Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
When pears set an unusually heavy crop, you may want to remove all but
the single largest fruit per spur. Another approach is to space the pears an
average of 4 to 8 inches apart along the branches. As with apples, this works
out to be 6 to 12 fruits for every 48 inches of fruiting wood.
When crop loads are light to moderate, you can wait until harvest to pick
the largest fruits from each cluster first and leave the remaining fruits on the
trees for another 7 to 10 days to develop more size. If you choose to harvest
in two stages, be careful not to leave 'Bartlett' fruit on the tree too long, as
this variety is prone to a physiological disorder called water core. Water core
results in soft, watery, discolored flesh near the core, decreasing the market
value of the fruit.
The organic chemical thinning practices we discussed using on apples
may also apply to pears, but more research is needed before making recom-
mendations for how to chemically thin organic pears.
Quinces
Quinces generally do not need to be thinned unless the trees set an unusually
heavy crop. Some precocious varieties of quince, such as 'Aromatnaya', begin
bearing fruit very young and can benefit from thinning during the first few
years to develop a vigorous tree with good structure. In mature trees, crops
are usually managed through pruning to remove long, weeping branches.
Thinning, if needed, is done by hand.
Mayhaws, Medlars, and Saskatoons
Mayhaws produce small, crab apple-sized fruits and are not thinned. Medlars
are normally not thinned. In the case of an unusually heavy crop, you might
reduce the number of fruits somewhat by hand thinning shortly after June
drop. Saskatoons are not thinned.
Apricots
Apricots tend to overbear and produce small fruits. Just after June drop,
when the developing fruits are about 1 inch in diameter, thin them by hand
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