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ThE FrUIT GrOWEr • MArCh 2017 www.thefruitgrower.co.uk

3MArCh 2017 •

OPINION

THE FRUIT GROWER IS PUBLISHED BY

Most of the themes that growers face now and in years to come are addressed inthis issue - climate change, sustainable farming, loss of actives and future-proofingby investment in research, are all on the menu. With signs that spring is on the way,the report from the BIFGA Technical Day includes Professor Chris Atkinson’s reviewof climate change positives. Whilst a decline in winter chill can evidently upset thebalance, it could also bring with it some opportunities. For instance, we are alreadydetecting fewer frost days. “I know that when I first started at East Malling we wereworking on cherries and probably one in every three or four years we couldn’t doany experiments because all of the cherry blossom was killed. That doesn’t happenmuch these days,” said Prof. Atkinson. The continuing loss of actives available for controlling pests and diseases is aheadache for growers, but agronomists are working hard to keep on top of thechanges and make sure that there are still answers and good programmes to follow.Excellent advice on scab control from the Hutchinson’s team is reported from theirtechnical day and, reassuringly, some new chemistry has arrived just in time. Theuse of a broad-spectrum insecticide is no longer an easy option for either dessert orcider apple growers. At the Agrovista Cider Growers Technical Seminar the largeaudience heard that one positive aspect of this situation is the recognition of therole of beneficial insects. The much misunderstood earwig came in for praise as itoffers the most effective control of woolly aphid. It is in growers’ interests to providenatural winter habitats for earwigs. These are inexpensive and can be as simple asrolls of corrugated cardboard or plastic rabbit guards around tree trunks.All the above feeds into the work of LEAF which celebrated its 25th anniversary in2016. Caroline Drummond outlines her organisation’s main strategic ambition for thenext five years to be the ‘go to’ organisation for the delivery of more sustainablefood and farming. Fruit growers who take part in LEAF Open Farm Sunday are to becongratulated as they help us all to communicate to the public the good practiceand efforts that growers and their staff put into producing the finest product in anenvironmentally responsible way.

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C O N T E N T SNews Page 4

Mechanisation Page 6

Hail insurance Page 7

Hugh Culley Page 9

New berry varieties Page 10

Leaf nutrition Page 11

BIFGA TechnicalDay Page 13

Scab control Page 18

Soft FruitConference Page 21

Cider Seminar Page 23

LEAF Page 25

Spectral imaging Page 27

Research Briefing Page 28

Comment 0

The Fruit Grower is a member of the Independent PressStandards Organisation that regulates the UK’s magazine andnewspaper industry. We abide by the Editors’ Code of Practice andare committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. Ifyou think that we have not met those standards and want to make acomplaint, please contact Chris Tanton, Editor, [email protected] or telephone 01622 695656. If we are unable toresolve your complaint, or if you would like more information aboutIPSO or the Editors’ Code, please contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220or visit www.ipso.co.uk.

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www.thefruitgrower.co.uk ThE FrUIT GrOWEr • MArCh 2017

In recognition of the vitally positive influence he has exertedon the UK stone fruit industry, Don Vaughan was presentedwith the ridley Medal by Mr Dennis Surgeon, Master of theWorshipful Company of Fruiterers, at their banquet on 16February.

Early in his career Don worked for the Worley family,managing fruit and hops on their land around Yalding in Kent,sharing a passion for cherries with his boss, the latelegendary Jim Worley. Always looking forimprovement and realising potential in fruitproduction, Don also looked for this in himself and somoved from management into consultancy, spendingthe rest of his career working as a fruit advisor forFAST.

Don was always interested in r&D and cultivatedclose relationships with leading researchers andgrowers at home and abroad. he has played a majorpart in searching out, trialling, developing andintroducing the key elements that have led to aturnaround in the fortunes of the UK cherry industry.These include dwarfing, more productive, Giselarootstocks, new varieties such as Kordia, regina andSummer Sun, covers for protection against weather

and bird damage, improved tree management and controls forpests and diseases.

Master Dennis Surgeon concluded by saying, “It is largelyDon’s drive and quest for knowledge that has revitalised theUK cherry industry, making it what it is today. he is therefore amost worthy winner of the ridley Medal.”

4

The Worshipful Company of Fruiterers Ridley Medal presented to Don Vaughan

Berry Gardens enjoys multiple successes at Grower AwardsBerry Gardens enjoyed four wins at The Grower Awards this

year, including Variety of the Year with Driscoll’s® Victoria™blackberries, Place UK scooping both Soft Fruit Grower of theYear and Edibles Grower of the Year, and finally Nick Marston,retiring Berry Gardens Managing Director, being recognised forhis contribution to the industry over the last 21 years receivingthe Life Time Achievement Award.

“I am delighted to be able to congratulate Tim Place and allthe team at Place UK for the well-deserved recognition theyreceived at last week’s Grower Awards, winning both Soft FruitGrower of the Year and the ultimate accolade of EdiblesGrower of the Year. Berry Gardens’, and our partnersDriscoll’s, strategy of offering differentiated proprietaryvarieties that deliver superb eating berries wasrecognised with the thoroughly deserved award ofVariety of the Year for Driscoll’s® Victoria™blackberries, and lastly, both I and my family weredelighted with the Life Time Achievement Award”,said Nick.

Tim Place, Managing Director of Place UK, wasthrilled with both his wins; “It is great to see my teamat Place UK recognised for their hard work andcommitment to growing the best British soft fruit. As abusiness, we have invested significantly over the lastfew years, with increased production, new dormitory-style accommodation for our workers and a moreefficient packhouse – all contributing to the success

that is Place UK”.Andy Mitchell, agronomist at M&S adds, “The team at Place

UK does not shy away from the challenges of growing difficultvarieties such as Driscolls® Jubliee. They are a very forward-thinking business, headed up by Tim who keeps them goingforward and ahead of the competition, looking forimprovements in all areas, be it in the field, in the pack-house,with labour or trying new varieties. We are proud to work withsuch an innovative grower who reflects M&S’ ways of working.Place UK is pivotal to our success and continues to be animportant grower in the supply base.”


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The adoption of fruit walls in place of traditional orchardsystems, could make the mechanical pruning of apple treeseasier for growers and help to reduce costs, AhDB horticultureresearch finds.

Uncertainties about the fruit industry’s ability to sourceseasonal workers following Brexit, and an increase in labourcosts, means that there’s a sharper focus than ever on findingways to mitigate the industry’s reliance on labour. Modernintensive orchards are already simpler and easier to prune thantraditionally planted ones but it can still take between 25 and40 hours/ha of labour. With fruit walls, mechanical pruningwork rates vary between 1.5 and 2.5 hours/ha so, even thoughsome hand-pruning will be needed, there is potential to savearound £3,000/ha over an orchard’s 15-year life.

Mark holden of Adrian Scripps Ltd and an industryrepresentative for the project, said: “The cost of labour isinevitability increasing due to rises in the minimum wage. Also,there is a potential shortage of a quality workforce in the future,therefore I am keen to explore how we can get the best frommechanisation”. Another key target is to improve theconsistency and quality of the fruit from tree to tree in theorchards. Mechanical pruning was identified as, potentially, oneway to achieve both these goals.

AhDB horticulture has spent the last four years investigatingthe tree types and pruning regimes most suitable for use in fruitwalls in the UK in two projects. recommendations have beengenerated from one of the projects about pruning timing forgrowers who are working with fruit walls and include thefollowing:

In strongly growing orchards, and where tree vigour control isimportant, it could be better to delay mechanical pruning to thenine- or 12-leaf stage. Where limited re-growth and improvedfruit bud formation are required, pruning at the nine-leaf stage

appears to be best. Where trees are not vigorous and are inbalance, pruning at pink-bud may benefit fruit size and sugarcontent – but this will encourage more growth. “The resultshave demonstrated that there is a place for mechanicalpruning, but as a complement to, and not a substitute for,hand pruning. The decisions on mechanical pruning must alsoreflect the growing season and will need to be targeted oncertain varieties and appropriate orchards to have the mostbenefit,” added Mark holden.

Scott raffle, Knowledge Exchange Manager at AhDBhorticulture, said: “research into mechanising appleproduction is just one of the ways in which AhDB is supportingprojects that promote innovation in horticulture to help ourgrowers remain competitive. The results from these projectscould have a really positive impact on fruit growers”.

6

Mechanising the future of apple growing

New European link established for the supply of fruit treesIn the 25 years since William Seabrook ceased trading as a tree

nursery, he has built up a business relationship with Europeannurserymen Botden & van Willegen, and Bas van den Boomparticularly. Now that William has retired, Botden & van Willegen hasforged a new relationship with Frank P. Matthews Ltd of TenburyWells.

Frank P. Matthew’s Managing Director, Nick Dunn, has pointed outthat both businesses have similar ethics, with customer care andfriendly advice, and the supply of high quality nursery trees, being highon the agenda. The new alliance provides for both to sharepropagating skills, longstanding links to breeding programmesworldwide, and access to a portfolio of British cider apple varieties.Each has a substantial database of grower contacts in Britain andEurope, and both are family businesses going back many years andhave a detailed understanding of the UK’s industry, recognising thattree quality and price prevail in a very competitive marketplace.


7F N e w s F

hail insurance arranged via a Producer Organisation (PO)currently attracts a substantial subsidy of up to 50% of thepremium from Brussels through the Crisis Management Fund.Specialist insurance of this type provides a prudent growerwith some financial protection from the potential devastation ofa hail strike, which is particularly important for high value top-fruit where the investment can be as much as £20,000/ha.

