Dr. Martin Thalheimer says the South Tyrol’s high productivity in apples is due to a combination of factors—uniform, high-density plantings, a strong extension service, and adoption of modern orchard management techniques. The high apple yields in Italy’s South Tyrol region are a result of improved management practices, the adoption of dense orchard plantings on dwarfing rootstocks, and the structure of the region’s extension services, says Laimburg Research Center’s Dr. Martin Thalheimer. Until a decade ago, growers were planting super-high-density orchards of 3,000 to 4,800 trees per acre, with some orchards planted to double rows. Now, the trend is 1,200 to […]