Small Fruit Production

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Small Fruit Production

• Teryl R. Roper
• Dept. of Horticulture
• University of Wisconsin-Madison

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Small Fruits for Wisconsin

• Strawberry
• Raspberry
• Blueberry
• Cranberry
• Lingonberry

• Juneberry
• Currants
• Gooseberry

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Soils for berries

• Well drained loamy soils
• High organic matter
• Amend with compost, etc.
• pH between 6.0 and 7.0
• Except blueberries lingonberries(4.5 to 5.5)

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Site preparation

• Begin the year before planting
• Soil test add P, K fertilizer if needed
• Adjust pH (if needed possible)
• Control perennial weeds
• Cultivation
• Non-residual herbicides
• Add organic matter
• Manure, green manures, compost

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Obtaining Plants

• Purchase plants from a reputable nursery
• True to name
• Disease free
• Virus indexed
• Dont save, dont share
• Arrange for spring delivery

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Strawberry History

• Fragaria vesca Northern hemisphere
• F. moschata European
• F. virginiana Eastern North American
• F. chiloensis Pacific coast

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Strawberry History

• Amédée François Frézier
• Experienced engineer mathematician
• Amateur botanist
• Jan. 6, 1712 left France for Chile Peru
• June 18, 1712 arrived at Concepcion
• Coincidentally, Frézier means strawberry

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History

• For two years Frezier mapped the city, noted
  strong and weak points, studied the people, and
  described the agricultural and mineral resources.
• Took note of the large fruited strawberry growing
  there.

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History

• Feb 19, 1714 Frezier left Chile and took with him
  several potted plants of the Chilean Strawberry.
• August 17, 1714 Frezier arrived in Marseille.
• Five strawberry plants were still alive.

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Distribution

• 2 plants to ships cargo master
• 1 to minister of fortifications
• 1 or 2 to Antoine de Jussieu, director of the
  Jardin des Plants in Paris (Royal Gardens)

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Distribution

• News of the large fruited strawberry spread
  quicklyas did plant material
• Brittany
• Netherlands
• Productivity was poor, apparently Frezier had
  selected staminate plants

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Hybridization

• In gardens and commercial plantings F. virginiana
  was present and proved a suitable pollinator.
• Hybrid seedling plants were large fruited, firm,
  and had better color than F. chiloensis
• These chance hybridizations were the basis for
  modern strawberry production

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Strawberries

• Now known as F. ananassa
• Name is based on the pineapple like flavor and
  smell of the fruit.
• Our modern strawberries were based on the chance
  meeting of two western hemisphere species in
  France.

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Strawberry Plant

• Crown
• Leaves
• Stolons (runners)
• Roots
• Trusses (flowers and fruit)
• Plantings last 3-5 years

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Flower Truss
25-40
25-40
Crown
50-10
Roots
Stolon or Runner
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Tertiary
Secondary
Primary
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Stolons or Runners
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Strawberry Flower
Petals
Anther
Stigma
Style
Receptacle
Achene
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Fruiting Habits

• June bearers Short Day
• Everbearers Long Day
• Day Neutral Insensitive

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Day Neutral Strawberries

• Based on a collection of F. virginiana made in
  Utahs Wasatch mountains by Royce Bringhurst,
  Breeder at UC-Davis.
• Incorporated into breeding program.
• Is now the basis for the strawberry industries in
  California, Florida and other warm climates.

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Planting

• Spring after danger of frost past
• Proper depth
• Spread roots
• Firm soil around crown

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PLANTING DEPTH
Shallow
Correct
Deep
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Strawberry planting systems

• Matted Row
• 12 to 18 between plants
• 36 to 40 row spacing
• Beds 12-18 wide
• Runners encouraged

• Spaced Plant
• 6 between plants
• 36 to 40 row spacing
• Single plant row
• Runners removed

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Spaced Plant System
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Spaced Plant System
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Remove blossoms the first year

• Promotes vegetative growth

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Irrigation

• Strawberry is shallow rooted
• The soil must not dry out
• Require 1 to 2 inches per week

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Winter Mulch

• Straw 2-3
• Apply when soil freezes (late)
• Remove in spring as leaves emerge (early)
• Spun-bonded polyester row covers

