This week we are running China S9 mandarins on the new Compac grading system at Lindcove.  Dr. Mikeal Roose (Dept Botany and Plant Sciences, UC Riverside) is studying the impact of various rootstocks on fruit number, size and quality of this variety.  The new grading system can measure color, texture and blemish and will help to determine which rootstocks produce the best quality fruit for the Tulare area.  In this video clip, the fruit is being counted, sized, weighed and evaluated for color, texture and blemish by the cameras and farther down the line is sorted into bins for further analysis. 

With the help of JBT FoodTech, Lindcove staff revamped the section of the packline we use for mandarins.  We can now load, drench, wax and dry mandarins and simulate commercial packing house treatments. We upgraded the mandarin line to help researchers respond to the industry shift towards mandarins.  In this photo, Frost Owari mandarins from Marylu Arpaia's sensory tasting trials are being run through the line.

The unique partnership between the University of California and the Citrus Research Board continues with the building of a new greenhouse at the Lindcove Research and Extension Center. This greenhouse will house germplasm from the Citrus Clonal Protection Program, which is the basis for the disease-free budwood release program.  Thank-you again to the citrus industry for this donation to Lindcove!

Mark Beck and Kaye, visitors from Florida, arrived in time for the first fruit display and tasting event at Lindcove.  Twenty-one varieties of satsuma mandarins were on display and while they were less than fully mature, the color and flavor comparisons were interesting to growers and nurserymen.  We will retaste these varieties as well as some clementines on October 27.