Georgia Fruits

1
Georgia Fruits Nuts

• Overview of industry
• Research Extension Personnel
• Perceived needs for fruit nut programs
• Questions/discussion

2
Georgia Fruits Nuts
Pecan

• Acreage 150,000
• Value 75.9M
• of USA 38
• Yields 900 lbs/a
• Market Wholesale (80) Retail, mail order, gift
  (20)

3
Georgia Fruits Nuts
Peach

• Acreage 15,971
• Value 47.2M
• of USA 10
• Yields 8200 lbs/a
• Market Shipping, roadside (93) PYO (7)

4
Georgia Fruits Nuts
Apple

• Acreage 1,474
• Value 5.39M
• of USA lt1
• Yields 13,000 lbs/a
• Market Roadside (89) PYO (11)

5
Georgia Fruits Nuts
Blueberry

• Acreage 6,639
• Value 23.1M
• of USA 14
• Yields 4000 lbs/a
• Market Fresh (56) Frozen (41) PYO (3)

6
Georgia Fruits Nuts
Grapes

• Acreage 1,876
• Value 6.2M
• of USA lt1
• Yields 5700 lbs/a
• Market Wine Fresh (86) PYO (11) Juice (3)

Vinifera/wine
Muscadine
7
Georgia Fruits Nuts
Strawberry

• Acreage 227
• Value 4.02M
• of USA lt1
• Yields 15,000 lbs/a
• Market PYO (62) Roadside (38)

8
Georgia Fruits Nuts
Industry Summary

• 1 Pecan
• 3 Peach
• 5 Blueberry
• Total Value 162,000,000
• Diverse marketing avenues

9
Georgia Fruits Nuts
Personnel

• Pat Conner
• Mel Hall
• Gerard Krewer
• Dave Lockwood
• Wayne Mitchem

• Scott NeSmith
• Mark Rieger
• Darrell Sparks
• Kathy Taylor
• Hazel Wetzstein

10
Patrick Conner - Pecan Breeding

• Assistant Professor
• 100 Research
• Location - Tifton

11
Conner - Pecan Breeding

• Traditional hybridization new, high quality
  cultivars with superior disease resistance
• Cultivar testing 60 cultivars/selections
  currently evaluated for commercial production in
  Georgia

12
Conner Pecan Breeding

• Molecular markers used to
• fingerprint cultivars
• estimate genetic diversity
• analyze pedigrees
• map genes
• analyze and select complex traits

13
Conner Pecan Breeding

• Disease resistance Pecan scab is the 1
  biological constraint in Southeast
• understand plant-pathogen interactions
• genetic basis of resistance

Cover Photo, JASHS, Sept 2002
14
Mel Hall Muscadine Breeding

• Professor
• 100 Research
• Location - Tifton

15
Hall Muscadine Breeding

• Objectives
• Disease resistance
• Self-fertile
• Large fruit
• High soluble solids
• Edible skin
• Bronze vs. purple
• Seedless or reduced no. of small seeds
• Early and late season ripening

16
Gerard Krewer - Fruit Ext/Res

• Professor
• 77 Extension, 23 Research
• Location - Tifton

17
Krewer Fruit Ext/Res

• Coordinates Attapulgus moderate chilling peach
  and nectarine breeding and evaluation program
• Cooperators USDA, Univ of Florida
• Three cultivars released, two more proposed for
  release in 2002.

18
Krewer Fruit Ext/Res

• Handles most extension small fruit commercial
  and home garden programming
• Develops extension publications on small fruits
  (UGA and SE Small Fruit Center)
• Agent support via farm visits, phone calls and
  emails
• Annual conferences and field days in
  blueberries, muscadines, wine grapes and
  strawberries

19
Krewer Fruit Ext/Res

• Blueberries in Ga. From minor to major player
  since 1983.
• Large increase in strawberry, wine grape and
  blackberry production
• Research on blueberry and blackberry growth
  regulators (gibb, Dormex, ethephon)
• Cultural systems for blueberries, strawberries
  and blackberries.

20
David Lockwood Fruit Extension

• Professor
• 100 Extension
• Univ of Tennessee (85)
• Univ of Georgia (15)
• Location Univ of Tenn, Knoxville

21
Lockwood Fruit Extension

• Univ of Tennessee (85)
• Tree Fruits
• Tree Nuts
• Small Fruits (not strawberries)
• Fruit Tree Nurseries

• Univ of Georgia (15)
• Apples

22
Lockwood - Fruit Extension

• Agent training
• Publication Development
• Production/Marketing Meetings
• Applied Research, Demonstrations
• Newsletters, Web Sites
• Troubleshooting
• Farm Visits, Personal Contacts

23
Wayne Mitchem Weed Sci

• Extension Associate
• 75 Extension
• Location NC State, Fletcher
• Memorandum of Understanding between NC, SC, and
  GA for shared position

24
Mitchem Weed Sci

• Orchard and Vineyard Floor Management
• Peach
• Grape
• Pecan

25
Mitchem Weed Sci

• Inform growers about weed control in fruit crops
• Grower meetings
• Industry newsletters
• Web publications
• Direct mail
• Individual farm visits
• On farm demonstrations