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Winter Protection
3 to 4 inches of clean straw
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Place mulch between rows
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Alive ?
Dead ?
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Frost Protection

• Proper site is important
• Tarping is the best and easiest solution in home
  gardens
• Tarps
• Blankets
• Row cover material

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Renovation

• Begin immediately after harvest
• Control weeds
• Mow leaves if leaf diseases serious
• Narrow rows
• Place soil around crowns
• Incorporate mulch
• Fertilize

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Fertility

• Amend soil before planting
• Do Not add fertilizer before harvest
• Get leaves, not fruit

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Fertility

• Year 1 when runners form apply
• ¾ to 1 ½ lbs ammonium sulfate OR
• ½ to 1/3 lbs urea per 100 feet of row
• Bearing years at renovation AND one month later
  apply
• ½ lb ammonium sulfate OR
• 1/3 lb urea per 100 feet of row
• Water thoroughly

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Cultivars

• June bearing
• Earliglow
• Honeoye
• Cavendish
• Winona

• Day neutral
• Selva
• Tribute
• Tristar

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Questions?
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Raspberries
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Origin and History

• Rubus ideaus European
• R. strigosus North American
• First domesticated by Greeks
• Historical records of production throughout
  Europe by middle ages

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Origin and History

• With the application of modern plant breeding
  techniques, breeders crossed R. ideaus with R.
  strigosus and created stronger, larger fruited,
  disease resistant hybrids
• These now form the basis of cultivated
  raspberries around the world.

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Raspberry Plant

• Woody perennial
• Crown
• Roots
• Canes Primocanes floricanes
• Leaves
• Flowers

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Raspberry Plant

• Biennial growth and fruiting habit
• Primocanes
• Floricanes
• Plantings last 8-10 years

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Tips
Floricanes
Side Branches
Primocanes
Crown
Roots
Crown Buds
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Immature Buds
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Fruit buds
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6
4
Leader Bud
Roots
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Stigma
Style
Anther
Filament
Ovule
Receptacle
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Raspberry Fruiting Habits

• Summer Bearing
• Fruit on one year old floricanes
• Fall Bearing
• Fruit on primocanes

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Planting Raspberries

• In the spring after danger of frosts is past
• Just lower than in the nursery

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Planting Systems

• Rows
• Plants 2-3 feet apart in rows
• Rows 6-10 feet apart
• Hills
• 4 X 4 feet apart

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Hill System
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Hill System
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Pruning Raspberries

• Summer
• Remove fruited floricanes
• Thin out new shoots
• Dormant
• Head floricanes by ¼
• Remove weak or damaged wood
• Thin canes to 4-6 per foot of row

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BEFORE
AFTER
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Fertility

• 4 to 6 cups per 100 feet of row
• Timing
• Early spring (early May)
• Late spring (early June)

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Mulching

• Mulches are desirable to
• Retain moisture
• Protect roots
• Reduce weeds
• Straw, shavings, sawdust
• Sod between rows

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Harvesting

• Red, yellow, black raspberries
• The cap pulls clean leaving the receptacle
• Blackberries
• The receptacle is removed along with the fruit

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Other Brambles

• Black raspberries R. occidentalis
• Purple raspberries R. neglectus
• Interspecific hybrids
• Boysenberries red x blackberry
• Tayberries red 4 x black 8
• Blackberries Many species

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Raspberry Cultivars

• Summer Bearing
• Boyne
• Nova
• Killarney
• Reveille
• Titan

• Fall Bearing
• Autumn Britten
• Autumn Bliss
• Ruby
• Heritage

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Raspberry Cultivars

• Yellow
• Honeyqueen
• Goldie
• Fall Gold

• Purple
• Amethyst
• Brandywine
• Royalty

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Break Time!
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Bush Fruit

• Blueberries
• Juneberries
• Gooseberries
• Currants
• Red
• Black
• Culture is very similar

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Bushfruit Plant

• Woody perennial
• Crown
• Roots
• Canes

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Planting

• In the spring after danger of frost
• Plant at same depth as nursery
• Make sure roots are spreading, not spiraling
• Water immediately

