Fruit Growers News

Novel sweet cherry system getting attention

A group of tree fruit growers recently got a look at a high-efficiency growing system for sweet cherries called the UFO – short for Upright Fruiting Offshoots. It was March 1 at Hanrahan Orchards near Yakima, Wash. Busloads of growers on an International Fruit Tree Association tour – part of IFTA’s annual winter conference – watched as grower Mark Hanrahan stood in front of a UFO block and explained how the system works. Hanrahan got some help from Matt Whiting, a fruit physiologist at Washington State University (WSU) who developed the system with help from collaborating growers. According to IFTA, Hanrahan Orchards encompasses 183 acres: 133 acres of cherries, 24 acres of pears, 12 acres of apples and 12 acres of wine grapes. Hanrahan told his audience he was looking for a system that was easy to learn and that he could commit to, and…  » Read more

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Maryland family celebrates 50 years for farm market

Nestled in the rolling hills of the Catoctin Mountains in Thurmont, Md. is the Black family farm, Catoctin Mountain Orchards. The Blacks grow fruits and vegetables, have a farm market and bakery, build a pumpkin pyramid each fall and are just a stone’s throw away from Camp David, the presidential retreat. The 100-acre farm started in 1948 and was bought by Harry Black in 1961, who just worked for the original owner at the time. One of the things he did right away, which has contributed to the success of the farm, was to put in several irrigation ponds. Harry’s son, Robert Black, who owns the farm now in partnership with his sister Patricia, says they probably couldn’t get through all the red tape to put those kinds of ponds in now. “We had the foresight back in the 60s to put in eight acres…  » Read more

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More states growing their own wine grapes

While California remains the leader in grape and wine production in the United States, other regions of the country are quickly catching on. Both new and old growers are getting into the grape and wine business. A look at growth in the state of Michigan alone shows a dramatic increase in wineries in the past few years. “What we’ve seen a lot of is people wanting to open a vineyard, perhaps as part of retirement,” said Andy Norman, coordinator of the Northern Michigan Applied Plant Science Program for Michigan State University (MSU). “There has been a lot of interest from people who want to get into the business but don’t have the background.” It isn’t just Michigan that has seen growth, said James Wolpert, a viticulture Extension specialist with the University of California, Davis. “In 1962, California was growing about 150 acres of Chardonnay,” Wolpert…  » Read more

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J1 Visas offer alternative labor source

Finding quality labor is an issue most growers must deal with. Many fruit and vegetable growers are aware of the H-2A visa program that allows U.S. employers to bring foreign nationals to the country to fill temporary agricultural jobs for which domestic workers are not available. These same growers are also aware of the obstacles associated with the H-2A system. There is an alternative for some workers, however, with the J1 Visa system. Few growers are taking advantage of the Exchange Visitor J1 Visa program, which enables experienced interns and trainees to be placed on U.S. farms and agricultural operations. There are some striking differences between J1 and H-2A, however, and the J1 Visa is not an option that will work for everyone. "The J1 Visa program is a training program," said Bob Jones Jr. of The Chef's Garden Farm in Ohio. "It shouldn't be…  » Read more

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RosBREED bringing fruit breeders together

It’s an exciting time to be a fruit breeder. That much was evident March 8, when breeders of rosaceous crops – including apples, peaches, cherries and strawberries – got together in Lansing, Mich., to share data and trumpet the RosBREED project to the outside world. RosBREED, a $14.4 million effort funded by USDA’s Specialty Crop Research Initiative and matching donors, is bringing fruit-breeding efforts together like never before – with an unprecedented level of funding, said Jim McFerson, manager of the Washington Tree Fruit Research Commission. Dozens of researchers are involved from a dozen breeding programs, all sharing the goal of speeding up the development of marketable fruit in the Rosaceae family. The best way to achieve that goal most likely lies within the realm of genetics, according to Amy Iezzoni, the project’s director and a cherry breeder at Michigan State University (MSU). During a…  » Read more

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