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Pipfruit Grower Time Line
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JANUARY
- Complete hand thinning of later varieties
- Check crop load and fruit growth for varieties thinned earlier. Re-thin where necessary to remove blemished and undersized fruit. Groom trees for harvest.
- Monitor for pests and disease, particularly mite and woolly apple aphid.
- Apply pre-harvest pesticide sprays - check export withholding periods.
- Maintain control of apple leaf curling midge on non-bearing orchards.
- Repair and smooth access tracks, ready shade houses and equipment for the harvest.
- Last opportunity to place orders for new trees for this year's budding programme.
FEBRUARY
- Time for leaf analysis.
- Monitor fruit maturity progress on earlier varieties.
- Check graft and budwood trees for trueness to type.
- Evaluate crop load and fruit quality parameters prior to harvest in order to identify orchard husbandry practices which need fine-tuning to overcome similar problems in future crops.
- Train pickers
- Commence harvest of earlier varieties.
- Maintain pesticide cover on later varieties - check withholding periods carefully.
- Maintain control of apple leaf curling midge on non-bearing orchards.
MARCH
- Harvest. Check and understand market fruit quality parameters.
- Monitor fruit maturities on later varieties.
- Maintain pesticide cover on later varieties - watch withholding periods.
- Apply phosphorus acid treatments to phytophthera sensitive non-bearing orchards and varieties which have been harvested.
APRIL
- Continue to harvest later varieties.
- Apply post harvest foliar nutrient programmes.
- Take soil tests.
- Make post-harvest nitrogen soil applications.
- Deep rip compacted soil areas.
- Fumigate replant areas before soil temperatures drop.
- Check and repair orchard drainage systems.
- In European Canker areas, commence leaf fall copper spray programme.
MAY
- Apply black spot post-harvest clean up sprays of urea where necessary.
- Winter pruning commences - remove broken and unwanted branches ahead of the detailed pruning.
- Analyse crop outturn and formulate long-term strategic plans.
- Spot treat persistent perennial weeds with herbicide.
- Note time of leaf fall.
JUNE
- Winter pruning continues - give early harvest, smaller fruited varieties priority.
- Apply lime and other soil conditioners where necessary.
- Plant new trees.
JULY
- Winter pruning continues.
- Plan the pest and disease control programme.
- Place orders for pesticides.
- Apply dormant zinc sprays where necessary.
- Overhaul orchard equipment and calibrate orchard sprayers.
AUGUST
- Winter pruning continues.
- Remove any livestock before commencing spraying.
- Apply dormancy breaking sprays.
- Apply late dormant copper, oil and insecticide sprays.
- Apply spring fertilizer dressings.
SEPTEMBER
- Apply spring herbicide programme.
- Complete winter pruning programme.
- Optimum time for grafting.
- Note time of bud break.
- Apply early season pesticide sprays for black spot, powdery mildew, mealy bug, woolly apple aphid, scale insects and apple leaf curling midge.
- Check frost protection systems.
- Apply root pruning treatments for vigour control where necessary.
- Keep orchard sward short with frequent mowing for duration of the frost risk season.
OCTOBER
- Blossom period - note time of full bloom.
- Bring in bees for pollination at beginning of flowering.
- Apply blossom period primary chemical thinners.
- Remove bees on petal fall of 2year and older spur flowers.
- Do not apply any insecticides while bees are present in the orchard.
- Maintain fungicide cover for black spot and powdery mildew.
- Commence post-blossom secondary chemical thinner programme.
- Root prune shelterbelts.
NOVEMBER
- Complete post blossom secondary chemical thinner programme.
- Take early season foliar analysis samples.
- Apply trunk girdling treatments for vigour control and stimulation of return bloom.
- Rub out water shoots.
- Commence codling moth and leaf roller pest monitoring.
- Apply post-blossom insecticides.
- Maintain fungicide protectant sprays against black spot, powdery mildew and glomerella - check withholding periods.
- Commence calcium spray programme.
- Commence hand thinning on varieties which do not show strong late fruit drop behaviour.
- Check soil moisture status, commence irrigation.
- Apply magnesium and manganese spray where necessary.
DECEMBER
- Check red mite levels prior to the December mite spray window.
- At 40 days after full bloom, check fruit set numbers and fruitlet size.
- Establish crop load objectives by block and variety.
- Continue hand thinning with objective of completing the first round of hand thinning by 24 December.
- Apply summer herbicide programme.
- Irrigate if dry.
- Trim shelterbelts.
- Check and spread branches in developing orchards.
- Make pest and disease sprays as required.
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| Feb 2001 |
Hortwatch® is a product of AgFirst
Phone: 64 6 872 7080
Fax: 64 6 870 3629
email: agfirst@hortwatch.com
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