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Pruning

• Renewal pruning
• Remove the oldest 3-5 canes
• Thin out small weak shoots
• Keep the canopy from becoming dense

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Fertility

• Apply a small amount of high N fertilizer in the
  spring each year
• Base on growth and vigor

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Currants Gooseberries

• Less popular
• Thorny
• Used in cooking
• Cleaning fruit isdifficult

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Currants Gooseberries

• Do best in good soils
• With adequate light
• Regular irrigation
• Very winter hardy

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Planting

• Set plants 1-2 inches deeper than in the nursery
  to promote stronger roots
• Set plants 3-4 feet apart

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Before
After
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Cultivars

• Currants
• Red Lake
• White Imperial
• MN 71
• Black Currants
• Consort
• Crusader

• Gooseberries
• Pixwell
• Captivator
• Hinnonmaki Red
• Hinnonmaki Yellow

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Juneberries

• Commonly used as an ornamental
• Grows to 6-15 feet tall
• Very hardy (zone 2)
• Also known as
• Saskatoon
• Serviceberry
• Shadberry

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Sites

• Prefers soils with high organic matter
• Soil pH 5.5-7.5
• Some drought tolerance, no tolerance to ponding

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Pruning

• Bear fruit on one year old wood
• Prune out
• Canes 5 years old
• Diseased canes
• Weak spindly canes
• Control height

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Cultivars

• Smoky
• Honeywood
• Pembina
• Northline
• Propagated by seed

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Highbush Cranberry

• Viburnum species
• Usually planted as ornamentals
• Three species
• V. opulus European inedible
• V. sargentii Sargent
• V. trilobum American edible

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Uses

• Fruit is extremely tart
• Processed into jams and jellies

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Lingonberries

• Vaccinium vitis-ideae
• Mountain cranberry
• Low growing evergreen shrub related to
  blueberries and cranberries
• Small red fruit mature in the fall

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Lingonberry

• Soils and sites like blueberries
• Low pH, high OM, well drained

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Blueberry Production

• Adapted to acid soils
• Must prepare soil before planting
• Must provide winter protection
• Half-high types are best suited to Wisconsin

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Soil Preparation

• Add copious amounts of organic matter
• Add sulfur at least 1 year prior
• lt¼ lb per square foot, incorporated
• Cultivate to make soil loose, friable.
• Soils with high carbonate content cannot have
  pH adjusted

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Excavate Replace
No peat
Peat
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Winter Protection
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Grapes

• Vitis labrusca
• Blue grapes also known as fox grapes. Native to
  western hemisphere. Hardy.
• V. vinifera
• Wine grapes native to Europe. Not hardy
• French-American hybrids
• Hybrids are marginally hardy

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Grape Plant

• Roots. Root readily from cuttings
• Trunk. May be single or split
• Cordon. Horizontal permanent stems
• Canes. One year old wood. Current season
  growth, too.
• Spurs. Canes pruned off short. 2-3 buds
• Tendrils. Twining structures borne opposite
  leaves or clusters. Helps hold vines to trellis

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One year old cane
Current season cane
Cluster
Tendril
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Hardiness

• French hybrids
• -10F bud and trunk injury
• -20F kill buds and trunks
• American types
• -20F would cause crop reduction

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Grape training
Training
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Cordon/Spur
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Cordon/Cane
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Head/Spur
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Head/Cane
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Cane vs. Spur
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J system for cold climates
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Spur pruned rose
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Balanced pruning

• American types
• 30 plus 10 system
• 30 buds for first pound of prunings
• 10 buds for each additional pound
• French hybrids
• 20 plus 10 system
• Dont exceed 40-50 buds

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Pollination

• Grapes with perfect flowers are self fruitful
• Some wild types have male and female plants.
  Male plants produce flowers, but never produce
  fruit.

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Propagation

• Cuttings root easily
• Cut canes with three nodes (bud)
• Put two buds below ground one above
• Vines will readily root and grow
• Can also tip layer

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Fertility

• Annual nitrogen application in spring
• May need additional potassium
• Micronutrients rarely needed
• Tissue testing based on petioles

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Questions?
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Review

• Correct Site
• Correct Species
• Correct Cultivar
• Correct System
• Pre-plant preparations
• Careful Culture