Many UK growers who are members of participating POstake advantage of this subsidy, but this participation is by nomeans widespread. The Dutch mutual top-fruit hail insurer OFhwarns that unless more POs engage, this subsidy is unlikely tobe replaced by DEFrA after Brexit.

Paul roberts, UK consultant to OFh comments, “POexecutives, directors and grower members are urged to makefull use of the fund while it can still be accessed. Failure to fullyutilise the Crisis Management Fund whilst we are still part ofthe EU will surely mean that when the UK Governmentconsider their policy for farming subsidies after Brexit, thisbenefit to the fruit grower will disappear. It really is ‘use it orlose it’! Earlier this year the BBC reported that 90% of all farmbusinesses would collapse without similar levels of subsidybeing available post-Brexit,“ says Jonny McIrvine, a Partner inWeatherbys hamilton, the insurance broker responsible since1995 for UK hail insurance with OFh. “The Government has

promised to match existing subsidies until 2020, but those onlytaken up in the minority are unlikely to survive a review. If wearen’t using it now, we won’t be getting it later.”


‘Use it or lose it!’ fruit growers and POs are warned


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Agrovista has strengthened its national fruit agronomy teamwith two new appointments covering the West Midlands andsouth of England.

herefordshire-based David Taylor will service both top fruitand soft fruit growers, mainly in the West Midlands, but alsonationally as demand for Agrovista’s service builds. David wasborn on a traditional farming estate in herefordshire, where hisfather was farm foreman, and has spent most of his workinglife in the region. he started in the fruit sector in 2001 withWithers Fruit Farm, Ledbury where he spent seven years,ending up as general manager. he then worked as growermanager for S & AProduce in herefordshirefor four years, followedby a similar spell as anagronomist for BerryGardens.

David is lookingforward to the challenge.“This is an exciting timeto be involved in the fruitbusiness,” he says.“While there are someinteresting challengesahead, not least thosestemming from Brexit, Ibelieve that the UK fruitindustry has a very brightfuture. I really likeAgrovista’s approach todelivering results for itscustomers, which gives me plenty of scope to set and achievemy own goals and directions while achieving the best resultsfor my clients.”

Simon Warren will cover the south of the UK from his base inKent. he brings plenty of knowledge to the role. his fatherworks in soft fruit breeding, and Simon has been engaged inthe soft fruit sector all his working life. he was employed byEdward Vinson Plants in Kent for 12 years as a propagationmanager and then worked for four years at S & A Produce inherefordshire as a growing manager, working with table-topstrawberries and blueberries.

Working for an advice-led company like Agrovista withindustry-leading technology is an opportunity not to be missed,he says. “I enjoy the agronomy side of growing, as well as thechallenge of growing a good healthy crop, maximising cropquality and yield, with minimum waste. I will also eventuallycover top fruit and stone fruit at Agrovista, and I am lookingforward to improving my knowledge in these sectors andworking within the team to achieve this.”

Mark Davies, commercial head of fruit at Agrovista, says theappointments will strengthen the team as it continues to

expand. “Both Simonand David have a wealthof soft fruit experience.They will focus onbuilding support in theuse of our range of beesand biological controlproducts in the field,whilst developing theirknowledge of tree-fruitcrops. Our team isrelatively young, with anaverage age of 40, andthis investment illustratesAgrovista’s long-termcommitment to the fruitbusiness in the UK. Wewill continue to invest inpeople and services thatwill provide soundtechnical advice to our customers nationwide. We will alsoevaluate new technologies and, when appropriate, deliverthese to the marketplace.”

Agrovista’s UK fruit business has grown year-on-year sinceits inception 10 years ago. The top fruit agronomy-led businessmodel has been a great success, integrating Agrovista’sGrowers’ Choice Interactive pest and disease modellingservice to maximise the effectiveness of crop protectionprogrammes. The soft fruit market has been driven by theindustry’s move from growing in soil to substrate-basedproduction. Agrovista partnered with Botanicoir to lead thedevelopment of dehydrated slab technology and continues tolead the way in terms of product development.

8

Two new appointments to Agrovista’s fruit agronomy team

Wednesday 26 April 2017 at 3.30pmAt Mole End Farm, Babylon Lane, Chart Sutton, Maidstone,

Kent, ME17 3Er, by kind permission of Paul Ward, winner ofthe Tastiest Apple Competition at the National Fruit Show2016.

This event is sponsored by:• UKCA Ltd., The Old Dairy, Wakehams Farm, Pett Level

road, Fairlight, East Sussex, TN35 4ED, and • Weatherbys hamilton/OFh, hill Farm, Dullingham, Suffolk,

CB8 9UT. As well as a tour of the organic orchards, there will be

presentations by the sponsors on ‘Controlled atmospherestorage’ and ‘hail insurance – a grower’s perspective’ followedby a buffet supper.

Please contact the BIFGA Secretary to apply for places -email: [email protected] or telephone: 01892 724540.

BIFGA Spring Farm Walk


9F N e w s F

hugh Culley, Ceylon-born and a tea planter’s son, played anactive role in the fruit growing industry of the Eastern counties.Farming at hockley Farm, near Frating, in south Essex, hughwas widely known to fruit growers through his full and activeparticipation in many roles within the industry, and thecommunity in which he lived.

Serving on local NFU fruit committees and the Essex andSuffolk Fruit Growers group, he was seldom absent from localmeetings and gatherings of fruit growers, and participated intheir many excursions abroad. he served as arearepresentative for the Apple and Pear Development Council inthe 1980s along with others such as Adrian Scripps, andorchestrating with colleagues a change of the then Chairman.

As a fruit grower hugh was an early adopter of Gala as amajor dessert apple,not only promoting itwithin Checkers - anEssex-based grower’sco-operative at thattime - but also throughthe Gala Club, thatwas then in its infancy.hugh was also closelyinvolved in thefoundation ofPlantsman ArdleighStorage, a pioneeringbusiness at that time.he was a dedicatedsupporter of his localchurch, as achurchwarden andchorister, and wasoften seen about

driving his famous white van - in true Essex style! hugh was akeen sportsman in his younger days, and was known by all tobe both a gentle man and a gentleman, possessing a sharpsense of humour and impish smile. hugh’s son Mark is wellknown in the industry through his work at OrchardWorld Ltd, apioneering supporter of Gala growing in the UK.


hugh Culley - 1934 to 2017

Farm Business Income figures – NFU responseThe latest Farm Business Income figures suggest that farmers

are still feeling the impact of an unpredictable and volatilemarketplace, the NFU has said. NFU President Meurig raymondsaid that while many sectors had seen improved fortunes – mainlydue to the falling value of the pound – the wider industry wassuffering from sharp rises in [the cost of] farm inputs, such as forfeed, fertilisers and machinery.

“It is good news that many sectors are currently seeingimproved commodity prices. however, for all sectors these figurescan quickly change and steep reductions in the dairy and poultrysectors only go to emphasise that farmers are in an extremelyvolatile sector,” he added. “Looking ahead, this uncertainty showsno sign of abating and there will be many challenges ahead asBrexit negotiations begin.

“With that in mind, I am calling on the government to ensure

that it can introduce a domestic agricultural policy that helps builda more profitable farming industry, by focusing on productivity,volatility mitigation and environmental measures, as highlighted atour recent conference. Our industry now needs certainty and firmcommitments from government if the country is to feel the benefitsof a thriving food and farming industry. NFU members want todeliver on a vision shared with Government for an increasinglyprofitable, competitive and sustainable food and farming sector.

We have been clear on what we believe is needed to achievethis. Firstly, unrestricted access to the European market, secondly,continued access to a competent and reliable workforce both pre-and post-farmgate and thirdly, a new agricultural policy whichassists in the development of an increasingly productive,progressive and, above all, profitable farming sector.”


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The 2017 Nuffield International Triennial Conference providesa two-week spotlight on British farming, food and ruralenterprise, with a programme of visits and events to showcasethe very Best of British in farming, food, technology and ourdiversified rural landscape, inclusive of a one-day industry-first‘Farming Fit For Food’ conference.

Nuffield Triennial Conference WeekStarting on 3 June, the two-week programme will begin with

an extensive schedule of field tours, visiting numerous leadingbusinesses and pioneering farmers across the country. As partof the Conference week, delegates will have the choice of aseries of seven themed days - including Great British Food,World Class Innovation, Family Owned/Family run - followed bysector-specific tours focusing on arable, dairy, beef, horticultureand organic farming. Tour highlights include visits to Thatcher’sCider, Yeo Valley, JCB, Worth Farms, Severn Trent Water, NIABand G’s Group.

Nuffield Triennial Conference DayThe ‘Farming Fit For Food’ Triennial Conference Day - on

Thursday 8 June at the East Midlands Conference Centre - willexplore how farming, in partnership with the food industry, canrise to the challenge of changing food and dietary requirements.The focus of the Conference is a response to the risingconsumer interest in healthy food options, coupled with thesimultaneous rise in diet-related public health issues such as

diabetes and obesity, whichalready costs the NhS £5.2billion each year and is the thirdbiggest global social burden.

With the help of world-renowned experts, it willexplore the implications ofthese changing needs onfarming - how farmers, thefood industry and healthprofessionals can work together to respond to these challengesand the opportunities that these new requirements present.

The Conference speakers will include:• Caroline Drummond MBE of LEAF, who will speak on the

topic of healthy food and farming.• Guy Smith, NFU vice-president, who will be involved in the

debate on adding value for the farmer through the healthagenda.

