whole story? Well, see some of my other videos on this topic:

• http://youtu.be/7687lrkmmuE
• http://youtu.be/a5eGaBa1JvM
• http://youtu.be/kWf39Gr0V6w

Can I do it again next year? We'll see. What do you think?

Waxing poetic about Liberty...

Right. I am no poet! But I have recently come to re-appreciate some of the attributes of Liberty. A reminder it is scab-resistant (but not wholly disease-resistant). The local-favorite apple Macoun is one of it's parents. It is an extremely consistent cropper, often to the detriment of fruit size, but that can be managed. Picked fully red and ripe, but before it has started to go south (which happens fast), it has a flavor reminiscent of the best apple cider you ever had. It is crisp (for awhile), the flesh is clean white and mostly tart but with some sweetness. Here are the stats on some Liberty I recently picked at the UMass Cold Spring Orchard in Belchertown, MA:

date	Cultivar	pre-harvest drop	color % red	fruit diam (in)	firmness lbs	soluble solids	starch index	fruit picture
9/24/2012	Liberty	some+	90	3.0	17	11.8	3.5	http://bit.ly/QD5lJS

Now, Liberty has been around for awhile so why hasn't it exactly caught on? Especially given it's scab-resistance, hence reducing (but not eliminating!) the need for fungicide sprays. (Plum curculio love it, it needs an aggressive insecticide program.) For one, it does not last long when picked, and if left too long on the tree, it gets slightly greasy and develops an off-favor IMHO. Hence, it does not have any storage legs. BUT, a colleague of mine at Rutgers insists these negative traits can be offset with the judicious use of ReTain. (As much as I hate it when he is right, I suspect he is onto something here.) So I am not sure we have given it enough attention as to how to manage it for best and sustainable fruit quality.

After I picked the above Liberty apples, I was so full of myself about Liberty I decided to do a rather unscientific but nonetheless (I think) worthwhile taste test of Liberty with our retail customers at the UMass Orchard. A box each of Liberty and Macoun were placed on a table in the retail sales area. Customers were simply asked "which apple do you like better, x or y" after giving them the opportunity to sample each fruit.

Well, the results were a little disappointing to me (although I will have to admit, the Macoun tasted pretty good): 1.5 to 1 in favor of Macoun (i.e., Macoun was preferred 1.5 times over Liberty). BUT, alas, the Macoun were treated with ReTain! (Liberty were not.) I guess that is not really a fair comparison???