<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Two plum cultivars ‘Record’ and ‘Empress’ and one prune cultivar ‘Common Prune’ were planted in spring 2014, spaced at 4.5 × 1.5 × 2.0 m, to be trained to the “Y”- and “V”-trellising systems for mechanical harvesting of dessert fruits with a canopy-contact harvester. The applied trellising systems were compared with the standard central leader system at the same spacing. Trellised trees showed a tendency to grow less well than leader-trained trees, but during the four years of training, they created a higher canopy volume than the control trees because of their spreading form. Trellised trees were able to give yields comparable to those of standard trees. Light distribution within the tree canopy was acceptable in all the training systems. After 4 years of training, the trees were suitable for mechanical harvesting. The effectiveness of mechanical harvesting varied from 85% to 90%. The quality of the fruits harvested with a canopy-contact harvester was comparable to that of manually picked fruits. The consumption of quality of fruits after mechanical harvesting rated on a 5-grade scale was 0.5 grade lower than that of manually harvested fruits. These fruits were acceptable in the local fruit market. Mechanical harvesting was 10–30 times faster compared to manual picking. The cost of the trellising system calculated per 1 ha was 2.0 times higher than that of the standard system.</p></abstract>

Two plum cultivars ‘Record’ and ‘Empress’ and one prune cultivar ‘Common Prune’ were planted in spring 2014, spaced at 4.5 × 1.5 × 2.0 m, to be trained to the “Y”- and “V”-trellising systems for mechanical harvesting of dessert fruits with a canopy-contact harvester. The applied trellising systems were compared with the standard central leader system at the same spacing. Trellised trees showed a tendency to grow less well than leader-trained trees, but during the four years of training, they created a higher canopy volume than the control trees because of their spreading form. Trellised trees were able to give yields comparable to those of standard trees. Light distribution within the tree canopy was acceptable in all the training systems. After 4 years of training, the trees were suitable for mechanical harvesting. The effectiveness of mechanical harvesting varied from 85% to 90%. The quality of the fruits harvested with a canopy-contact harvester was comparable to that of manually picked fruits. The consumption of quality of fruits after mechanical harvesting rated on a 5-grade scale was 0.5 grade lower than that of manually harvested fruits. These fruits were acceptable in the local fruit market. Mechanical harvesting was 10–30 times faster compared to manual picking. The cost of the trellising system calculated per 1 ha was 2.0 times higher than that of the standard system.

The Orchard Architecture Dedicated for Mechanical Harvesting of Dessert Plums and Prunes

Journal of Horticultural Research

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Two plum cultivars ‘Record’ and ‘Empress’ and one prune cultivar ‘Common Prune’ were planted in spring 2014, spaced at 4.5 × 1.5 × 2.0 m, to be trained to the...

The Orchard Architecture Dedicated for Mechanical Harvesting of Dessert Plums and Prunes

Published Online: Jun 03, 2019

Page range: 1 - 10

Received: Aug 01, 2018

Accepted: Jun 01, 2019

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/johr-2019-0001

Keywords
fruit harvesting, stone fruits, trellising systems, illumination

© 2019 Augustyn Mika et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

The Orchard Architecture Dedicated for Mechanical Harvesting of Dessert Plums and Prunes

Published Online: Jun 03, 2019

Page range: 1 - 10

Received: Aug 01, 2018

Accepted: Jun 01, 2019

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/johr-2019-0001

Keywordsfruit harvesting, stone fruits, trellising systems, illumination

© 2019 Augustyn Mika et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

Keywords
fruit harvesting, stone fruits, trellising systems, illumination