• Duncan Farrington, Farrington’s Mellow Yellow, who willdiscuss delivering health benefits from commodity crops.

• Professor Michael Winter OBE, University of Exeter, who willpresent on securing farming’s role in the health agenda.

Conference and field tour places are filling up fast; to find outmore about Farming Fit For Food and to book your tickets visitwww.nuffieldinternational2017.org/ or call 01664 503215.

10

Get a taste of the Best of British

New berry varieties from Angus Soft FruitsAngus Soft Fruits Ltd have announced that the company is

launching six new AVA berry varieties this summer. AVA Joy, AVASurprise, AVA Star and AVA Blush include both June-bearing andday-neutral (everbearer) strawberry varieties. AVA Sunrise and AVASunset raspberries are the first floricane releases from thecompany’s programme.

The varieties have all been selected for appearance, flavour andshelf-life, as well as being high yielding, and have different croppingprofiles, so that when combined they offer a long season of great

tasting berries. Dave Griffiths,research and Development Directorand head breeder for Angus SoftFruits said, “The new varieties are theresult of several years of hard workby my team and we look forward to seeing these on retailers’shelves this summer”. John Gray, Commercial Director, said, “Thevarieties have all been successfully sampled by our customers andtrialled extensively by growers with excellent results.”


11F N e w s F

recent research has shown that the efficiency of therosette leaves on apple trees has a marked impact on finalfruit set and that the carbohydrates produced by theseleaves influence the dry matter and eating quality of the fruit.

Good tree structure and pruning will ensure that sufficientlight falls on these leaves, but it is also essential that theyhave adequate levels of nutrition to enable them to work atoptimum efficiency. It is also known that around 90% of thefruit’s calcium is accumulated within four to six weeksfollowing full bloom. Fast Formula 1 and Fast CaB havebeen formulated to provide the correct balance of nutritionfor the trees during this all-important period, including themajor elements and all the trace elements - Fast FormulaOne for general nutrition and Fast CaB to improve calciumcontent of the fruit. The inclusion of a small amount of boronin CaB improves the mobility of calcium to where it isneeded. In independent trials, it was shown that eventhough Fast CaB was no different to other products interms of the volume of calcium in the fruit, the level of bitterpit was lower, indicating that it was more biologically activeor mobile in the tree.

Both products are kind to the leaf and safe to use duringa period when the leaf growth is just starting and issensitive. Many FAST customers have made Fast Formula 1and CaB the basis of their spring nutrition programme forgood leaf activity and fruit quality.

Application should begin at late bud-burst as soon asgreen leaf is showing and continue to the fruitlet stage, thengrowers should switch to Fast Formula 2 and continue withFast CaB. Application rates of 2.5l/ha for maintenance anddoses up to 5.0l/ha are recommended.

Our dedicated agronomists are able to ensure that you maximise your yields of top quality fruit, whilst satisfying the ever more complex demands of legislation, protocols and consumer expectation. Back up this depth

and business advice and growers can rely on a professional service that is second to none in the country.

www.agrovista.co.uk

T: 0115 939 0202 F: 0115 939 8031 E: [email protected]

AGROVISTA’S FRUIT TEAM HAS A WEALTH OF EXPERIENCE IN AGRONOMY SERVICES, AGROCHEMICAL PRODUCTS AND TECHNOLOGICAL SUPPORT FOR THE PROFESSIONAL TOP AND SOFT FRUIT GROWER.

GROWING THROUGH

INNOVATION

ThE FrUIT GrOWEr • MArCh 2017 www thefruitgrower co uk

Early season leaf nutritionimpacts apple fruit set and quality


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Launched on 21 February, the Contract Checking Servicehas been developed following an increase in the number ofcontract dispute cases referred to the NFU’s Legal AssistanceScheme (LAS) and enquiries from members asking for NFUguidance before signing contracts. 91 cases were referred tothe LAS in 2014/2015, rising to 100 cases for 2015/2016. Ifthis trend continues, 100+ more cases will have been openedthis year and even more cases in subsequent years.

NFU legal board chairman Trevor Foss said: “Contractdisputes are an increasing concern for our members. Thetotal cost of contract disputes for NFU members in2015/2016 ran to an eye-watering £698,247; with the NFULegal Assistance Scheme (LAS) contributing around£450,000 to help its subscribers with these costs. “Ironically,many of these disputes could easily have been avoided, orthe costs significantly reduced, by seeking professionalguidance and support at the outset, before signing on thedotted line. For this reason, the NFU, in conjunction with itsLegal Panel Firms, is launching the Contract Checking

Service to help our often-busy members by adding a freshpair of professional eyes to make sure all is present andcorrect. As a bonus, the NFU, through its LAS, is offering thefirst 50 subscribers who take up the service a one-off £100toward the costs incurred.”

The service is organised into three tiers:• A free initial discussion with the NFU’s CallFirst Specialist

Advisers’ team, available to all NFU farmer and growermembers

• An initial report produced by an NFU legal panel solicitorconsidering members’ requirements, reviewing thecontract and explaining what it means

• A more detailed review with advice on how to renegotiatethe contract terms.

Those who use the service will receive advice aboutcontracts such as the sale of goods or services, grazinglicences and tenancy agreements. The service does not covermore technical arrangements, such as foreign distributionagreements or the sale of large estates.

12

New contract checking service will save NFUmembers time and money

New technical manager for Certis

Planasa strengthens its presence in the north and east of EuropePlanasa is strengthening its establishment in the north and east of Europe by the appointment

of hans Obers as the new General Manager of Planasa holland BV. hans has over 35 years ofexperience in the sector, having specialised in berries and asparagus.

A grower for the first part of his career, throughout his professional life hans has been theGeneral Manager of the hargreaves Plants holland company, and co-Chairman of the EuropeanBerry Breeding Association and of the European Strawberry Nursery Association. Prior toentering Planasa, he was a manager at the Dutch company Vissers, dedicated to thepropagation of berries and asparagus. hans will remain Chairman of the hansabred Breedingstation in Dresden, Germany, a partnership that includes Planasa.

The influence of Planasa in the north and east of Europe is increasing. The company’s activity,mainly focused on strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and asparagus, is increasing year-on-year. The appointment of hans Obers will enable Planasa to continue to work in a market inwhich it is well recognised.

A new year and a new start for Adrian Sisson, who joins Certis UK as their new technical manager.Following a successful career in technical roles, working for distribution and global crop protectioncompanies, including Mahkhteshim-Agan and Dupont, Adrian Sisson brings with him a broadspectrum of experience from across the sector.

The position will see him working with key customers, advisers and researchers across the Certisportfolio in a technical co-ordination and communications role, bolstering the existing technical team.

“A key part of my role will be to help develop new and existing products and concepts, leading toproduct strategies that will work for agronomists and their growers,” says Adrian. “I am fortunate thatI will continue to work closely with the contacts that I’ve established over the years, offering technicalsupport across Certis’ extensive product range, but I’m also looking forward to the challenge of thenew portfolios that Certis is involved with. It’s an exciting time for the company with their strongpipeline and innovations”.


13F B I F G A Te chn i c a l D a y F

Climate changeDespite seemingly living in an era of ‘post truth’ and‘alternative facts’, the horticultural industry has real data toconfirm that our climate is changing. This assertion wasmade by Christopher Atkinson, Professor of SustainableAgriculture and Climate Change at the Natural resourcesInstitute, University of Greenwich, who explained at theBIFGA Technical Day in January at Ticehurst, East Sussex,that this change in climate (and rise in temperatures) is going

to have an impact on thetop fruit industry.

One of the keychallenges, said Prof.Atkinson, will be howgrowers’ crops respondto a decrease in winterchilling – one of themechanisms thatcontrols dormancy. hesaid: “From looking backat data recorded byvarious British researchinstitutions, yes, theamount of chilling we aregetting is declining.” Onestudy shows, forinstance, that the meanchill in Kent from 1969 to1979 was 2,545 hourscompared to 2,235hours from 1987 to1997.

he explained that tobreak dormancy every perennial crop must acquire a certainnumber of chilling units. “They have to be exposed to certaintemperatures for a certain amount of time to reach the pointwhere they get enough chill. When they have got enough chilland are sufficiently dormant, they can break buds. But tobreak buds they must be warmed. This is when we begin toget problems, in the sense that if we upset the rate at whichthe chilling is occurring there are occasions when we caninduce bud-break at an inappropriate time.” he noted thatwhen blossom time becomes more variable, this can createissues with pollinators and yields.

But whilst a decline in winter chill can evidently upset thebalance, it could also bring with it some opportunities. Prof.Atkinson said, for instance, that one advantage is that we arealready detecting fewer frost days. “I know that when I firststarted at East Malling we were working on cherries andprobably one in every three or four years we couldn’t do anyexperiments because all of the cherry blossom was killed.

That doesn’t happen much these days.” he also explainedthat there could, in future, be the potential for growers in theUK to breed cultivars that show low-chill characteristics.“Clearly places like California and South Africa are able togrow apple and cherry crops under a regime where there’smuch less chilling.” he also highlighted to delegates how theUK’s wine-making industry is already effectively exploiting ourchanging climate, by bringing in new ideas and new growingsystems and crops – “that’s something that we need tocontinue to do,” he said.

