Horticulture Introduction

Transcription

1 Horticulture Introduction The 2015 field at the NCRS season has ended and the following experimental results are now available for review. This past year has brought along many changes and challenges for the specialty crop research side of our company. The purpose of conducting our own research at our own research farm is to provide solutions to vegetable farmers and orchardists both large and small. I can say that we at the North Central Research Station are committed to helping to solve problems for the grower, be a source of information, and help with innovation. The major focus of research in 2015 was on the high density apple orchard that was planted in It is now in the first year of meaningful yield production. Measurement of fertility treatment effects was conducted and reported here. Additionally, we completed the installation of a Solid Set Canopy Delivery System that has two different types of discharge units. It is the only orchard in the US with this setup and will be fully employed in Additionally there are research reports on celery, Concord grapes and sweet corn. In addition, we have decided to change several aspects of the company. It was decided to go ahead and update our logo and name to AgroLiquid to reflect our new commitment to progressing forward and becoming both a source of innovation and guidance for all growers and producers. In order to stay with this re-branding we have decided to change the name of our research group from specialty crop research to Horticulture Research. We feel that this more closely relates to the vast scope of the different crops and uses that our customers are using the products. In my opinion all crops are special and take lots of care in order to produce the best plants, fruit, vegetables, nuts, or landscape plants that we are capable of. It is gratifying to provide help to so many growers across the country and being able to work personally with you as well. If you have questions or concerns feel free to reach out to myself or any of the other research staff here at AgroLiquid. Jacob Emiling Horticulture Research Specialist agroliquid.com /research-results Research BPI

2 Effects of Soil Applied Nutrient Program on High Density Honeycrisp Apples in Michigan. Experiment A % 2.1 Determine the effects of various soil fertility programs have on yield and plant growth on high density Honeycrisp apples. used as a border tree and as an additional source of pollen at the time of flowering. Within each plot, a total of ten research honeycrisp trees are in a replication, with a total of four replications used throughout the orchard. The trellis design used for this orchard consists of a four wire system with the trellis top wire at a height of 11 feet. In the spring of 2014, all of the trees were headed at 18 above the soil and new tops were trained to the trellis. All of the different fertility products were applied before bloom in the spring in a band next to the trees. All of the Agrloquid plots received the same amount of 5 gallons of Pro-Germinator gallons of Micro gallons of Boron gallons of Manganese except treatment 2 which had a 20% increase used in all of the products. The other treatments fertility programs are as follows (all rates are per acre): Trt1. = Agroliquid: 12 gallons of High NRG-N Trt 2. = Agroliquid (+20%): 14.5 gallons of High NRG-N + 6 gallons of Pro-Germinator gallons of Micro gallons of Boron gallons of Manganese. Trt. 3 = Agroliquid (N-Response): 12 gallons of N-Response Trt. 4 = Agroliquid (enhance +28%UAN): 15 gallons of enhance/28%uan Trt. 5 = Conventional (A): Urea at 65lbs. + DAP at 109lbs. + SOP at 100 lbs. + Micro dry blend at 5 lbs. Trt. 6 = Conventional (B): SOP at 100 lbs. + Micro nutrient dry blend at 5 lbs. + 28%UAN at 12 gallons + 13 gallons of The different conventional treatments in either yield or number of apples per tree. Increased rate of Agroliquid fertilizer allowed for larger amount of fruit to have proper development and increased yield on the trees. Preliminary results show that Honeycrisp responds better to the use of High Nrg-N as a nitrogen source compared to the various other nitrogen sources tested.

