NEWARK, Del. - Many factors
influence the quality and quantity
of fruit a tree bears. Home gar
deners sometimes wonder why
their trees don’t produce.
Delaware State College extensidft
agent Glenn Layton says the
following are some of the possible
reasons.
Age Fruit trees purchased
from a nursery are usually one to
two years old. Depending on the
species and variety, they require
an additional two to seven years
after planting to mature. Bearing
ages for some of the most common
fruit trees are: apple (two to five
years), peach (two to four years),
sweet cherry (four to seven years)
and pear (four to six years). Dwarf
apple and pear trees usually start
to bear one to two years earlier
than standard size trees, Layton
says.
Health Good health is
essential for quality fruit
production. Insects and diseases
are the two main problems of fruit
trees. Through a regular spray
program, these problems can be
controlled.
Winter weather Most hardy
fruit trees need a certain amount
of cold weather to end their dor
mancy and promote spring
growth. When winters are too mild,
Layton says, spring growth is
delayed, irregular and slow. These
factors extend the period of
blooming, and thereby increase
the possibility of frost injury.
On the other hand, extreme cold
during winter dormancy kills the
fruit buds on some trees. Winter
weather rarely threatens hardy
apple, pear, plum, and sour cherry
varieties. Sweet cherry trees,
however, are relatively sensitive
to cold until they become dormant,
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Fruit Tree Yields Affected By Many Factors
while peach trees are' very
vulnerable to cold weather. Their
buds can be killed by midwinter
temperatures of minus 10 degrees
F.
Frost damage As fruit buds
grow and open in the spring, they
become increasingly susceptible to
injury from frost. Exposed buds
can usually withstand tem
peratures near 24 degrees F.
However, Layton says the open
blossoms of practically all fruit
trees may be killed if the tem
perature drops below 27 degrees F.
When a heavy frost is expected,
covering trees sometimes prevents
bud or blossom injury, provided
temperatures do not fall too low
and the cold is of short duration.
Cheesecloth, old bed sheets or
similar protective coverings may
be used.
During spring frosts, some
commercial growers heat their
orchards, but this is impractical
for most home gardeners, Layton
says. After a hard freeze, injured
blossoms may appear normal, but
if the pistils (center parts of the
blossoms) are killed, the tree will
not bear fruit.
Pollination Without sufficient
pollination, a tree may bloom but
develop no fruits. Some species
have what are called perfect
flowers. That is, both the anthers
(which contain pollen) and the
pistils (which develop into fruit),
are located in the same blossom.
Trees that bear fruit through self
pollination are called self-fruitful.
However, there are many tree
types with perfect flowers that
can’t produce fruit from their own
pollen. These are called self
unfruitful and require pollen from
another variety.
Self-fruitful trees include sour
cherries, most peach varieties and
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European-type plums. Self
unfruitful trees include most ap
ple, sweet cherry, pear, and
Japanese and American plums. To
ensure pollination, two or more
varieties of these types must be
planted. Bees and other insects
usually cross-pollinate trees
I growing close to each other.
Available light Fruit trees
need full sunlight for best
production. Inadequate sunlight
delays the beginning of fruit
hpßrinp fnqv reduce the
HARRISBURG - Pennsylvania
dairymen have tapped a new
market for milk and other dairy
products that could put a dent in
local surpluses. It’s the restaurant
breakfast!
The Pennsylvania Dairy
Promotion Program last month
invited people in the Greater
Johnstown-Altoona area to cash in
“Real” seals from dairy products
toward a breakfast at McDonald’s.
Each “Real” seals was worth 50
cents, with the offer limited to one
per customer.
“And did they respond,” ex
plained Dairy Board Chairman
Don Duncan.
More than 25,000 customers
redeemed “Real” seals before the
promotion ended April 30, in
cluding seals from specially
prepared side panels on half gallon
containers.
“That’s almost double our most
optimistic projection,” said the
Robesonia, Berks County
dairyman. “We expect the good
will generated by the media
campaign to keep sales booming.”
Area milk dealers also
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amount of fruit. Don’t place fruit
trees where they are shaded by
buildings or other trees.
Competition Trees grow more
vigorously and bear better if they
have adequate space to develop
their root systems. Don’t plant
them where the roots of forest or
shade trees compete for the same
soil. To reduce competition from
weds or grass, cultivate, mulch, or
apply a weed killer, Layton ad
vises.
Dairymen Top New Market
benefited. “We had our biggest
month ever,” reported one dealer,
who relates a spurt in sale to
customers seeking “Real” seals.
Another milk dealer noted that
“sales have increased in the last
couple of weeks.”
McDonald’s objective was more
than sales. The fast food chain also
had a quality message. “We
wanted to increase consumer
awareness that we use real dairy
products,” said a company
spokesman.
McDonald’s accomplished both.
One store reported a 23% increase
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without doing any tillage, wish no also requires little or no time for
more says Duane Pysher, district stone removal
conservationist of the Soil Con
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Pruning Pruning during the
first three or four years is very
important for future fruit
production. A pruned tree will be
smaller but more productive than
a comparable one that is not
pruned. Trim to permit sunlight
and spray materials to reach the
center of the tree.
For further information on
pruning and spraying fruit trees,
call the county extension office in
Newark (451-2506), Dover (736-
1448) or Georgetown (856-7303).
in breakfast business. All the
participating stores had brisk
business during the final weeks of
the breakfast promotion.
“The great advertising and
promotion effort by McDonald’s
made it a bargain for us,” said
Duncan, speaking for the 4,000
dairymen who support the Penn
sylvania Dairy Promotion
Program.
A sure sign of the promotion’s
success is the reaction from Mc-
Donald’s stores in the area. “They
want a similar deal,” Duncan
replied.
For more information on no-till
forage or small grain seedlings,
contact the Soil Conservation
Service or County Cooperative
Extension Service in your area.
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