Prof. Atkinson’s message to the top fruit industry was:“There’s a big need for us to understand how we are actuallygoing to use the resources we have to cope with thesechanges, because I believe that we can cope – we have to.”he also warned that one of the key issues with the effects ofclimate change is its variability. “One of the things that wehave learned, as we look at climate change, is that it isn’tsimple, it isn’t consistent, it isn’t linear. We cannot clearlyunderstand variability, and that’s a real challenge.”

NIAB EMR Concept Pear OrchardIs it possible to grow pears profitably in the UK? “Yes, it is”,

said Graham Caspell, head of commercial farming operations


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at NIAB EMr,East Malling,Kent.

havingmanagedEMr’s 1haConcept PearOrchard since itwas planted in2009, Grahamasserted that,based on hisexperience sofar, “pears willrepay you inyour generation.Forget the oldsaying ‘pearsfor heirs.’” heemphasisedthat there is agap in themarket because UK-grown pears are probably the fruit thatwe are most short of. “We rely too much on imports fromelsewhere in Europe,” he said. “We’ve got room to grow andI think the fact that growing pears has been taken up by somany of your [BIFGA’s] growers means that you are realisingthat.”

Graham revealed that in 2015, for example, the orchard –which was initiated and funded by AG Thames andSainsbury’s – gave NIAB EMr a net return of around£24,000 and that there is still room to increase this. “Wehave shown that large yields are possible – the challenge isto do this consistently year-on-year”, he said. he admittedthat the 2016 crop, that sadly stopped growing at thebeginning of August, was “an absolute disaster.” heexplained that the reason for this was most likely acombination of several different factors, including rainfalllevels, a late season drought and the winter conditions of2015/16. he also said that pears are very hungry, requiringlarge amounts of nutrients. he stated that, of the fourdifferent growing systems that are being trialled in theorchard, the double-head system so far looks to be “themost interesting going forward.” he said that this system,that features a tree with two stems, could be better suited tomechanical pruning and robotics. “It’s going to deliver fruit insuch a way that I think that robots would be able to get to it.”

Spotted Wing DrosophilaA new research project focusing on spotted wing

drosophila (SWD) is being developed, now that the four-year(SF 145) research project, launched when the pest was firstspotted here in 2012, is coming to an end this month (March2017).

Scott raffle,AhDBhorticulture’sKnowledgeExchangeManager forfruit crops,revealed to topfruit growersthat: “We aredeveloping anew projectbecause clearlywe need toimprove ourunderstandingof how tomanage andcontrol the pestin the UK.”

Scott firstrevealed that, inaddition toconventionalchemicalcontrols andsome habitatsurveys, thenew proposals will examine some alternative controlmeasures for the pest, that has now spread to all parts of theUK. Scott told delegates that this could possibly includesome work on netting. “We know that fine mesh netting willkeep the insects out of a plantation. Some growers haveused that already and had varying results, depending on howthey’ve used it and when they erected it.” he added thatrepellents will also be looked at because “there are severalnew repellents that are known to show promise. Theprinciple being that we apply a repellent to a tree so that theinsects are not attracted into the orchard.” Interestingly, cropprotection trials showed that lime “gave a little bit of control”suggesting that the insects don’t like the smell of it.

Other core elements of the new project, that is expected tostart in April, could include the development of ‘attract andkill’ techniques and research into ‘dead-end hosts’. Scottnoted that bait spray is one area that could be explored. “Wecould look at several different baits in a situation where a baitis actually applied to part of the crop and that will attract theinsect towards a trap and can kill it.” he then described a‘dead-end host’ as a plant that “attracts SWD to it but fromwhich we are not going to harvest the berries - we can justremove them and get rid of them.” he added: “We know thatthis pest is difficult to control and we are not going to controlit with any one of these mechanisms. There’s got to be anintegrated system whereby we are relying on some, or all, of

14



these methods that we are currently investigating.”Most people find fresh, ripe, juicy cherries too tempting to

resist and it appears that SWD are no different. Scottconfirmed that this shrewd pest loves stone fruit crops,particularly cherries, so much that it is even attracted early inthe season to cherry trees’ floral nectaries (nectar-producingglands). “This is a concern, because not only does the fruitattract SWD but the floral nectaries do so as well, whichmeans that the pest is potentially arriving in the plantationearlier than we had thought.” research has also revealedthat the number of SWD caught in traps during harvest timehas been lower than at other times of the year. “We think themain reason for this is that the cherry has been moreattractive than the lure that we are using in the monitoringtrap.” Given this pest’s love of stone fruit, growers werereminded to be vigilant to help stopthe spread of SWD. “Every cherryleft on the orchard floor will attractSWD into the orchard,” warnedScott.

Drones and cost-savingmechanisation

Drones, driverless tractors, anddiminutive cameras may seemfuturistic but, as top-fruit growerslearned, these are technologies thatare fast becoming part of today’sindustry.

Nick Seymour of Kent fruitmachinery specialist NP SeymourLtd, and Mike Stoker, a fruit andhorticulture agronomist for Yara UK,both took the opportunity tohighlight some of the state-of-the-artequipment that is in the pipeline forfruit growers.

Nick noted that the Darwinblossom thinner, which is now beingused by more than 30 growers afterhe introduced it to the industry eightyears ago, is set to become moretechnologically advanced. This isbecause his company is this yeartrialling the thinner with a cameraattached to the front of the thinningspindle. The camera, which will beavailable to growers from next yearand can be retrofitted onto existingDarwin blossom thinners, detectsthe flowering density of the tree,Nick explained. he added: “The datais relayed via an on-board computerthat calculates the thinning spindle

speed for eachtree. Thesystem can alsobe combinedwith GPS tocapture thelocation of eachtree and thedatabase storesthe bloomdensities.”

Nick Seymouralso remindedgrowers that


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the ProbotIQ Expert package – an add-on system for FendtVario tractors – will shortly be working in the UK, allowing thetractor to drive and operate autonomously. he announced:“Driverless tractors – yes they are here” and added that,whilst the full system with the tractor included may cost ahefty £115,000, this works out the same as the cost of oneman for three and a half years. he said: “This technology is

about increasing the valueand work output you canachieve with yourmachinery and staff.”

Meanwhile, Mike Stokerrevealed that Yara UK isstarting to invest in, andinvestigate, the untappedpotential of dronetechnology. he explainedthat there are severaldifferent sensor types fordrones, including rGB(red, green and blue)sensors, near-infraredsensors, and multi-spectralsensors. he noted, forexample, that near-infraredsensors measure theinfrared spectrum of lightthat is invisible to thehuman eye. “For example,a plant with morechlorophyl will reflect morenear-infrared energy thanan unhealthy plant. healthyvegetation also absorbsblue and red light energy tofuel photosynthesis.”

Mike noted that, by

analysing both visibleand infraredwavelengths “we canprovide moreaccurate informationabout a plant’s healthand productivity.” henoted, for instance,that dronetechnology could infuture help to identifythe early onset ofdiseases such ascanker in orchards.he concluded: “It’s agreat tool for us tomeasure variousthings, but there’s alot we need to learnabout it.”

CankerGrowers whose

orchards havesuffered canker(Neonectria ditissima)damage can restassured that NIABEMr’s cankerresearch strategy is incorporating many cutting-edgetechnologies, including genetic programmes, that could infuture allow for the breeding of varieties that are notsusceptible to this devastating disease.

Plant pathologist Dr robert Saville compared this cankerresearch strategy to a general practitioner’s approach totreating a disease, with growers’ trees being the patients. heexplained that several different preventative and curative

16

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techniques and technologies are therefore being explored,including gene technology, X-rays, and injections. he said:“We are looking at a whole system approach to controlcanker.”

One such project, revealed robert, is being led by scientistAntonio Gomez Cortecero, who is “working hard on gettingthe first Neonectria genome. he’s analysing it and looking athow it interacts with the host genome. Genetic informationabout the host and pathogen allows us to see how theyinteract at a molecular level.” he highlighted that, in future,this information could fit into genetic-marker-assistedbreeding, where desirable traits such as disease resistancecan be selected based on a marker linked to that trait.

Grower Alan Smith, of Loddington Farm, near Maidstone,Kent, noted that Golden Delicious is the progeny of manycanker-susceptible cultivars, such as Gala. he queriedwhether canker susceptibility has something to do with anapple tree’s parent varieties. robert replied that this sort ofquery is “exactly why we need to understand the genomes ofthe host and the pathogen – so that we can develop marker-assisted selection so that we can select for all these traits tomake sure that we choose the daughter or the son that hasgot the best complement.” he pondered: “As we are goingtowards increasingly susceptible varieties, is there a linkbetween an undesirable trait such as canker susceptibilityand a desirable trait such as crispiness and growth habit?

Are we inadvertently breeding for canker susceptiblevarieties?”

robert also noted that scientists are using hyperspectralimaging technology - like an X-ray. he revealed that apreliminary study has shown that canker could be seen bythis special camera in detached apple stems 18 days afterthey had been inoculated. he explained that this means that“We could potentially distinguish between the diseased stateand the non-diseased state before it’s visible to the humaneye.”