3 Effects of Foliar Applied Fase2 on High Density Honeycrisp Apples in Michigan. Experiment B % 2.1 Determine the effects of various foliar applications of Fase2 have on yield and plant growth on high density Honeycrisp apples. used as a border tree and as an additional source of pollen at the time of flowering. The trellis design used for this orchard consists of a four wire system with the trellis top wire at a height of 11 feet. In the spring of 2014, all of the trees were headed at 18 above the soil and new tops were trained to the trellis. A base soil applied program for the Agroliquid plots included (all rates are per acre) 12 gallons of High NRG-N + 5 gallons of Pro-Germinator gallons of Micro gallons of Boron gallons of Manganese. All of the different fertility products were applied before bloom in the spring in a band next to the trees; foliar applications were made according to the treatment descriptions (all rates are per acre): Trt. 1 = Agroliquid soil application only Trt. 2 = Agroliquid + Fase2: Monthly applications of Fase2 at 2 quarts per acre made from first expanded leaf until harvest. Total of 5 applications during season. Trt. 3 = Agroliquid + Fase2: Three applications of Fase2 at 2 quarts per acre made on the first of June, July and August. Trt 4. = Conventional (A): Urea at 65lbs. + DAP at 109lbs. + SOP at 100 lbs. + Micro nutrient dry blend at 5 lbs. Trt 5. = Conventional (A): Urea at 65lbs. + DAP at 109lbs. + SOP at 100 lbs. + Micro nutrient dry blend at 5 lbs. Three applications of Fase2 at 2 quarts per acre made on the first of June, July and August. The addition of foliar applications of Fase2 in the season improved both the yield and also the number of apples per tree. These improvements were in addition to the yield of the soil applied fertility program only. In the case of three application or monthly applications (5 total applications during the season in Michigan) there seems to be no difference or increase in yield or fruit quality (data not shown) when used in high density honeycrisp.

4 Effects of Foliar Calcium Applications on Fruit Quality and Storage for High Density Honeycrisp Apples in Michigan. Experiment C % 2.1 Determine the effects various foliar calcium products have on yield and fruit quality on high density Honeycrisp apples. used as a border tree and as an additional source of pollen at the time of flowering. In the Spring of 2014, all of the trees were headed at 18 above the soil and new tops were trained to the trellis. A base soil applied program for the Agroliquid plots included (all rates are per acre) 12 gallons of High NRG-N + 5 gallons of Pro-Germinator gallons of Micro gallons of Boron gallons of Manganese. All of the different fertility products were applied before bloom in the spring in a band next to the trees; foliar applications were made according to the treatment descriptions (all rates are per acre) and a total of 6 application were made per treatment: Trt. 1 = Agroliquid soil application only. No additional foliar application of calcium made. Trt. 2 = Agroliquid + AgroK Lquid Ca: With weekly foliar applications of AgroK Liquid Calcium at a rate of 2 quarts per acre of calcium made. Trt. 3 = Agroliquid + Liberate Ca: With weekly foliar applications of Agroliquid Liberate Ca product at a rate of 2 quarts per acre of calcium made. Trt. 4 = Agroliquid + Liberate Ca: With weekly foliar applications of Agroliquid Liberate Ca product at a rate of 1 pint per acre of calcium made. Trt. 5 = Agroliquid + Foli-cal: 1 With weekly foliar applications of Foli-cal product at a rate of 2 quarts per acre of calcium made. The different foliar calcium treatments did have impacts on yield and also fruit quality. Overall, best quality of fruit was produced by using the weekly applications of Liberate Ca at 2 quarts per acre during the season.

5 Effects of Color Enhancement Products on Fruit Quality and Storage for High Density Honeycrisp Apples in Michigan. Experiment D Yield Goal: 1500 bushel Population: 1100 /acre % 2.1 Determine the effects various foliar applications have on yield and plant growth on high density Honeycrisp apples. During the 2014 season, a number of color enhancement products were developed to be used on varieties of fruit that can benefit from improvements in color. These trials were conducted on the high density apple orchard located at the North Central Research Station in St. Johns, MI. All of the trees used in this experiment were planted at a spacing of 3.5 feet between trees and 11 feet between rows. All the trees are trained to slender spindle. A base soil applied program for the Agroliquid plots included (all rates are per acre) 12 gallons of High NRG-N + 5 gallons of Pro-Germinator gallons of Micro gallons of Boron gallons of Manganese. All of the different color enhancement products were applied ten days before harvest using a backpack airblast sprayer. The various programs are as follows (all rates are per acre): Trt. 1 = Agroliquid base program. No additional color enhancement products applied to plots. Trt. 2 = Agroliquid + FT-14: FT-14 product applied at a rate of 1.5 gallons per acre 10 days before harvest. Trt. 3 = Agroliquid + FT-15: FT-15 product applied at a rate of 1.5 gallons per acre 10 days before harvest. Trt. 4 = Agroliquid + FT-15 Ver 2: FT-15 Ver 2 product applied at a rate of 1.5 gallons per acre 10 days before harvest. At the time of harvest, samples were collected and all of the plots under the same treatment were combined for data analysis. This season is the second year of testing for these experimental products. The goal of this project is to develop a product that can be used as a color aid that can be applied close to harvest. Preliminary results show that this product has great potential to help in fruit quality improvement and does not negatively impact storage (data not shown). In addition to the trials conducted at the NCRS, various independent trials were conducted on different

