Last yr my greenhouse fruit crop was nearly nonexistant. I managed for the figs and ran it too hot too soon.This yr I managed for the stonefruit and more specifically keying in on the sweet cherries. Chill ended Dec 30. In January I held low 60s for highs. February until cherry bloom ended was low 70s.
The result was a decent set of cherry and Orangered apricot which are the hardest to set fruits I’ve got. Everything else is a full crop.
Wonderful as always Steve…
I should add that Ahmad aided my efforts to set a better crop. He helped key in on the correct temperatures during bloom.
I’m thinking that any further improvements will be by reducing heat and water stress after harvest. I think that is limiting flower bud development and hindering fruit set with cherries, some apricots, and even pluots. The pluots and apricots drop flower buds in spring but still mostly set a full crop. Cherries have flowers that double and don’t develop fully limiting pollen production. Just how much I can improve in that area while maintaining high quality fruit will have to wait until next yr.
I’m glad you are off to a good start this year Steven. I always look forward to your harvest reports.
Great to see your fruit and blossoms again!
Interesting use of the rebar mesh / tomato cage for the blackberries(?). Does it work well for you?
It works. How well is a question. For the spiny ones it’s a bit of a struggle. But the fruit is good and yield not bad. That blackberry is grazing food. I get a few each day for weeks.
I’ve got another, Black Diamond, that’s thornless but the fruit hasn’t been that good. I’ll take it out if not better this yr.
Just planted Prime-Ark 45 only because the local nursery had a plant. Would rather have tried Prime-Ark Freedom.
It’s impressive and inspiring what a nice crop you are able to get in relatively small containers from relatively small trees.
Not only are your crops impressive but your greenhouse is to. What are you using for your flooring, is that vinyl? It looks like tile also. It’s nice and clean that way. You can sanitize by mopping, looks great!
It’s just a white woven weed barrier. The primary purpose is to reflect light back into the canopy. The greenhouse covering only lets in about 50% of full sun. It is a very difusd light which is good for photosynthesis. Light bouncing around everywhere penetrates the leaf canopy better.
There is a layer of black weed barrier under the white. That’s for weed control.
It does keep me out of the dirt but is not mopped or clean. Just swept once in a while.
Just beautiful.
It seems your plan in renewing fruiting wood in peaches works. We had a short texting about that matter some time ago. Your plan was to cut the canopy back to lower living buds if needed. Were those larger cuts even necessary or do you get enough new wood in the lower canopy just because of the good light penetration?
Good question. So far I haven’t had to do a major renewal in the greenhouse on trees started in 2014. But I’ll do some trees soon. I don’t want to wait until there are few buds down low.
I did do a renewal outside this yr on stonefruit trees planted at the same time. Reason I did it now is that everything outside was frozen out this yr. They weren’t very big, about 6ft tall, but are now whacked way back.
I also spread out a multigraft apple on seedling this morning.
Very interessting. Those trees are young/vigorous enough for renewal cuts like that. I am curious to see if those cuts can be implemented as a renewal routine for older trees too. I am looking forward to your updates 
You can cut back older trees hard for renewal. But not below where they’ll push new shoots. I’m going to get a mess of new growth. But I’ll sort it our next winter. And I may select some of the shoots to keep this summer. Take out water sprouts in bad spots. They’ll grow and I’ll sort it out. They’ll probably have a good bloom next spring.
Very nicely done! This sure puts a lot of ideas in my head for future plantings
So I thought I was done thinning. But I swear these fruits multiply like rabbits some times. I’m done now…maybe
This is mostly apricots. They are getting a good size. When the nectarines and peaches swell I’ll probably be thinning again, but I hope not.
Of all the fruit tree chores that is the one I dislike the most. One, it’s tedious, and two, my inner cheapskate keeps trying to make excuses for leaving them on.
I really dislike thinning Asian pears. Also some plums and pluots. These way oversett, the fruit is hidden by the leaves, and in some cases the leaves and fruit are the same color. If I can see the fruit it’s not so bad.
I’ve probably spent 20 hrs thinning two 30ft long rows of trees. But that’s spread over more than a month.
It will be worth it. And I’ll spend more time drying the fruit I do get. I’ll enjoy that all winter and have some to send to family.
Woohoo! Gorgeous crop!
What are the stripped figs?
Gotta love those low latitudes. I’m still waiting for the cherries to leaf out.
And there are poor folks still shoveling snow.
Planted 2 apples (honeycrisp and gold rush) and 2 pears (harrow delight and shenandoah) in
roottrapper pots in my currently unscreened screen house. I’m trying the DWN recommendation of
first cutting at 18", then after first flush, trim at 30". They produced a 4’ tall Santa Rosa Plum.
Hoping this year bring you Brix to your heart’s content.
Where did you get the plastic discs you have under your grow bags? I need a few