Whilst future technologies could enable growers to ‘X-ray’for canker, they could also include the use of a preventativetreatment akin to probiotics, which help improve our gutmicrobiome. This is because scientists are examining the rolethat endophytes play in the development of canker in apple.robert described endophytes as being “micro-organismsthat live within the plant tissue without causing apparentdisease symptoms.” he described a piece of research that isdetermining the endophytic profile of four different genotypes(Golden Delicious, Braeburn, Gala, and Grenadier) withvarying canker resistance. researchers will be investigatingwhether this profile can then be manipulated to improve treehealth. he said: “There’s the potential to develop biologicalcontrol agents, that we could introduce to plants, such as inthe production stage, as we use Yakult to improve our gutmicroflora.” ◆


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F S c a b C o n t ro l F


There is good and bad news for top fruit growers lookingfor products to control scab. Chris Lillywhite,hutchinson’s South East horticultural Team Leader,

pulled together all the latest advice at the hutchinson’stechnical day this winter. Growers will be aware that manytried and tested products are either already lost or soon to belost, but new chemistry in the form of the SDhI group offungicides, bringing good scab and mildew control, haveturned up just in time. “Whilst we are losing some products,we have suitable alternatives,” said Chris.

Scab is the most economically important disease in apples.Before addressing what spray programme to employ it isimportant to remember this is a ubiquitous disease andinfection is weather-dependent. Site, variety and growerpractice are important in managing the risk of scab. Culturalcontrol, such as sweeping up the leaves in winter, will reducethe inoculum in orchards and this is particularly important ifresistance to chemical treatments is suspected. This isbecause the sexual phase of the lifecycle occurs in theautumn when inherited resistance could be passed on to thenext generation of scab.

Choosing the right fungicide will depend on the timing of theapplication and the stage of the infection process. Someproducts will only give protection against spore germinationand must be applied before the infection period has occurred.Others will give varying levels of kickback or curative action.The exact choice of product depends on one’s knowledge ofthe spray programme up to that point, combined with anunderstanding of the timing of infection and prevailing weatherconditions.

The speed of infection is determined by temperature and will

affect the window of activity for the different products. Somematerials work better in cooler conditions and some requirewarmer temperatures for best results. hutchinsons’agronomists receive daily updates from a network of weatherstations that operate the rimpro scab infection model. Thishelps them to make the most appropriate recommendations,but it must be stressed that rimpro is only a model and willonly be relevant for areas that have experienced the sameconditions as have been recorded at the weather station site.

The rimpro infectionforecast gives anindication of the timingand severity of infectionperiods. Even thoughthere are products withkickback or curativeactivity, it is better tomaintain a robust level ofprotection. The weatherthat results in high scabrisk is also not idealweather for spraying. Asfarms have becomelarger, it can take longerto complete spray roundsand this can mean thatthe infection process hasgone too far by the timeapplications can bemade.

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Where are we with scab control? by Joanna Wood


19F S c a b C o n t ro l F

Scab fungicide programmesScab fungicide programmes can be broken down into: pre-

bud-burst, bud-burst to flowering, flowering to early fruitletand pre-harvest. At pre-bud-burst growers could have usedCuprokylt (MAPP 16944) up to 31 January 2017, but atpresent no copper product is authorised for use as afungicide, even though they were also a very importantweapon for canker control.

At bud-burst to flowering four main products are commonlyused: Syllit 400 SC, Dithianon WG/Delan Pro, Scala andDifference. Syllit 400 SC (dodine) is an excellent protectantand it also has kickback (up to 48 hours after the start ofrainfall). It kills both ascospores and conidia, is rainfast aftertwo hours and penetrates the bud/leaf. It can be applied onwet surfaces, there is no need for foliage to be present, it hasexcellent efficacy on buds, and there is also no loss of efficacyat low temperatures. It has a unique mode of action and thereare no known resistance issues in the UK. There have beenconcerns over the future of Syllit but there are no issues forthis season and Syllit will continue to be fully available for2017.

For Dithianon there have been major changes in the last 12months. Dithianon FL has gone and Dithianon WG has a newMAPP number with new label recommendations. DithianonWG now has a maximum rate of 0.5kg/ha (five-day rate), sixapplications only and a 42-day harvest interval (hI). BASF hasintroduced Delan Pro, which is Dithianon co-formulated withpotassium phosphonate. This is a seven-day product, with amaximum of six applications, and a 35-day hI. It looks goodand performed well in 2016. Growers are restricted to amaximum annual quantity of 2.1kg/ha of Dithianon regardlessof which products or brands they use.

Comparing Scala withDifference will help to choose theright product for the conditions.Scala is claimed to have 72hours of kickback, but you canget longer at lower temperatures.Scala has a 56-day hI, a 10-dayspray interval and requires a 30mbuffer zone. Difference worksbest at temperatures above 16C,has a 14-day hI, an eight-dayspray interval and a 20m bufferzone.

Around flowering time there isnow a long list of fungicidesavailable to growers, includingthe SDhI fungicides (Bellis,Fontelis, and Sercadis) plusStroby, Maccani, Scala, andSwitch. Season-long trials inKent and Worcestershire in 2016have helped to inform the

hutchinson team about which option is best to choose forindividual orchards.

Up to 2016, boscalid (Bellis) from BASF was the only SDhIfungicide in top fruit, then we got Fontelis from Dupont in


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F S c a b C o n t ro l F


2016 and BASF haslaunched Sercadis for the2017 season. A SDhIproduct is coming fromBayer CropScience, butprobably not until 2018.resistance to the SDhIgroup has already been seenin cereals in 2015, so FrACguidelines are that only fourapplications of SDhIchemistry should be usedper crop per year. This hasimplications for apples indeciding the best sequenceand timing of products tomaximise their benefit as partof the programme.

Bellis(boscalid+pyraclostrobin) isnot the strongest on scab ormildew but has excellentactivity on Nectria, blossomwilt and on storage rots. It is a protectant only, with twoapplications per crop and a seven-day hI. Fontelis(penthiopyrad) is both a protectant and has kickback onscab with good mildew activity and has excellentrainfastness, with two applications per crop, a 21-day hI andsome activity against rots. Sercadis [fluxapyroxad (Xemium)]is a protectant with good activity against mildew andoutstanding rainfastness. There can be three applications percrop but it has a 35-day hI. It has a physiological effect onthe tree, giving bigger greener leaves.

2017 will be the last year of use for Maccani. It offersoutstanding scab control, but it’s important to remember theDithianon restrictions. The loss of Maccani may increase theimportance of Stroby WG that, with the addition of Dithianon,has a good combination of protectant activity on scab andmildew and good rainfastness, and there is no evidence ofresistance to Stroby in the UK. Scala is a strong tank-mixpartner around flowering to use with protectant products as italso has activity on blossom wilt. Switch is also very effectiveagainst blossom wilt, storage rots and Nectria, but is in thesame chemical group as Scala.

Chris Lillywhite gave an update regarding old stalwarts in thecontrol of scab control, such as Captan. All Captan productsare now authorised for use on apples and pears with amaximum dose of 2kg/ha with ten days between applicationsand a maximum of ten applications per season, and a 31-dayhI. It’s vital to remember that the adverse effect of alkalinewater can give a spray mix a 10-minute half-life. Growers haveasked if they can alternate brands to apply Captan everyseven days. CrD’s view is that such practice should bestrongly discouraged. It could be seen as going against the

legal requirement to take all reasonable precautions whenusing pesticides to protect people, animals and theenvironment. It is also possible that the repeated use of similarproducts could lead to the permitted maximum residue levelsin the treated crop being exceeded.

Mancozeb now has a maximum dose of 2kg/ha with amaximum four applications per season and a 28-day hI.Karamate Dry Flo Neotec is authorised for apples and pearswith a maximum concentration of 2.5kg/1000 litres.Penncozeb WG is authorised for apples only, with a maximumconcentration of 4kg/1000 litres. Systhane 20 EW can be solduntil 28 February 2017 and must be used by 30 September.The dose is the key to protectant activity. Indar 5EW can beused until 31 August but is no longer available for sale.

What is filling the gap in the month before harvest now thatthere is a longer harvest interval for Captan? The answer isBellis, which is good on storage rots but weaker for scab andhas a seven-day hI, or Switch, which is better for scab andhas a three-day hI.

Chris concluded that the good news is that the SDhI groupof fungicides will be bringing good scab and mildew controland, whilst the bad news is that we are losing some products,we do have suitable alternatives, although he admits thatseven-day spray programmes are difficult to handle. It isimportant to note that we will need to replace Systhane, Indarand Maccani in our programmes after this year. Mikehutchinson, summing up the situation, said, “Although wehave lost some products and have restrictions on the use ofothers, we still have enough in the armoury to deliver a cleancrop if growers have good agronomic advice and are able toreact promptly.” ◆

20


21F S o f t F ru i t C o n f e re n c e F

Accurate diagnosis of diseasesThe accurate diagnosis of plant diseases is one of the keysto successful crop production. At the International Soft FruitConference, held in the Netherlands in January, Andrea Discoof Eurofins Agro(holland) outlinedthe new DNAMultiscan systemthat has beenadded to theEurofin PlantDoctor service.Using DNAtechniques, over100 fungi and 11bacteria can beaccuratelydetected. Thetechnique givesrapid results and ishighly sensitive. 13crop packages areavailable, includingone for strawberries - one for bacteria covering 11 organismsand one for 10 fungi aimed at water-borne infections such asmay be found in run-off water. The use of the DNA Multiscanis complemented by moretraditional diagnostictechniques from the PlantDoctor service to provide acomprehensive approach.

Integrated pestmanagement (IPM)

The biological control ofpests and diseases hasbeen a key theme at allprevious International SoftFruit Conferences and 2017was no exception.

Speaking specificallyabout aphids in soft fruit,Bart Sels of Koppertreminded delegates thatgreat care was needed tointegrate pesticides with theuse of biological controlagents. It was crucial, hesaid, to understand theresidual effects pesticides

may have on beneficial insects introduced into crops and theneed to check the side effects. he encouraged growers toregularly check with suppliers’ technical information, such asKoppert’s ‘side-effects tables’.

