Tree Crop News

General

Why apples are finding themselves in hot water

Attendees at APAL’s post-harvest seminar in Shepparton this week will hear from eminent biologist and biotechnologist Gabriele Berg, who is head of the Institute of Environmental Biotechnology at TU Graz. Gabriele and her team have been able to significantly increase the shelf life of apples using a combination of hot water treatment and biocontrol organisms.

Mangoes

200,000 free mangoes

In an incredible act of generosity, a Queensland man is opening his orchard, donating his bumper crop of more than 200,000 mangoes to local charities and drought-affected communities.

Almonds

Edete's pollination technology for almond market in California and Australia

Israeli agritech startup Edete Precision Technologies for Agriculture has completed field trials in almond orchards in Israel using its mechanical pollen harvesting and pollination system

Stone Fruit - Fruit Fly

Queensland fruit fly destroys apricot harvest at Greensborough property

The dreaded Queensland fruit fly has devastated a “bumper crop” of apricots in Greensborough and the confirmed case has fruit growers in the Yarra Valley scrambling to protect their summer produce.

Cherries

New Zealand cherries hit by poor weather

Cool temperatures and rain have combined to produce a less than ideal start to the New Zealand cherry season

General

Podcast bust myths - boosts business

A new resource designed to arm horticultural growers with everything they need to grow their business has been released by Hort Innovation.

Avocado

Breeders leveraging the avocado's genomic landscape

Advances in molecular tools already have led to the development of large numbers of genetic markers distributed across the avocado genome.

General

Is this the first ever seedless lychee?

As the country pushes for market access to China and the US, one grower has bred a potentially lucrative new variety.

General

Information available for growers affected by bushfires

To help growers and others in bushfire-affected areas access information and assistance at this difficult time a number of industry specific pages have been set up to assist.

General

Batlow Counting the Cost

While the full extent of last weekend's bushfire is still yet to be assessed, it appears apple growers in the New South Wales town of Batlow may have escaped major damage.

General

Apiary taskforce established

A new apiary taskforce has been formed to drive further economic opportunities for South Australia’s bee industry, with a further 20,000 hives required to meet pollination demand in the local almond industry.

Fruit Fly

Fruit fly larvae reach Tasmanian shores on a Queensland mango

Fruit fly larvae have been detected in Tasmania on a mango imported from Queensland.

Pome fruit - General

Kiwifruit, apples and pears drive increasing export revenue

New Zealand's horticulture boom is rolling on, with the sector poised to overtake forestry and become the third most valuable primary industry.

Technology in agriculture

UK start-up helps apple growers predict crops

A UK-based agritech start-up is using drones to help apple producers improve yield predictions.

Pome fruit - General

What triggers biennial bearing in apples?

Biennial bearing in apple induces variable yearly yields. Growers usually manage this by removing excess flowers and fruitlets from ‘on’ trees with heavy fruit loads to increase fruit size in the current season and the amount of bloom in the subsequent season.