Thirsty vines Summer girdling Compost teas Organic marketing The ...

The Kiwifruit Trial Designer will allow a grower to select up to ten
different treatments and creates a unique design based on the
block layout and number of replicates required, where treatments
are randomly assigned to individual vines (Figure 5), and vines
colour coded corresponding to different fl agging colours that can be
attached to the vines in the fi eld (Figure 6). A list is also generated
showing row and plant numbers of every vine being used in the
trial, where measurements can be entered.
The next phase of design will be to develop tools that enable basic
analysis of the data entered and generate reports that describe the
impacts of the treatments. Watch this space! In the meantime,
innovative orchardists can obtain a copy of the trial designer from
the research team, or by contacting ZESPRI Innovation.
SUMMARY
Although girdling is a relatively simple and straightforward technology
to use, clearly responses will vary depending on seasonal and
orchard factors. Key things to note from this article include:
1. Trunk girdling can defi nitely be effective at raising dry matter in
regions such as Whangarei and Nelson, but responses can vary
and there are orchards where trunk girdling could actually be
ineffective in some years
2. Summer cane girdling is also effective at raising dry matter, but
will result in a smaller response and less consistent fruit quality
3. Orchardists can test how effective different trunk girdling options
are on their own orchards by running simple trials. Contact the
research team for assistance
4. A Microsoft® Excel spreadsheet Kiwifruit Trial Designer suitable
for designing simple fi eld trials is available for testing this season.
Interested kiwifruit growers and technical reps can contact
ZESPRI Innovation, or a member of the research team for a
copy.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to acknowledge and thank Mike Crum, Dennis
Enright, Terry Fry and Phil Jones for their assistance and participation
in research trials.
REFERENCES
Kiwitech Bulletin #3: Cane Girdling. Available from ZESPRI
Currie M, Green S, Currie N 2007a. Thirsty vines make tasty fruit,
but at a cost... New Zealand Kiwifruit Journal Jan/Feb (this issue).
Figure 6. Flagging attached to the trunk of a vine in a trial helps to identify
where to apply the treatments and sample fruit at a later date
Currie M, Manning M, Max S 2007b. Vascular disease can be deadly
to kiwifruit vines and orchard gate returns. Part 2 - Prevention and
management. New Zealand Kiwifruit Journal May/June: 31-36.
Currie M, Max S, Blattmann P, Woodward T, Chamberlain J 2007c.
Wanted - grower innovators. New Zealand Kiwifruit Journal Nov/
Dec: 10-15.
Currie MB, Blattmann P, Max S 2007d. Summer cane girdling – An
alternative to trunk girdling? HortResearch Client Report No 18766.
Report to ZESPRI Group Ltd on Project TZ0669 Component B.
Currie MB, Gamble J, Barnett A, Boldingh H, Ramankutty P, Martin
P, Roberts C, White A, Duffy A, Petley M and others 2006. Trunkgirdling
- An assessment of risks, opportunities and sustainability for
‘Hayward’ and ‘Hort16A’ kiwifruit. HortResearch Client Report
No.17392. Report to ZESPRI Group Ltd on Project TZ0703.
Currie MB, Max S, Blattmann P 2007e. Summer cane girdling - an
alternative to trunk girdling for dry matter? New Zealand Kiwifruit
Journal Mar/Apr: 7-11.
Manning M, Currie M, Max S 2007. Vascular disease can be deadly
to kiwifruit vines and orchard gate returns. Part 1 - Symptoms and
effects on vines and fruit. New Zealand Kiwifruit Journal May/June:
26-30.
Max S, Blattmann P, Currie M 2007. Extreme girdling! New Zealand
Kiwifruit Journal May/June: 8-12.
Minchin PEH, Richardson AC, Patterson KJ, Martin PJ 2003.
Prediction of fi nal weight for Actinidia chinensis ‘Hort16A’ fruit.
New Zealand Journal of Crop and Horticultural Science 31(2):
147-157. ■
Fruit Sorting Systems
Formerly Repower Ltd
NZ KIWIFRUIT JOURNAL JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2008
17