Bart also said that we can easily overlook the huge growthpotential of aphid colonies; with possible rates of 40% perday, halving the rate to 20%gives a six-fold increase innumbers after 10 days.Prompt action is thereforeneeded for successful aphidcontrol and even good cropscouting can be too late. Tohelp with this problemKoppert has developedAphiscout, a new parasiticwasp mix.

Aphiscout detects the earlysigns of an aphid infestationand gives growers reliableinformation about the correctrelease strategy. The productis a mix of the parasitic waspsPraon volucre, Aphidiuscolemani, Aphidius ervi,Aphelinus abdominalis, and


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Ephedrus cerasicola. Each species has its own preferencesand together they deal with the most commonly occurringtypes of aphid. This makes Aphiscout the ideal form of basicprotection against aphids, and the parasitized aphids alsoprovide information on which parasitic wasps can best bereleased for a large-scale offensive.

The product is supplied in a cylinder containing 250mummies. Thanks to the felt NectarPad containing sugarwater inside the container, the parasitic wasps can go intobattle fully energised. The packaging features a simplehanging system, whereby the sticky outer layer of the labelcan be used to fix the container around a wire or a plantstem.

Thrips in strawberriesThe control of thrips continues to pose challenges in many

strawberry crops. Marieke Tervoort of hoogstraten researchCentre, Belgium, outlined work on the best use of predatorymites to control western flower thrips in several croppingsituations.

From results of trials in Belgium she suggested the bestpredatory mites to use in various situations: Amblydromaluslimonicus at 3 x 100/sqm for double cropping under glass,summer and autumn cultivation under glass, and spring andautumn cultivation in plastic greenhouses; Amblyseiusswirskii at 3 x 100/sqm for summer cultivation, glasshouseand open field crops: and Neoseiulus cucumeris at 4 x250/sqm for spring cultivation in plastic greenhouses.

Marieke said that year-round protection against thrips wasneeded for many situations, but in some cases the predatorpopulation build-up proved to be difficult. With the highpressure of thrips, the challenge was to use compatibletreatments to assist biological control agents, such asentomopathogenic fungi and other selective biological orchemical pesticides. For all treatments, however, it wasessential to know the potential effects on biological agents.A combination of predatory mites such as A. limonicus plusN. cucumeris is likely to be useful.

Jurgen Bouveroux of Biobest, based in Belgium,discussed his approach to the control of thrips, outlining thatdifferent seasons and crops needed different approaches;for example, early spring crops, glasshouse summer cropsand autumn everbearer crops all needed to be dealt withdifferently.

In early spring crops with short daylength, low nighttemperatures occur with low pressure from thrips

overwintering in theglasshouse and noincoming thrips.Jurgenrecommended acontrol strategythat involves aclean start, with nochemicals usedduring the crop-cycle, and masstrapping withyellow and bluesticky traps beforeflowering. Whenflowering occurs,Amblyseiuscucumeris sachetsshould beintroduced and theapplicationrepeated using thesprinkler systemseveral times and as much as is needed.

Glasshouse everbearer crops experience highertemperatures and longer daylight, and several varietieshave flowers that are very attractive to thrips. Consequently,there is a fast population build-up. The recommendedcontrol strategy in these crops was based on using severalbeneficial insects, due to the better climate and longercrop-cycle. Before flowering, mass trapping with yellow andblue sticky traps should be employed and then, whenflowers occur, Amblyseius cucumeris should be introducedvia the sprinkler system or in sachets, or Amblydromaluslimonicus can be used. When whitefly occurs,Amblydromalus limonicus or Amblyseius swirskii shouldalso be used, and Orius should be applied immediately at alow rate. In cases of high thrips pressure, immediately afterplanting Hypoaspis miles should be applied to thesubstrate at a preventive rate of 50-200 pcs/m. Hypoaspismiles consume the pupae of thrips and reduce theemergence of adult thrips by about 30%.

The general advice is to start the control programmebefore flowering, avoid focusing on just one beneficial andnot to expect immediate results. As beneficials are thebackbone of the control programme, chemicals shouldonly be used when essential. ◆

22

Climate Temperature Relative Humidity

Day Lenngth

Predatory mite establishing population

Cold 12:8°C 55:70% 8:46 hr Euseius gallicus, Neoseiulus cucumeris Mild 18:10°C 70:80% 12:12 hr Euseius gallicus, Neoseiulus cucumeris,

Amblydromalus limonicus Warm 25:12°C 60:85% 16:8 hr Euseius gallicus, Amblyseius swirskii

DayLength


23F C i d e r A p p l e S e m i n a r F

More than 60 growers of cider apples fromherefordshire and Worcestershire attended theAgrovista Cider Growers Technical Seminar held at

Ledbury in herefordshire in January.In her introduction, Jane Antrobus of Agrovista said that the

cider industry and cider apple growers would be facing manychallenges during 2017. These went beyond Brexit and theelection of President Trump and included the withdrawal ofcertain chemicals that had been routinely used by applegrowers. however, the industry was positive and confident forthe future. Jane then presented the first paper.

Nutrition in cider apple production One of the most recent developments has been the role

played by mycorrhizae - the symbiotic association betweenbeneficial pathogens around the roots that build up over timeand have a significant benefit for the health of the tree. Theoptimum ph of the soil for cider apple production is slightlyacidic at between 6·3 and 6·8.

Nutrition is important, strong trees can withstand the

stresses and pressures of pests and diseases. The correcttiming of fertiliser applications is crucial and is as important asbalance, and Jane gave the illustration of Liebig’s Barrel thatshowed how growth is inhibited if one nutrient is in shortsupply. As micro-nutrients are not mobile within the tree, foliarapplications are preferable.

responding to a question from the floor regarding the use ofsulphur, Jane answered that if it was used, firstly it should beapplied as a foliar spray rather than dust, and should beapplied early in the season before mouse-ear stage when itwould control mites. She continued, “Caution should beexercised as certain varieties were susceptible to sulphurdamage”. Also, if applied at the wrong time it would causecracking in the skin of the fruit.

Product choice - target specific or broadspectrum?

Paul Bennett, Agrovista’s technical head of fruit, began hispresentation by outlining problems that all top-fruit growers arefacing. Aphox and Chlorpyrifos can no longer be used and itnow is more important to use a specific product to control


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woolly aphid and otherpests. The use of a broad-spectrum product is nolonger an easy option.

One positive aspect ofthis situation that hasemerged is the recognitionof the role of beneficialinsects - identifying themand then protecting themwith an appropriate choiceof pesticides. Whilstgrowers are familiar withthe adult ladybird, it is thelarvae, not the adults, thatare the most effective forcontrolling pests duringearly spring. Lacewing larvae consume aphids and mites, andparasitic wasps lay their eggs in aphid colonies and areconsumed when the larvae hatch. The adult hoverfly and itslarvae eat aphids and the adult pirate bug destroys caterpillars.But, by far the most beneficial insect is the earwig that offersthe most effective control of woolly aphid. It is in growers’interests to provide natural winter habitats for earwigs. Theseare inexpensive and can be as simple as rolls of corrugatedcardboard, bottles stuffed with straw or plastic rabbit guardsaround trunks of trees. The choice of pesticide must be to thebenefit of the beneficial insects.

Paul Bennett explained the ‘traffic light’ system adopted byAgrovista advisors. Products in the ‘red’ category, althoughapproved for use, are broad-spectrum and tend to be harmfulto beneficial insects, ‘Amber’ products are preferred to those inthe ‘red’ category and ‘Green’ products are the safest, havingthe least harmful effects on beneficial insects. The use of abroad-spectrum insecticide does not cost less and is likely toresult in an increase in pests due to the damage caused tobeneficial populations. Paul also advised checking the ph ofthe water when applying pesticides and, where necessary, theph can be lowered with a water conditioner.

What next?Neil Macdonald

from Somerset, whois a Nuffield Scholarand an apple growerand cidermaker,began his addressby saying that theBritish cider industryhad much in itsfavour includingclimate, bitter-sweetvarieties, a history of cidermaking and the ‘British’ brand. But,even with these advantages there are challenges on the horizon,not least of which is a surplus of UK production and the threat ofcheap imported juice.

Neil’s scholarship, to study the growing of apples, researchand the making of cider around the world, was sponsored by theWorshipful Company of Fruiterers. Dessert apples are chieflygrown in temperate areas of the world, with China being theworlds largest producer at more than 37 million tonnes. The UKis ranked 41st in the world with 202,900 tonnes. Bitter-sweet(cider) apples are only grown in the UK, France and Spain, jointlyproducing about 500,000 tonnes. The British populationconsumes 14 litres of cider per head per annum, but the fastestgrowing market is the Czech republic, albeit from a very lowstarting point. The market in the USA is static with most of thecider being produced by craft makers in the northern states.however, most cider is consumed in states where apples are notgrown, with the highest consumption being in Texas. In France,the cider industry is in decline, due to politics and the stifling ofinnovation. There is some market growth in Australia and SouthAfrica. As a grower, Neil had looked to purchase land in anothercountry to grow apples and produce cider, but concluded thatwith our climate, culture, contracts, infrastructure and politics,the UK was the best place.

