Is repeated mechanical thinning harmful?
Tory Schmidt speaks about shade netting during the Washington State University field day and workshop at Sunrise Research Orchard
Washington forecasts 120-million-box apple crop
Washington State apple producers expect to harvest 120 million packed boxes of apples this fall, according to the industry’s August
Paying by the pound
Growers who have seen a new cherry harvest monitoring system developed at Washington State University are eager for it to be commercialized.
Consumer pull
Proprietary Variety Management, a new company helping to commercialize two new red-fleshed apple varieties developed by Bill Howell of Prosser,
Hot tips for Honeycrisp
Growers visited the Honeycrisp orchard of Mike Robinson (right) in June and will have the opportunity to return near harvest
Export promotions need shipper support
Todd Fryhover, president of the Washington Apple Commission, says the industry needs to increase demand. Geraldine Warner The Washington Apple
California growers worry about fireblight
Photo courtesy of Rachel Elkins, UC The generally arid conditions in the Pacific Northwest limit the threat of the disease,
China could become big pear market
China could become a significant market for U.S. pears. Louis Ng, who represents the Pear Bureau Northwest in China, believes China could be importing 500,000 to 600,000 boxes of pears annually within the next five to ten years. That would make China the second-largest pear export market after Mexico.
Summerland’s focus switches
Summerland cherry breeder Dr. Cheryl Hampson’s objective is to develop cherries that are large, firm, and sweet, have good stems,
Stellar lineage
The Pacific Northwest cherry industry is seeing the effects of a shift to self-fertile varieties in the form of higher