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2. Winter Hardiness Of Fruit Plants
By Jim Hruskoci, UNL Extension Educator
People are often curious about the effects of cold winter winds on plants - Do plants ‘feel’ the effects of wind chill for example, like people do?
People are warm-blooded mammals. Wind chills can have a very uncomfortable effect on us and on our ability to keep warm, along with other animals. However plants do not respond to wind chill indexes because plants do not need to maintain a temperature above that of the outside air.
For instance, a windchill of 20 degrees below zero at a temperature of 10 degrees Fahrenheit will not cause any more cold injury to a plant than a wind chill of 10 degrees below zero at 10 degrees Fahrenheit. That is not to say that direct exposure to cold, dry desiccating winds is not hard on plant tissue, only that there is no scientific evidence to show that an increasing wind chill index will directly increase plant tissue injury. The drier the air, the more plants will be affected by direct exposure, but wind chill indexes are not always correlated with the damage the plant sustains. Plant tissues must maintain moisture to survive and a very high wind velocity can cause considerable moisture loss to the plant tissue, regardless of air temperature. The moisture loss may be great enough to injure or even kill tissues, particularly the sensitive bud tissue of fruit or leaf buds, and the smaller sized twig tissue of peach, apple spurs and blackberry canes.
Regardless of wind chill indexes, plants and plant tissues can be directly damaged by low temperatures as well, and these have been studied in a number of plants. For example, fruit buds of peaches and nectarines are damaged at temperatures from 5 degrees above to 5 degrees below zero Fahrenheit. Fruit buds and canes of some varieties of thornless blackberries are generally damaged at temperatures near 5 degrees F, yet some of the newer developed cultivars such as Arapaho and Navajo can tolerate temperatures in the minus 10 degree range. These cultivars have increased winter hardiness. Some cultivars of thorny blackberries may be damaged at temperatures near 5 degrees below zero, but others will tolerate much lower temperatures. Some peach and nectarine flower buds are killed at 5 degrees below zero. In contrast the fruit buds of many apple cultivars can survive temperatures as low as 20 to 25 degrees below. Red Delicious is among the most tender of apple cultivars. Fruit buds of Red Delicious can be damaged at 15 degrees below zero.
An extensive breeding program was undertaken at the University of Minnesota geared at preventing blueberry crop losses from winter injury. Breeders and researchers developed a lower stature plant, termed the “half-high” blueberry. The idea was for normal winter snow cover to blanket the lower portion of the plant containing the fruit buds, thereby protecting them with a ‘snow mulch’. Yes, snow can be a very effective protection and far less damage occurs in years of heavy snowfall.
Keep in mind mulch does not always keep the plant warmer - but it does reduce the plant’s exposure to dry, desiccating winds which in many cases can be more damaging than direct low temperature exposure. Protect other small fruit crops such as strawberries with organic mulches such as straw and you achieve the same affect.
The condition of the plant during the Fall before winter has a strong influence on its ability to sustain low temperature exposure, and resist damage to valuable fruit and flower buds. For instance, a plant that went through the summer with considerable disease or insect damage, or suffered severe drought or environmental stress will have a relatively lower level of tolerance than a well cared for plant.
The bottom line: Take the best care of your fruit crops during the growing season - that is something you can do something about. As for winter conditions the plant will have to sustain -well, that is left up to Mother Nature, and we can only pray for mild conditions and lots of snow.
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3. Cloning A Fruit Tree
By Jim Hruskoci, UNL Extension Educator
Just this week I had a fellow come in to my office asking about his apple tree. Apparently the tree was planted by this father, many years ago. The tree produced absolutely delicious apples, but he had no idea what cultivar the tree was. The tree was old and had been there on the home farm place for many years.
He wanted to know how he should treat the apple seed so it will germinate and grow into the tree like the one in his yard. This is a common question - the gardener is trying to reproduce an old apple or other fruit tree that is special for some reason - good quality fruit, high yielding, planted by the grandparents, are some typical reasons.
Unfortunately, apples do not come TRUE from seed. Actually about 1 in every 80,000 apple trees grown from seed is good enough to be considered in the commercial industry. Most of the time, when you plant a tree from seed - you end up with a tree with small or inferior fruit and it is nothing at all like the parent. The one exception is peach. Peach seeds often form without crossing - a phenomenon known as apomixis - or seed development without pollination and fertilization - so the progeny will end up very similar to the parent when you plant a peach seed.
