I am trying to land a job programming I am writing apps / java programs to demonstrate my skills and wondered what would be a good useful fruit tree app. / program I am already working on one for my other passion guitars but wondered what would be a good / useful program for fruit trees.
This would be a useful app:
- You take a picture (maybe a 360) of your tree with some standard of measure on the ground; e.g. a yard stick.
- Then the app suggests how to prune it, if necessary.
All the data you need is in R.S. Martin’s pamphlet which has been off-copyright for years now.
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good idea but sounds very hard for one person to write how would the app know where the tree is or where all the branches are from a single photo? even if the photo was 360? It would be similar to the facial recognition programs the military uses which were not written by person or in one year.
For me (and probably some commercial growers) and app that takes data from WUnderground weather stations and outputs useful statistics from weather would be useful.
Some things that are useful, and these are apple-related because they are what I know most about and have followed a spray program with some success.
Growing degree days vs. say April 1 and vs. a specific date such as biofix for codling moth.
Progress of growing degree days past biofix and towards a typical spray time (e.g. 150 GDD50 from codling moth biofix).
Projected growing degree days for the next week based on the WUnderground forecast for a location.
Tally of rain events and amount since last spray date (input spray date).
Chill hours for those in places that don’t get thousands of chill hours like us in the Upper Midwest.
This has been done before - Cornell’s Network for Environment and Weather Applications (NEWA) is my source for this now, but integrating it with an app would be useful, especially if it could be a greater log for an orchard.
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I’ve worked previously on programs related to agriculture and have some ongoing projects. I’ve thought about doing what @Richard suggests - but as a robot rather than an app. Doing it as an app could be built upon to doing it with a robot. Most of the problems come down to the camera (getting a “good” photo in the field - not blurred and high enough resolution, cameras are different across devices, most of my experience is with 2d computer vision not 3d). Doing it as an app I don’t expect to have much commercial value - doing it as a robot can be commercialized to large growers.
If you’re interested in working on this together get back to me sometime. If you’re still interested in a software development job perhaps get back to me in a few months… (No promises, I can forward a resume. I would suggest focusing on c++11 and python development on linux).
Now your talking. I was recently toying with the idea of creating an application to make observation collection easier. I discovered that the whole GRIN website code is publicly available at https://www.grin-global.org/ .The GRIN team is very friendly and responsive. At the moment I am thinking of creating a tool that will be separate but compatible with the GRIN system. The tool would enable the quick capture of flowering, fruiting and other data typical of a GRIN Accession. Accession Descriptors are not standard and GRIN does not impose one. Ultimately I would like to implement the US GRIN and the ECPGR Malus/Pyrus Workign Group Descriptors
Czech GRIN site https://grinczech.vurv.cz/gringlobal/search.aspx
Those software routines have been in the public domain for over a decade. You might look at the non-military side of the equation, for example ecological remote sensing.
Richard, why do you hold his advice in such high esteem- I just checked out his book on-line, got in a page deep to what he had to say about apples, and it is rife with errors, IMO. All apple fruit is not born on spurs, and many varieties bear their best fruit on 2-year wood (bearing fruit on the 3rd)- that is flower buds forming directly on straight, fairly vigorous shoots, directly behind last years growth- and then there are the tip-bearers. His suggesting of cutting back 2/3rds vigorous growth is also about the worst advice for anyone in a hurry to harvest fruit. That one defies all current advice from industry gurus- the standard advice is not to head back unless trees are exceptionally spindly and then to cut 1/3rd into previous years growth to make branches stout and encourage secondary branching.
One app concept that might work somewhat, would be one that takes a picture and allows automatic diagnosis of ratios of branches compared to the branch or trunk they are connected to. Martin talks about this, but without providing actual numbers. IMO, for spurry varieties like Goldrush, or Braeburn, that ratio should be 2-1 for vigorous ones like Fuji, 3-1.
why focus on C++ and python? is that what your company develops software for / in? I’m self taught mainly in java with only 1/2of an Electrical Engineering degree. So not sure if your company would want me.
I’m not sure if the app already exists, but I would love a mapping app where I could input the size and shape of my orchard, maybe some way to draw it, and then drop pins to label all my fruit trees with single or multiple names to show trees that have been grafted with different varieties. I know I could do it with pen and paper, but I would love to have it on my phone so I don’t have to worry about losing it or have the writing on a stake near the tree have a mishap and be lost. If this already exists, can someone point me to it? An actual google map to drop pins and label all the trees would be even better because I have a bunch of trees and blueberries that aren’t in either of my 2 orchards.
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Reading this thread I was thinking about the same thing, that is an orchard map. I can’t think of anything else that I would find useful. I often have to refer to my paper map to remember what I have where. Also a section to include grafted varieties, and also to keep track of rootstocks. Like rootstock, main scion, and added scion. Not just for trees either, bushes, any plant.
On pruning you have to learn how, and learn to see where it needs pruning, no way is any app going to be good enough. The best branches say could have black knot, one needs to know how to prune. I have found after 6 years of doing it, I’m now getting more insight and able to prune anything in numerous styles that I use and find learning new methods easier to absorb and understand.
Pruning for me is not just trees, blueberries need pruning, and some depends on cultivar. Such as Chandler tends to need deeper pruning than most blueberries as it tends not to branch well on it’s own, hesitant to grow new wood unless pruned heavy once every few years. Brambles need pruning as much as trees and again depends if primocane or floricane brambles.
Currants and gooseberries need to be pruned too. They also have different pruning methods as cordons, bush, single trunk, and multiple trunk pruning methods apply to currants and gooseberries. Red and black currants are pruned differently.
I almost forgot about grapes! Cane or spur pruning methods. All of the above I have to do.I have all of these plants.
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A map app, that’s got a nice ring. Right now I rely on Gmap photos- print it out and write the variety name where the tree is on the paper. The photos are adequate to establish location.
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I want to take a picture, label it with gps position and variety, and have a front end to the information I want to track on the garden registry site that I never get around to tracking.
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tree map app it is!! Will start working on it next week sometime!!
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Because it targets backyard orchard culture. Certainly commercial orchard practices are different.
Java or javascript?
I think a map app would be great! It might be useful if you could click on each tree/plant on the map and have it bring up the specific data for that tree. Date planted, variety, root stock, spraying history, previous fungal or insect problems with dates, misc.general notes, etc…
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I program in java not that wannabe web language javascript
I would love a orchard map app. Could be a simple grid. Each grid you get to input data. Cultivar, date planted. An option to choose bloom date, fruit set date, fertilization date, watering schedule, and harvest date for each grid would be nice.
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withdrawn.