- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Senior scientist Arnon Dag of the Agricultural Research Organization, Volcani Institute, Israel, will discuss his research at the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology seminar at 4:10 p.m., Monday, Nov. 27 in 122 Briggs Hall.
His seminar, titled "Improving Cross-Pollination in Deciduous Fruit Trees," also will be on Zoom: The Zoom link:
https://ucdavis.zoom.us/j/95882849672.
"Tree crops belonging to the Rosaceae, such as almond, pear, apple, and sweet cherry, depend on cross-pollination by insects to set fruit," Dag says in his abstract. "The primary pollinator of the crops is the honey bee (Apis mellifera). However, due to harsh climatic conditions during flowering, limited movement of bees between cultivars, low preference of the bees for flowers of the target crop, and limited overlap in flowering between the cultivars, pollination is a primary factor limiting yield. Our group has tested multiple approaches to mitigate this problem: Using 'Pollen dispensers,' sequential introduction of beehives to the orchards, selection of honeybee strains with higher preference for the target crop, introduction of bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) colonies and phosphorous fertilization to increase nectar secretion and improve crop-flower attractiveness. I will summarize the effects of those methods on fruit set and yield in apples, almonds, and pears."
A native of Moshav Lachish, Israel, Dag received his bachelor's degree (1990) and master's degree (1992) in life sciences at the Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University. His master's thesis: "Improving the Honey Bee Efficiency of Melon Pollination in Greenhouses." He obtained his doctorate in agriculture at the Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture at Hebrew University of Jerusalem, completing his dissertation on "Pollenizers, Pollinators and Pollination in Mango." He held postdoctoral positions at both Tel Aviv University and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Dag's research interests include fruit tree physiology, olive biology and cultivation, reproductive biology of fruit trees, crop pollination, pomology in semi-arid conditions and "developing guava as an export crop."
He served as an Extension specialist in beekeeping from 1991 to 2003 for the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture.
Seminar coordinator is Brian Johnson, associate professor, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology. For Zoom technical issues, he may be reached at brnjohnson@ucdavis.edu. The list of seminars is posted here.
- Author: Anne Schellman
What is a Deciduous Fruit tree?
Deciduous fruit trees lose their leaves in fall, and include apple, pear, fig, pomegranate, nectarine, cherry, apricot, peach, and plum.
Planting New Trees & Understanding Where Fruit Originates
Sometimes a fruit tree mysteriously dies, and the gardener isn't sure what happened. A common cause is a tree that was planted too deeply. Root and crown rot slowly affect the tree, causing it to die years later. Watch the detailed instructions on how to plant correctly.
It's important to understand how new fruit develops and grows on the tree. Not all deciduous fruit trees produce fruit in the same place. It's important to know this so you don't accidentally cut off fruit spurs and damage your tree's ability to produce fruit. See this video for guidance. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4fgVrf8XHE&t=250s
Publication - Fruit Trees: Planting and Care of Young Trees https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/Details.aspx?itemNo=8048
Fruit Trees: Training and Pruning Deciduous Trees https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/Details.aspx?itemNo=8057
Keeping New Trees Small – the Fruit Bush Method
Tired of out-of-control fruit trees? If you are planting a new tree, watch this video! It details the Fruit Bush Method, a specific way of keeping fruit trees small. See photos of 5-6' tall fruit trees planted over 30 years ago that continue to produce an ample amount of fruit. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ry4YAp6NzdI&t=1s
Pruning Established Trees
Other Helpful Publications
Fruit Trees: Thinning Young Fruit https://anrcatalog.ucanr.edu/Details.aspx?itemNo=8047
What about Citrus Trees?
Citrus trees such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, lime, and kumquats are evergreen trees and need different care than deciduous trees. It's not recommended to prune citrus trees at the same time as deciduous fruit trees. Wait until spring to prune your tree for size and shape.
We are offering an online class on citrus on January 31, so watch for our registration advertisement in about a week. Locally, we will be teaching at 8 library locations about citrus during March.
/h3>/h3>/h3>/h3>/h3>/h3>- Author: Anne Schellman
Deciduous Fruit Trees
Deciduous fruit trees lose their leaves each winter. These trees include apple, pear, cherry, nectarine, peach, plum, and apricot; it does not include citrus or avocado trees, which are evergreen.
What is a Bare Root Fruit Tree?