Looking to the future and planning for the next generation, inthe UK growers are well placed to respond to the changingdemands of the cider industry. Growers must question how theymanage their dependence on agrochemicals – consumers donot want fruit to be sprayed with pesticides. We mustacknowledge that UK production is in over-supply, but the goodnews is that demand worldwide is rising. We must develop newexport markets and these may not necessarily be as bottledcider. Orchards must be future-proofed by recognising that, asthe market changes, some of our current varieties may not be fitfor purpose; new plantings must allow for automation with newtechnology, including robotics.

Every grower should view their orchard as a permanentexperiment, trying and testing what works best for them withtheir varieties, soil-type and weather conditions. The UK ciderindustry is robust, but to survive it needs research anddevelopment that could be funded by a levy collected by AhDB.◆

24

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25F L E A F F

LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) celebrated its25th anniversary in 2016. Since 1991, the organisationhas worked hard to promote the best ways to produce

healthy, quality food whilst caring for the earth’s naturalresources. richard Shepherd-Barron spoke recently toCaroline Drummond MBE, LEAF’s chief executive, to find outabout their plans for the next five years.

LEAF now has some 2,500 members and 38 demonstrationfarms in the UK that hosted 1,500 farmers last year to seeIntegrated Farm Management (IFM) in practice. The latest LEAFGlobal Impact report shows that 33% of UK fruit andvegetables are grown by LEAF Marque certified businessesand globally 342,556 hectares of LEAF Marque crops aregrown.

Caroline Drummond said: “Our main strategic ambition forthe next five years is to position ourselves as the ‘go to’organisation for the delivery of more sustainable food andfarming. The strategy is bold and visionary and I look forwardto working with our members and many organisations acrossthe food, farming and health sectors to drive forward a newapproach to delivering more sustainable agriculture under thetheme of healthy food and farming, fit for the future.”

She explained that LEAF’s five-year strategy has five mainobjectives:

• Tripling LEAF’s capability and capacity to deliver its workand outreach

• Increasing the adoption of more sustainable farmingpractices through IFM

• Improving industry recognition and demand for sustainably-sourced products

• Leading a collaborative approach within the industry forbetter public engagement among consumers

• Positively influencing consumer attitudes towards, andknowledge of, food, farming and the environment

LEAF is committed to strengthening its membership offerand particularly the LEAF Marque. It wants to increase thepromotion of the LEAF Marque and its relationship with existing

growers toimprove theoutreach amongstconsumers andacross the foodchain. It wants tobuild closer linkswith its membersthroughdemonstrationactivities thatinclude robustmanagementtools, datamonitoring andevaluation as wellas novelapproaches tosupport better information flow - working with universities andresearch institutes to increase the evidence of the impact ofLEAF’s work and continue to drive the improvement in IFMpractices.

LEAF is very keen to identify partnerships within the food,farming, environment, health and education sectors to provideadded-value opportunities for farmers around the healthagenda. high on the agenda also is the effort to build farming’srespect and understanding with the public, and this is whereOpen Farm Sunday has so much impact, helping the public’sunderstanding and recognition, and the demand forenvironmentally and sustainably-grown produce. The eventdrew 261,000 visitors on 382 farms in 2016.

Caroline said that she sees technology in farming as being ofhuge and critical importance for the future, and that LEAF willbe holding some technology events this spring. “Of course, ourdemonstration farms already operate many of the latestdevelopments in farming practice and these can be seen anddiscussed by visiting farmers. Our links with the technological


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LEAF’s five-year strategy for healthy food and farming


F L E A F F


research world, such as harperAdams University (one of the nineLEAF innovation centres), are veryimportant to us.” Caroline added: “Ican see huge opportunities in thefresh produce sector as it becomesvery computerised and innovativeand we at LEAF will be very muchpart of this.”

As the organisation’s namesuggests, the environment is also akey element in their activities. LEAF’scontinued partnership with the Gameand Wildlife Conservancy Trust(GWCT) in the “Big Farmland BirdCount” has seen a steady increase inthe number of LEAF members takingpart every year, and this is one way todemonstrate the positive impact thatIFM makes to the bird population.Caroline said: “We’ve moved forwardin leaps and bounds to help wildlifehabitats and when I started withLEAF all those years ago, I believedvery strongly that the environmentwas important and that this neededvery much to be addressed. I’m veryproud that we have achieved somuch in that time.”

LEAF has a strong board oftrustees and an advisory board,supported by several committeesspecialising in different areas such aspolicy and strategic development,and LEAF Marque technology. LEAFwas very honoured at the end of last

year when her royal highness, The Countess of Wessexagreed to become the honorary president.

Over the past 25 years, LEAF has built up considerable skills,expertise and experience. These can be used to help farmersand growers deliver sustainable farming that is prosperous andto communicate this to the public through an emphasis on theLEAF Marque. There is an increasing interest in health aspectsof fresh produce, and in the number of consumers starting tolook much harder at the food they buy and how it is produced.The fresh produce industry cannot afford to ignore this trendand this is where LEAF’s activities can really make an impactacross the food chain. As Caroline Drummond puts it: “We aredriving the opportunity for farming to be at the heart of food,health and environmental improvement”. ◆

26


27F S p e c t ra l I m a g i n g F

Acutting edge new technology system that can remotelymonitor soft fruit crops for stresses is being developed.The automated imaging system can monitor and

measure how plants respond to stresses such as drought orattacks by pests or diseases.

Once fully developed, it is hoped that the system will notonly enable growers to constantly monitor remotely for signsof stress on crop areas or individual plants, but could evencontrol fertigation or alert growers to when crop protection isneeded. The project is funded by an Innovate UK consortium,including AhDB horticulture and The James hutton Institute.

Explaining the genetic role in plant stress management, andthe role imaging systems can play in this, Julie Graham,geneticist and project lead at James hutton Institute said:“Plants adjust stomatal opening to maintain water balance andnutrient uptake, control leaf temperature and optimisephotosynthesis – and the better they’re able to make thatadjustment, the more likely they’ll be able to tolerate stress.The effects can be monitored and measured using imagingtechnologies; for example, infra-red thermography canmeasure leaf temperature, which is related to stomatalopening and is a reliable indicator of plant physiologicalstatus.”

Other environmental stresses can induce a range ofchanges in the leaf surface and internal structure, causecertain compounds to accumulate or lead to the breakdownof photosynthetic pigments. Some of these changes can alterthe colour of the leaf, imperceptible to the human eye butdetectable by an imaging technique known as spectralreflectance, that can be used to monitor the plant canopy toacquire information on alterations in the leaf biochemistry.These ‘spectral signatures’ can be analysed by computer andcompared with a ‘library’ of signatures expected from anunstressed plant or one exposed to known stresses.

Scott raffle, Knowledge Exchange Manager at AhDBhorticulture, said: “This project is particularly exciting as,through the use of technology such as infra-red thermography

and spectral reflectance imaging, we expect to be able tomonitor changes in shoot and leaf physiology, to give anindirect indicator of root stresses. Poor soil conditions, variableavailability of water, and attack by root-rot pathogens or root-feeding pests such as vine weevil larvae, can all stress theroots of crops such as raspberry. We hope, in the future, thatthis system will provide growers with the technology torespond to these challenges more efficiently than by walkingtheir growing areas to monitor plant stresses.”

The system has primarily been conceived as a tool to helpsoft fruit breeders select plants that are resistant to stressessuch as drought or attacks by pests or diseases. Theequipment will provide a means of not only assessing thestress responses of large numbers of breeding lines veryquickly, it will also give some objective measure of their stressresistance. Dr Louise Sutherland, Chair of the Soft Fruit Panel,AhDB horticulture said: “New resilient varieties of soft fruitcrops that need less fertigation and are more resistant topests and diseases are crucial for the industry, which facesincreasing pressure on the availability of water, a reduction inthe armoury of crop protection products and higher fertilisercosts, and so technological advancements that can help softfruit growers to combat these pressures are crucial.”

An additional project that will develop early detection ofstress, specifically in strawberry plants, using hyperspectralimage analysis, is being run by a PhD Studentship programmefunded by AhDB horticulture. ◆


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28

Edible coatings of essential oils and quality of redraspberries over shelf-life

A Brazilian research team has been working to developstrategies for increasing the shelf-life of red raspberries bypreventing micro-organism growth (Journal of the Scienceof Food and Agriculture).

Fruits coated with alginate plus lemon essential oil (0.2%) ororange essential oil (0.1%) had less red skin than theremaining samples after 15 days of storage. The ediblecoatings supplemented with the essential oil of orange eitherat 0.1% or 0.2% were very efficient for controlling yeast andmould growth after 15 days of storage. To control thedevelopment of aerobic mesophilic bacteria the use of

essential oil of lemon at0.2% and essential oil oforange at 0.1% were themost efficient. Theapplication of the filmimproved post-harvestquality of raspberry, and theaddition of essential oils ofcitrus films promoted the inhibitory effect on fungi andbacteria growth after 15 days of storage, without changingquality parameters.

by Dr David Pennellresearch Briefing

Influence of deficit irrigation on strawberry fruit quality

Low-field MrI for quality assessment of Conference pears stored in CA

Three different irrigation regimes - upper limit of field capacity(UFC) (−12 kPa); lower limit of field capacity (LFC) (−33 kPa)and deficit irrigation (DI) (-70 kPa) were established on silty-loam soil and monitored with tensiometers by a research teamat University of Ljubljana, Slovenia (Journal of the Science ofFood and Agriculture)).