But such is NOT the case for most other fruits. For most all other fruits you will have to choose Vegetative propagation. Vegetative propagation is the only way to insure that the genetics of the parents will be preserved - in other words - that you will get a tree absolutely identical to the parents. Vegetative propagation includes such methods as cuttings - both softwood or hardwood cuttings - whereby you snip a piece of the tree’s branch off and try rooting it in a soil or sand mix in a greenhouse or directly outside in the garden. Hardwood cuttings are taken during the dormant season from the past season’s growth, while softwood cuttings are taken in the spring after growth has started and elongated. Cuttings are a convenient and effective way of propagating many shade trees and ornaments.
In the case of fruit trees however, such as apples, most are grafted. Apple trees are actually quite easy to graft , even for beginners, and it just so happens that soon it will be time to begin collecting what is known as scion wood - or small branches from existing trees that will be grafted on top of a rootstock. Here is how you do it:
The ideal branches for scion wood will be from 1/4 to ½ inch in diameter. You can choose existing limbs and branches that grew last year as well as water sprouts that grew from limbs in the tree or suckers that grew from the trunk. The best month to take grafting wood is the month of February. You can cut the branches or suckers into lengths about a foot long and store them in your refrigerator at 40 to 50 degrees. Do not put them in the freezer or allow them to freeze or they will be injured.
Next, decide what rootstock you will graft them onto - and this can be a science all in itself. Most apples are grafted onto specialty selected rootstocks that lend some sort of characteristic to the overall tree - such as a dwarfing affect or they may give the tree increased winter hardiness. The dwarfing and semi-dwarfing effect comes in handy for those of us with small yards - it can make a tree that would normally grow 25 feet tall, reach a maximum of only 6 to 10 feet. That means you can grow a number of trees in a limited space and have a variety of apple cultivars. Dwarfing and semi-dwarfing rootstocks also allow the tree to fruit earlier, cutting that time down to as little as 3 or 4 years which would normally take up to 7 years. Fruit size remains the same as a standard tree, so you don’t need to worry about getting smaller apples from a dwarf or semi-dwarf tree.
If you are unable to obtain a dwarfing or semi-dwarfing rootstock, which are normally available from specialty commercial fruit nurseries - you may want to play around and try grafting onto crab apple seedlings, or even to existing branches from another apple cultivar in your yard. There is almost no limit to the number of different cultivars you can have grafted onto any particular apple tree in your yard, just be careful you don’t accidentally prune off the graft when you do your pruning.
We have a publication available at our Cooperative Extension offices on grafting, so you can pick up a copy the next time you get to your Extension office. You might also be able to find some good references on the subject from the library or on the internet.
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4. Internet References Available on Fruit and Vegetable Production
By Tom Dorn, UNL Extension Educator
Specialty Enterprises- Crops, http://lancaster.unl.edu/ag/crops/special.htm
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5. More Excellent Fruit Internet References
By Larry Germer, UNL Extension Educator
University of Missouri Extension Horticulture Publications, http://muextension.missouri.edu/explore/agguides/hort/
The Ohio State University's Ohioline Fruit Publications, http://ohioline.osu.edu/lines/fruit.html
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5. Growing Raspberries
By Don Janssen, UNL Extension Educator
Raspberries can be successfully grown in Nebraska. They are grown primarily
by the home gardener and used fresh or frozen, in jams or in jellies. The
red, yellow, black, and purple raspberry types are grown in eastern
Nebraska, while western Nebraskans primarily grow only red berries. Check
out the attached web sites for information on growing and caring for an
excellent small fruit for the acreage.
Raspberries For The Home Garden, http://ianrpubs.unl.edu/horticulture/g1176.htm
Supporting And Pruning Raspberries, http://ianrpubs.unl.edu/horticulture/nf185.htm
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7. Currents and Gooseberries
By Don Janssen, UNL Extension Educator
Currants and gooseberries are hardy and easy to grow. A few plants will
produce enough fruit for typical family use, and this fruit is much prized
for making jellies and pies. Currants are especially outstanding for
jellies, while gooseberries are excellent for pies or preserves. Gooseberry
pie is a rare delicacy seldom found outside the home.
Learn more about these excellent small fruits in these publications:
Currants And Gooseberries, http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/HO-17.pdf
Gooseberries And Currants, http://www.hort.cornell.edu/extension/commercial/fruit/mfruit/gooseberries.html
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8. Eating More Fiber Never Sounded So Good!