Grape Herbicide Calibration Clinic, Habersham
and White Counties.
26
Mitchem Weed Sci

• Update fruit herbicide recommendations
• State publications
• Regional publications
• Assist agents on specific grower issues
• On farm visits
• Agent communication

27
Mitchem Weed Sci

• Agent training
• Participate in agent training exercises
• Multi-state Wine Grape Training Jan. 2002
• Applied research
• Screening fruit crops for herbicide tolerance
• Weed/fruit crop competition interactions

Chateau herbicide evaluation as an alternative to
simazine or diuron. Potential uses in apple,
grape, peach and pecan plantings.
28
D. Scott NeSmith Small Fruits

• Professor
• 95 Research, 5 Extension
• Location - Griffin

29
NeSmith Small Fruits

• 60-70 blueberry cultivar development
• 30 blueberry production practices, post-harvest
  handling
• 5 to 10 other small fruits including
  blackberries and muscadine grapes

30
NeSmith Small Fruits

• Blueberry cultivar development is a long-term
  effort
• Generates and evaluates 2500 to 3000 seedlings
  per year, along with selections
• Alapaha rabbiteye blueberry released in 2001
• Ochlockonee rabbiteye blueberry released in
  2002
• Two planned releases for 2003

31
NeSmith Small Fruits

• Current blueberry research
• On-farm EUP and research trials with new growth
  regulator CPPU
• Pollination and fruit set in rabbiteye
  blueberries
• Fruit quality losses in harvesting, handling, and
  storage

32
Mark Rieger Environ Stress

• Professor
• 54 Research, 46 Teaching
• Location - Athens

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Rieger Environ Stress
Peach irrigation scheduling and crop coefficient
determination
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Rieger Environ Stress
Grape frost protection
Alginate shown on blueberry
35
Darrell Sparks Pecan Research

• Professor
• 100 Research
• Location - Athens

36
Sparks Pecan Research

• Record pecan information in books
• 1 published, 1 80 complete, 3rd planned
• Reduce pecan production costs by minimizing
  cultural inputs

37
Sparks Pecan Research

• Reducing cost of scab control
• Calendar program fungicide 200/acre control
  often poor
• Scab fungus needs 24 hr leaf wetness
• Spray timed on leaf wetness reduces costs 20-70
  and control is excellent

38
Sparks Pecan Research

• Reducing N and mowing costs w/ clover
• N cost 35-70/acre per year
• Mowing 7/acre
• Most (all) N can be supplied by clover
• Clover reduces mowings from 8 to 3

39
Kathy Taylor Fruit Ext/Res

• Assistant Professor
• 60 Extension, 40 Research
• Location - Byron

40
Taylor Fruit Extension/Research
AVG increased firmness but reduced size, soluble
solids. Product cost and the negative effects
on quality are not offset by increased shelf-life
and fruit retention on the tree.
41
Taylor Fruit Extension/Research
42
Taylor Fruit Extension/Research
Understanding sources of pesticide
contamination and reducing pesticide
load
Reducing impact damage to fruit
New niches for peach Quality, shelf-life of
peaches coated with edible films
43
Armillaria Root Rot is a Leading Cause of Mature
Peach Tree Loss
Evaluation of SE Armillaria Populations for
Improved Resistance Breeding
-SE Collection of gt200 isolates -With A.
tabescens and A. mellea -Transfers from
clusters/bark samples -DNA isolated -PCR and
restriction enzyme analysis for species
confirmation -Strain distinction through RAPD
analysis
44
Hazel Wetzstein Research

• Professor
• 83 Research, 17 Instruction
• Location - Athens

45
Reproductive Studies to Improve Fruit Set and
Development
Wetzstein Research

• Pollination
• Stigma receptivity, effective pollination period
• Effect of agrochemical sprays on pollination and
  fertilization
• Apple, Pecan, Almond

46
Developmental Studies in Pecan
Wetzstein Research

• Fruit development - morphological and biochemical
  studies
• Seasonal changes in nutrients and carbohydrates
• Nutrition - genotypic differences
  deficiencies

47
Wetzstein Research

• Clonal propagation, rootstock production
• Model to study embryo maturation and development

48
Needs Fruits Nuts

• Positions
• Pecan extension position (vacated by retirement)
• Small fruits (strawberry blackberry) Res/Ext
  split

49
Needs Fruits Nuts

• Underserved areas
• Weed control (exclusive of ongoing Mitchem
  program)
• Blueberry
• Pecan
• Homeowner fruit nut
• handle by Consumer Horticulture position?
• Fruit nut soil and plant tissue testing
• Water management and irrigation scheduling
• Marketing
• Post-harvest technology (small fruit)

50
Needs Fruits Nuts

• In a climate of declining resources, reevaluate
  the existing balance among
• other agricultural commodities and fruits nuts
• extension and research
• Work on improving communication among personnel
• 10 people at 6 locations !