Peaches

New device makes peach thinning a Cinch

When Phil Miller of Manistee, Mich., came up with the idea for a portable device to help take the pine cones out of Christmas trees, he immediately thought of another use for it. All it... more »

Surveys measure tree fruit, grape acreage in Washington state

According to the Washington Tree Fruit Acreage Report released last year, total apple acreage in Washington state fell from 172,986 acres in 2006 to 167,489 acres in 2011. That falloff might be a little bit... more »

Plum pox virus meets its match

A research scientist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada is proving to be more than a match for the plum pox virus (PPV). Aiming Wang received Canada’s Gold Harvest Award in 2010 for developing a transgenic... more »

Apple Castle celebrates 150 years growing apples

Few farms have the longevity and tradition of Apple Castle, a family orchard that has been growing apples for 150 years. Six generations of the Johnston family have dedicated their lives to apples and the... more »

Tree fruit growers still looking for a mechanical harvester

Michael Glenn, director of USDA’s Appalachian Fruit Research Station in Kearneysville, W.Va., can list all kinds of technological innovations that have aided tree fruit growers in the last 50 years: lasers and GPS for more... more »

New sex pheromone blend can control dogwood borer

Apples grown on dwarfing rootstocks, such as M.26 or M.9, often develop aggregations of root initials, commonly known as burrknots, on the rootstock portion of their trunks. Dogwood borer females find these burrknots to be... more »

Peach grower teaches customers with posters

When Tom Davenport first courted the ethnic market for his u-pick peach operation, he didn’t realize there would be a huge gap in what he expected from customers and what they expected from the u-pick... more »

New varieties impact the tree fruit industries

New varieties have had an impact on how the tree fruit industries operate. While new cultivars have had an effect on cherry, peach and other tree fruit production, new apple varieties have revolutionized that industry.... more »