By Joan Sather, Nutrition Education Program Coordinator
You’ve heard the recommendation “Eat more fiber!” countless times. You know the recommendation of approximately 25 grams/day, but reaching that goal has you envisioning bran cereal that looks like twigs from a tree and glasses of Metamucil. You’re thinking, “No thanks.” Well, we’re going to replace that vision with thoughts of sweet raspberries, flavorful blackberries, plump blueberries, and juicy strawberries – all grown here in Nebraska.
Berries are a great source of fiber. One cup of raspberries or blackberries has approximately 7-8 grams of dietary fiber and only 60-65 calories. When compared to other high fiber foods, these berries offer one of the greatest amounts of fiber per calorie. Blueberries and strawberries also contain fiber, although a little bit less than raspberries and blackberries. A cup of blueberries provides 3.5 grams of fiber and a cup of strawberries provides 3.3 grams of fiber. Including berries in your diet also helps you reach your goal of eating 2 cups of fruit a day.
So the next time you hear, “Eat more fiber!” you can smile and think of a bowl of fresh Nebraska grown berries.
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9. Donuts In The Lawn
By Paul Hay, UNL Extension Educator
Donuts are the center of many jokes about policemen and Extension Educators. Donuts are also a dangerous threat to your landscape trees. Southeast Nebraska is the home of four International Commercial lawn mower companies, Everride (Auburn), Encore, Exmark, Husqvarna (Beatrice). Both commercial and lighter grade home models of “Z” (zero turning radius) mowers pose a real threat to trees and shrubs. This is a greater problem as larger zero turning radius mowers are used on small lawns. It sure is fun to circle the tree at full speed then head out across the lawn.
Homeowners and professional mowers often follow the same pattern around a tree, for speed and because the size of the large mower and small lawn nearly force the pattern. The compacted donut area results in thinning grass and lower oxygen levels to the tree roots. Scuffing of the bark can also damage the tree. Walk behind mowers are less likely to cause damage, but we have seen scuffing from the mower and from the mower handles on larger walk-behinds.
Using smaller equipment on home lawns and/or the careful planning of driving patterns is necessary to avoid the problem. It is recommended that all young trees have a mulched circle around the tree large enough to keep mowing equipment away from the tree.
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10. Windbreaks And Conservation Plantings For Your Acreage
By Christine Meyer,
UNL School of Natural Resources Information Specialist
Windbreaks, streamside buffer strips, living snowfences and other conservation plantings can greatly improve the quality of your land and your life. Conservation plantings provide wildlife habitat; protect soil from wind or water erosion; improve water quality by filtering sediment; and shelter homes, crops and livestock from harsh winds and blowing dust and snow.
With tight margins, you might be reluctant to take crop land out of production for conservation purposes. But what if your conservation planting produced commercially valuable, salable products? What if you could turn your conservation planting into another profit center on your farm or acreage?
With proper species selection, however, taking land out of crop production for a conservation planting doesn't have to mean taking a reduction in profits. There are many species of trees and shrubs that enhance the environment and produce commercially valuable specialty forest products. Some specialty forest product production operations may require a considerable start-up investment, while others may be implemented with minimal expense. Remember that specialty forest products have niche markets, so careful planning is required for their marketing.
Specialty forest products generally fall into four categories: 1) medicinals and botanicals, 2) tree- and shrub-based food products, 3) woody decorative florals and 4) handicrafts and specialty woods.
Woody-based food products include nuts, fruits and some mushrooms. Nuts with commercial markets include black walnut, Chinese chestnut, pecan, hickory, butternut, hybrid hazelnut and ginkgo. Commonly harvested commercial "minor" fruits include chokecherry, highbush cranberry, sand cherry, currants, Corneliancherry dogwood, elderberry, Saskatoon (serviceberry or juneberry), Nanking cherry, chokeberry, buffaloberry, pawpaw and persimmon. High-value gourmet mushrooms, such an shiitake or oyster, may be grown on logs or wood chips in a forest setting.
These products may all be harvested for personal or commercial use. Markets for nut products exist for in-shell products, whole and crushed kernels, oils and soft abrasives from the shell. Fruits may be sold commercially for fresh fruit, jams, jellies, syrups, concentrates, flavorings and wines. The following sites provide countless recipes in which you can include your favorite woody-based food products. Once you get started, you will be amazed at how interesting, healthy and delicious woody-based food products can be!
University of Nebraska Extension Forestry- Recipes, http://snr.unl.edu/forestry/sfprecipes.htm
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