Crop Management

Terence Robinson: The Future for Orchards is Tall Spindle

Terence Robinson, an applied fruit crop physiologist with Cornell University, wants to help growers find the most cost-effective way to run their orchards. His recommendation: a high-density, tall spindle system. “A low-density orchard will never... more »

Keeping Under Cover: The Ideal Look of an Orchard Floor

In 25 years of studying the matter, Ian Merwin has seen all kinds of systems for managing groundcover vegetation in orchards. In some European orchards managed for cider apples, the grass grows like a hayfield.... more »

Serious About Food Safety

One thing you hear in every food safety talk is that food safety is not something to be used to gain a competitive advantage. Well, guess what. The sputtering economy has apparently affected the drive... more »

Cold Hurts N.B. Cranberry Crop

Cranberry growers in New Brunswick are expecting smaller yields this year compared to last year. CBC NewsClick here to read the rest of the story. more »

Larry’s World: IFTA President Touts Nova Scotia Industry

Standing in his mountaintop orchard at the highest point of the Annapolis Valley, Larry Lutz looks like king of the world. But it’s not his 55-acre family orchard that sets him near the pinnacle of... more »

New York Growers Form ‘Club’ To Market Cornell Apple Varieties

A new company, NYAG LLC, has been formed by a group of New York apple growers, and its primary purpose is to grow, pack, market and sell new advanced apple selections from Cornell University’s Apple... more »

New Company Formed by New York Growers

A new company named NYAG LLC has been formed by a group of New York apple growers, the primary purpose of which is to grow, pack, market and sell new advanced apple selections from Cornell... more »

Rebellion in Idaho: Research Station, Slated for Closure, Incites Grower Resistance

At first, it seemed to be the “usual” kind of story. A land grant university, facing the need to cut its operating budget, reluctantly decides to close one of its experiment stations. The University of... more »

Michigan Takes a Serious Look at Cranberries

There are a number of explanations for why Wisconsin has 18,000 acres of cranberries and Michigan, a similar place 100 miles away across Lake Michigan, has only 250. Potential growers tend to blame it on... more »

Upper Mississippi Valley Aims To Create a Regional Apple Brand

Everyone knows that the state of Washington is a distinctive apple-growing region. It’s huge. But there are lots of others – upstate New York, western Michigan, western North Carolina, the upper Mississippi Valley. The upper... more »