A “bare root” fruit tree is a tree sold in its dormant state. The tree has no leaves, is not actively growing, and is sold without a pot. When you choose your tree, a store employee pulls it out of a large container with other trees that is filled with sawdust. The tree roots are wrapped with moistened newspaper, and then covered over with butcher paper and tied with a string. You'll be advised to take it home and plant it right away. Some garden centers may sell bare root fruit trees in plastic bags. If the material around the roots is moist and the roots have not dried out, the tree should be healthy.
Choosing a Fruit Tree
I have a Small Yard or an Apartment, Can I have a Fruit Tree?
Deciduous fruit trees as well as evergreen fruit trees get very large. Fruit trees grafted onto dwarfing rootstock and labeled “genetic dwarf” are smaller than semi-dwarf and standard trees, however they have extensive roots and are not recommended for containers. One exception is the kumquat, a sweet and tangy citrus fruit. Small yards can have fruit trees, but you have to start your tree out right for this to work.
If you live in an apartment and want fruit, you can grow your own blueberries or strawberries in containers. See our publications:
Blueberries in Your Garden https://ucanr.edu/sites/CEStanislausCo/files/111737.pdf
Strawberries in Your Garden https://ucanr.edu/sites/CEStanislausCo/files/111651.pdf
Registration Open for our Free Class
We hope to “see” you at our Planting and Pruning Bare Root Fruit Trees Zoom class at the end of the month! If you miss it, you can find it later on our YouTube Channel.
When: Tuesday, January 25, 2022 6:00-7:30 p.m.
Cost: Free
Register at: http://ucanr.edu/bareroot2022
Instructors: Hector Vera-Uribe and Johnny Mullins
- Author: Alison Collin
At this time of year it pays to check any cherry trees for infestations of black aphids, Myzus cerasi. These appear most usually on the tips of the terminal shoots, but also on the spurs and they tend to prefer sweet cherry varieties over the sour ones. Leaves will crinkle and curl over, and become sticky with aphid secretions which in turn encourage the development of sooty mold that in severe cases may render the fruit inedible.
These aphids are shiny black and about 1/8-inch long. They overwinter as eggs on the tree bark and emerge at bud break when they feed on tender shoots, injecting a toxin into the leaves which causes them to curl thus protecting the aphids' increasing numbers.
UC IPM recommends using dormant oil sprays in late winter, and hosing off with jets of water any aphids that are obvious before the leaves curl. As with all aphid infestations keep an eye open for ants traveling up the tree trunk – a sure sign that they have found a good supply of honeydew. Natural predators such as hover flies, lady beetles, and lacewings should be encouraged, but once the leaves curl over, these insects appear not to be so prevalent. At that point water jets really are not effective, either.
On a young tree I have used a bucket of soapy water and bent the stems into it so that the affected regions are well submerged, but this is not possible on a large tree. Sometimes leaves are so infested that ones best option is to simply prune off the infected twigs, placing them directly into a plastic bag, and disposing of it.
Other cultural measures which may help are avoiding lush growth in the spring by not over-watering or using high nitrogen fertilizers. The base of the tree should be kept clear of weeds or other plants that may act as summer hosts.
- Author: Lauria Watts
I wish to make cherry pie fillings to can, and have purchased the cook-type Clearjel (aka: ClearJel, Clear Jel, CLEARJEL). Clearjel in the NCHFP pie filling recipes makes an extremely thick pie filling; some would call it gloppy, over thickened. It is all right for me, but it is a definite change in texture from what I usually get making fresh pies. I think a thickened but not quite so stand-up pie filling would be nice.
So to accomplish the thinner pie filling "thang," the hunt was on. After several searches varying words and phrases, the page "Clearjel Starch Thickener" was found on Healthy Canning.
What a great page. It is written by a Randal Oulton, from Canada. Mr. Oulton relies on approved information and recipes from the NCHFP, various USA State Universities for recipes/instructions. "Clearjel Starch Thickener" has nice depth; he cites sources extensively. It appears that he periodically reviews and makes revisions to his article as there were several dates in 2017 for accessing articles and the last date I found was November of 2017. I cannot speak for the rest of his site, but a nice job was done on this page and it answered my questions.
Very interesting. This is a great continuing education article for us all. And one last thing: always rely on and teach from approved sources, of course!
--And I hope to encourage you to make pie filling, can pie filling, make pies and eat PIES!