Growing for your market – setting the crop

June 2011 | Written by John Wilton, AgFirst | Australian Fruitgrower article

John Wilton examines how growers can set an optimum crop that reflects both the productive capacity of the block and the requirements of the market. Future Orchards® monitoring had shown that many Australian orchards were under-cropping, with the resulting lower production increasing unit costs and reducing competitiveness.

The article explains how tree row volume (TRV), trunk cross-sectional area (TCA), branch cross-sectional area (BCA), tree age and historical block performance can be used to estimate realistic yield potential. For young trees, specific crop load expressed as fruit per square centimetre of TCA provides a useful guide, while mature canopies are better managed using historical performance or BCA-based targets. The article also discusses the importance of adequate fruit set, strong flower quality, cross-pollination, nutrition and frost protection.

Wilton emphasises that the target is not simply more fruit. Crop load must be matched to water availability, fruit size, quality, colour and market requirements. Where water becomes limiting, he recommends adjusting crop load during the season rather than setting the orchard permanently for drought conditions that may not occur.