6 Effects of Soil Applied Nutrient Program on High Density Gala Apples in Michigan. Experiment E Harvest: Variety: Gala % 2.1 Determine the effects various soil fertility applications have on yield and plant growth on high density Gala apples. used as a border tree and as an additional source of pollen at the time of flowering. Within each plot, a total of ten research Gala trees are in a replication, with a total of four replications used randomly split throughout the orchard planting. In the spring of 2014, all of the trees were headed at 18 above the soil and new tops were trained to the trellis. A base soil applied program for the Agroliquid plots included (all rates are per acre) 5 gallons of Pro-Germinator gallons of Micro gallons of Boron gallons of Manganese. All of the different fertility products were applied before bloom in the spring in a band next to the trees. The various soil applied fertility programs are as follows (all rates are per acre): Trt. 1 = Conventional (Dry Only): Urea at 65lbs. + DAP at 109lbs. + SOP at 100 lbs. + Micro nutrient dry blend at 5 lbs. Trt. 2 = Conventional (Dry + Liquid): SOP at 100 lbs. + Micro nutrient dry blend at 5 lbs. + 28%UAN at 12 gallons + 13 gallons of Trt. 3 = Agroliquid base program. Trt. 4 = Agroliquid: 12 gallons of N-Response Trt. 5 = Agroliquid (+20%): 14.5 gallons of High Nrg-N + 6 gallons of Pro-Germinator gallons of Micro gallons of Boron gallons of Manganese. Trt. 6 = Agroliquid: 15 gallons of enhance/28%uan The plots that had the soil applied Agroliquid products outperformed the conventional plots throughout the orchard. Highest yielding treatment was the increased rate of Agroliquid program compared to the demands of the soil was the first reportable harvest from the treatment areas, these same fertility programs will continue in

7 Effects of Foliar Applied Nutrient Program on High Density Gala Apples in Michigan. Experiment F Harvest: Variety: Gala % 2.1 Determine the effects various foliar applications have on yield and plant growth on high density Gala apples. used as a border tree and as an additional source of pollen at the time of flowering. In the spring of 2014, all of the trees were headed at 18 above the soil and new tops were trained to the trellis. A base soil applied program for the Agroliquid plots included (all rates are per acre) 12 gallons of High NRG-N + 5 gallons of Pro-Germinator gallons of Micro gallons of Boron gallons of Manganese. All of different fertility products were applied before bloom in the spring in a band next to the trees. The various foliar applied fertility programs are as follows (all rates are per acre): Trt. 1 = Agroliquid base program only. Trt. 2 = Agroliquid + Fase2: Foliar applications of Fase2 at 2 quarts applied monthly. A total of 5 applications in season. Trt. 3 = Agroliquid + Fase2 + Mo: Foliar applications of Fase2 at 2 quarts and 1 pint of Microlink Moly applied monthly. A total of 5 applications in season. Trt. 4 = Agroliquid + Fase2 + Liberate Ca: Foliar applications of Fase2 at 2 quarts and 1 quart of Liberate Ca applied monthly.a total of 5 applications in season. Trt. 5 = Conventional (Dry Only): Urea at 65lbs. + DAP at 109lbs. + SOP at 100 lbs. + Micro nutrient dry blend at 5 lbs. Trt. 6 = Conventional (Dry Only) + Fase2: Urea at 65lbs. + DAP at 109lbs. + SOP at 100 lbs. + Micro nutrient dry blend at 5 lbs. Additional foliar applications of Fase2 at 2 quarts applied monthly. A total of 5 applications in season. Fase2 applications improved fruit yield. The greatest improvement in yield was when applied to the plots treated with dry fertilizer only. Adding Liberate Ca to the monthly foliar application produced the highest yield overall was the first reportable harvest from the treatment areas, these same fertility programs will continue and will only be slightly adjusted based on the soil test results.