The yield and fruit quality of Flamenco and Eve’s Delighteverbearing strawberry cultivars were monitored. The aim ofthe study was to evaluate the effect of different irrigationregimes on the content of sugars, organic acids and phenolic

compounds. Deficit irrigation significantly increased the contentof sugars (from 1.1-fold to 1.3-fold), organic acids (from 1.1-fold to 1.3-fold), their ratio (from 1.1-fold to 1.2-fold) and thecontent of most identified phenolics in Flamenco. Conversely,higher amounts of total sugars and organic acids (1.7-fold to1.8-fold) were detected in Eve’s Delight strawberries at UFCand LFC irrigation. Deficit irrigation generally decreased theyield of Eve’s Delight. The results suggest superior fruit qualityand taste of Flamenco strawberries grown under minor deficitirrigation.

A novel, non-destructive and cost-effective method ofevaluating internal disorders occurring in Conference pearsstored under controlled atmosphere (CA) has been developedby researchers in Krakow, Poland (Postharvest Biology andTechnology).

A low-field Magnetic resonance Imaging (MrI) system wasused to determine water content in the fruit and to distinguish

between damaged and healthy tissues by exploiting thedifferences between their relaxation times. The dynamics of theinduced changes within the microstructure of the fruit as afunction of the CA storage time was analysed by repeating themeasurements periodically over a six-month storage period.This could provide a useful tool in future for many storedproducts.

Leaf blade and petiole nutrient tests for Pinot Noir grapevinesGrape growers rely on tests of tissue from leaf blades or

petioles for the routine monitoring of vine nutritional health, andfor diagnosing potential nutrient deficiency or toxicity, but thereis much debate as to which better reflects the nutrient status ofvines.

The USDA-ArS-horticultural Crops research Unit, atCorvallis, Oregon compared leaf blade and petiole nutrientconcentrations to determine which better relates to vinegrowth, yield and must nutrient responses of Pinot Noirgrapevines to varying levels of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P),and potassium (K) supply, using data from a pot-in-pot

vineyard over four years (HortScience).Leaf blades and petioles were collected at 50% bloom and

50% veraison in each year, and N, P, and K concentrationswere assessed as predictors of leaf area at veraison, pruningmass at dormancy, yield, and must nutrient concentrations atfruit maturity. Data from commercial Pinot Noir vineyards wasalso used to investigate the relationship between leaf blade andpetiole N concentrations and must N levels.

results indicated that leaf blades were superior to petioles inpredicting vine growth, yield, and must yeast assimilablenitrogen (YAN) responses across a wide range of vine N status


29F r e s e a rch B r i e f i n g F

at both sampling times. Leaf blade N was a better predictorthan petiole N in predicting YAN using data sets from both thepot-in-pot vineyard and commercial vineyards. relationshipsbetween leaf blade and petiole concentrations of P and K andvine response variables generally did not differ, and bothtissues appeared to be equally effective in predicting P and Keffects on growth, yield, and must P or K levels.

Although petiole P was slightly better than leaf blade P atbloom in predicting must P levels, and models simultaneouslyincluding both leaf and petiole K as predictors relied only onleaf K. For all three nutrients, sampling at bloom and veraisonhad a similar predictive strength for response variables. Basedon these findings, it is recommended that leaf blades are usedto diagnose the N, P, and K status of Pinot Noir.


The use of 1-MCP and CA during conditioning of honeycrisp appleshoneycrisp apples are susceptible to developing the

physiological disorder bitter pit and are sensitive to chilling.Fruit is typically held at 10 to 20C after harvest for up toseven days to reduce chilling injury during subsequent coldstorage. This temperatureconditioning period, followed by alower storage temperature (2 to 4C)reduces the risk of chilling injury butcan exacerbate the development ofbitter pit. Studies were conductedin Washington State to evaluate theefficacy of using controlledatmosphere (CA) storage and/or 1-MCP to manage the developmentof bitter pit in honeycrisp apples(HortScience).

Apples obtained at commercialharvest, were held at 10C for sevendays and then cooled to 3C. halfthe fruit was exposed to 1-MCP onthe day of receipt and held at 10C.Fruits were stored in air or CA,established after one day at 10C orafter seven days at 10C plus twodays at 3C. Fruit treated with 1-MCP and/or stored in CAdeveloped less bitter pit comparedwith untreated fruit stored in air,and bitter pit incidence was lowestfor fruit treated with 1-MCP withCA established during conditioning.

The development of diffuse flesh-browning and cavities, thatsometimes occurs during CAstorage of honeycrisp, wasobserved in some lots. Theincidence of these disorders wasnot increased by establishing CAtwo days after harvest whencompared with nine days. The useof 1-MCP and CA slowed thecolour-change of the peel, the lossof soluble solids content andtitratable acidity, and reduced

ethylene production and the respiration rate. The resultsindicate the potential for the postharvest management ofbitter pit development in honeycrisp apples by using 1-MCP and/or CA storage.

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In a horticultural trade magazine 40 years ago, any articleabout a pest, disease or weed would inevitably refer at somepoint to the latest agrochemical control. Agronomists

produced a spray programme for their customers each winter,growers followed these, and any pest or disease outbreak orweed infestation would prompt a recommendation for anadditional spray application(s). The effects of broad spectrumtreatments on the natural enemies of pests was gradually beingunderstood, and by the 1980s spray programmes were beingadapted to reduce the negative impact on these ‘beneficials’.As with so many advances, this approach was first developedfor production under glass.

Nowadays, despite so many things having the ‘i’ prefix, wetend not to refer to ‘-icides’ but instead to ‘crop protection’,and articles about this are more likely to cover biocontrol andphysical approaches to dealing with crop protection issues thanto new agrochemical products. Indeed, in the February issue ofThe Fruit Grower there was one reference to a new fungicide fortop fruit, one to a treatment of pear bud weevil with a well-established pest control treatment (‘insecticide’ is so ‘lastcentury’), one about the loss of the well-established use ofcopper (so 19th century), two to biofungicides, one to the useof garlic extracts against mildew on strawberry and one aboutbiostimulants on blueberries. This is a dramatic change over 40years, driven in part by consumer demand for minimumresidues and legislation over contamination of the environment,particularly water. From society’s point of view, and we are allmembers of society, this is a good thing.

Where will crop protection go over the next 40 years? Onepointer is what has been going on in the agrochemical sectorover the last 40 years - diversification, mergers andacquisitions. There is a dwindling number of ever larger andmore diverse businesses dominating this sector, rather akin towhat is going on within the information, communicationtechnology and social media arenas. This process will inevitablycontinue, unless national and international regulators rein it in.

The current stage of a holistic approach involving theselection of resistant varieties, control of the crop environmentto mitigate against pests, diseases and weeds, the use ofbeneficials and biocontrol, and the occasional use of carefullyselected agrochemical products, will continue for some time,with the emphasis gradually shifting away from agrochemicalsas new developments allow and legislation demands. Well, thatis one scenario, but the short-term reality could well be ratherdifferent - just ask an organic grower who can no longer uselow levels of copper for disease control due to legislation beingimplemented before adequate alternatives have beendeveloped and approved. The multi-faceted holistic approachto Spotted Wing Drosophila has worked reasonably well so farfor UK growers of soft fruit and stone fruit, but as populations

of this pest continue torise, it could becomeincreasingly difficult to gaincontrol until new approvalsare granted and novelmanagement techniquesare developed.

A major element of thestrategy adopted by themajor crop protectioncompanies has beendiversification into plantbreeding, indeed the strength of Monsanto in this area is oneof the compelling reasons for Bayer to embark on mergingthese two companies. In addition to the herbicide glyphosate,Monsanto is well-known for its development of geneticallyengineered varieties. The initial welcoming of this newtechnology soon gave way to public disquiet in some parts ofthe world, setting back development in these markets.however, it has been reported that the global production ofgenetically modified field and specialty crops is growing fromaround 108m tonnes in 2015 to a projected 122m tonnes by2020, with a compound annual growth rate of some 2.4%. Ofcourse, the major part of that production is of agricultural fieldcrops, with speciality crops growing from 0.55m tonnes in2015 to 1.0m tonnes by 2020 - a compound annual growthrate of nearly 13%. With the UK leaving the EU and aligningitself with the USA, it is possible that there might be greaterpolitical and public acceptance of advanced breedingtechniques, if not full-blown GM.

A technique that has been exciting interest in breedingcircles of late is CrISPr-Cas9, which, in theory, allows workersto edit parts of the genome of a plant by removing and addingsections of the DNA sequence, thus introducing a mutation.Work has been done on several fruit crops to map thegenome, and in some cases markers for specific traits ofinterest have been identified. Theoretically, it should thereforebe possible to edit the genome of the target crop to ensurethat progeny have the desired traits, that might well includeresistance to major pest and disease problems, as well asquality attributes. With the environmental, economic andpopulation pressures facing us over the rest of this century, it isvery likely that advanced breeding techniques will becomeacceptable and this will have a major effect on crop protection- hence the strategy adopted by the major agrochemicalcompanies.

Unlike the answer ‘Well, I wouldn’t start from here’ inresponse to the question ‘how do I get to Dublin?’ we are in avery good place and there is a clear way forward for fruit cropprotection. ◆

30

Crop Protection A comment by Andrew Tinsley, Consult 80



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www.beekenkamp.nlPropagation trays and substrate troughs for soft fruit

Korte Kruisweg 157P.O. Box 1 2676 ZG - Maasdijk - Netherlands

Tel: 0031-174-526100

TROUGHS & POTS .... TROUGHS & POTS .... TROUGHS & POTS

To advertise here contact Chris TantonTelephone: 01622 695656 – Email: [email protected]

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march 2017 grower - hort news · machinne. for more information about k ubota’s a better time to...

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