Obtaining quality fruit and harvesting as many kilos as possible in the first harvest is essential to increase yield in crops such as cherries. The first harvests of stone fruit such as cherries are always the most sought after in all markets, but these pieces must be of quality, strong, with a high post-harvest durability and, of course, without alterations such as cracking or pitting.
Therefore, to achieve success in this challenge, it is essential to ensure optimal cherry quality that also extends into the post-harvest period and to increase production in the first few harvests.
The Manvert solution involves using:
-The Manvert agricultural biostimulant is advancing the ripening of fruit on the tree, a product without hormones and that leaves no residue.
-The biostimulant manvert movili-Ca, which facilitates the incorporation and transport of calcium into the plant, and Manvert win-Ca, a supplier of calcium fulvates that also unlocks the calcium and magnesium fixed in the soil and makes it available to the plant.
Both solutions can help advance the ripening of cherries on the tree and, therefore, increase the harvest of the first passes, and ensure that these harvests are of the highest quality, increasing the hardness of the fruit and reducing problems that cause significant losses such as cracking or pitting.
Two recent trials carried out in Seròs (Lleida, Spain) in 2020 and 2021 confirm the great effectiveness of the combination of these #manvertSolutions for cherries. The trials were carried out in a commercial plot of 20-year-old Early Bigi cherry trees during the months of March to May, which is the optimal time to apply these products.
The application of Manvert movili-Ca and manvert win-Ca (root) was carried out in March coinciding with the stages of fallen petals, which is when calcium absorption is maximum.
At the beginning of April, Manvert advance applications were carried out, in this case, foliar.
Evaluations were carried out at harvest and also post-harvest (under cold storage conditions for 17 days at 1ºC) and compared with the control.
The harvest results of both trials were as follows::
- Considerable increase in the first pass harvest. In the 2020 trial, the increase in the production collected in the first pass thanks to the action of Manvert advances was 23% compared to the control. It should be mentioned that with the Manvert treatment, 60.6% of the total production could be collected. In 2021, the increase in production in the first pass with Manvert advances was 24% compared to the control or, what is the same, 1,338 more kilos per hectare were collected in the first pass compared to the control. This data has a very positive impact on the sale price of cherries, as all farmers who are dedicated to cherry cultivation know.
–Increase in total production. This was another of the results in both trials. In 2020 the increase was smaller, but in 2021 the increase between the Manvert treatment and the control was 9.6% in favor of the plot where the Manvert products were applied.
–Decrease in the number of cherries with crackingIn the 2020 trial, the percentage of cherries with this disease decreased by almost 19.1% compared to the control. The following year, the decrease in cracking in the cherry harvest was 23.3% compared to the control. Cracking is one of the causes of the decrease in commercial fruits.
–Increase in fruit size. With the Manvert treatment, 10% more superior category fruits (over 28 mm) were achieved in 2020 and the smallest sizes (from 22 to 24 mm) were reduced by 41.6% compared to the control. In the 2021 trial, the increase in superior category sizes was 14% with the Manvert treatment.
-Increased bound calcium content. This is a diagnostic tool to evaluate quality parameters related to the appearance of cherries, as well as their shelf life. Thus, cherries with a higher amount of bound calcium have a longer shelf life. In this sense, in the 2020 trial, the increase in bound calcium in the fruit compared to the control was 6.8%% with Manvert. In 2021, this increase was 11.9%.
The post-harvest results of both trials were as follows::
-Increased fruit hardness. After 17 days of storage in cold storage conditions at 1ºC and according to the Shore scale (0-199), with the Manvert treatment the increase in fruit hardness was 4.9% in 2020.
-Decreased weight lossIn 2020, with these #manvertSolutions, the decrease in fruit weight loss was 12.8% compared to the control.
-Fruit decline due to the presence of fungiIn 2020, the decrease in the number of fruits affected by fungi was 50% compared to the control with the Manvert treatment. In 2021, the reduction in fruits with the presence of fungi was 75%. This significant reduction occurs because the Manvert treatment provides an increase in the rigidity of the cellular tissues of the fruits, which makes it difficult for fungal alterations to penetrate.
-Decreased pittingIn the 2020 trial, the incidence of pitting was reduced by 18% compared to the control, achieving a better visual appearance of the state of the cherries.
–Decrease in dehydrated pedicelsIn 2020, the number of fruits with more than 80% of the green pedicel was increased by 19.6% compared to the control. In 2021, this figure stood at 7.7%.
As these trials demonstrate, the improvements achieved in cherry cultivation thanks to the application of the solutions made up of Manvert advances, Manvert movili-Ca and Manvert win-Ca produce benefits both during harvest and post-harvest, which translate into an increase in the farmer's profits. According to calculations made based on the economic data of the area and the conditions of the trial, the profits were almost 1,000 euros per hectare in 2021 and 1,647 euros per hectare in 2020.
