This was one of those broad questions a guy could dedicate a whole chapter to in a book. Plus I truly like to see others chime in here, be it intuition or direct observation. I have spoken about "average pink" and "average petal fall" before when considering a mixed varietal orchard. The bloom time recipe for a Competitive Colonization Boost addresses a means of keeping full-rate neem and fish oils off delicate flower petals. Keep in mind that
Holistic Orchard came out in 2011 and that since then important updates are offered up in haphazard editions of the
Community Orchardist newsletter,
workshops and conferences, and even a rather exciting
new fungal book. Not that I'm trying to promote all that . . . it's just the means by which all evolves and gets out there.
Now a few key points to further drive this conversation amongst this circle of growers:
•Think of the petal fall spray (Spring3) on a mid-season apple as the pink spray (Spring2) on a late blooming bittersweet. In essence, those late bloomers get an extra round of holistic love, just like the stone fruit.
•I do allot neem on the early bloom end and again on the late bloom end when averaging out the timing of things. The likelihood that this is going to do bee larvae harm back in the hive is extremely slim. (And yes, this is what the bees "tell" me! Bumble and solitary bee populations here are strong.)
•A holistic app has effectiveness on the order of 7 to 10 days in terms of immune stimulation and biological reinforcement.
•A day of sunshine with accompanying photosynthesis helps get immune metabolism in gear . . . but if it’s a rainy period, then you must find the "misty downtime" to spray if infection parameters demand it. Systemic apps are so much more accomodating than layered apps like sulfur or kaolin clay. Tracking degree days and wetting events (as suggested in
Apple Grower and further refined since 2005 to include net spore release) really, really helps to see the big picture.
Keep thinking. Listening. Learning. Discussing.
Lost Nation OrchardZone 4b in New Hampshire
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/01/2017 04:11PM by Michael Phillips.