NARBA 2013 Pre-conference tour

In the picture above, taken at the NWREC, canes are trained in an "Arc-Cane" to the I trellis. This is the type of system that is used for their fields that are mechanically harvested. 

Last week the North American Raspberry and Blackberry Association (NARBA) held it annual meeting in Portland, OR. Prior to the meeting, Drs. Chad Finn and Bernadine Strik took 3 busloads of berry enthusiasts to the North Willamette Research and Extension Center (NWREC) and local farms.  We took a look at several research trials including an organic blackberry trial that is part of a large federally funded OREI grant, an organic blueberry trial, and Dr. Finns strawberry and caneberry breeding trials. More on the tours in a later post, for now, here are some amazing stats...

Collectively Oregon, Washington and British Columbia (Canada), produce most of the processed caneberries you eat in your jams, jellies, yougurts, ice cream and as those whole frozen berries.  Most of the raspberry production is in Washington and British Columbia, while Oregon has more blackberry production.

According to National Agricultural Statistics Service, in Oregon in 2011 there were:

1,200 acres of red raspberries, valued at $6,400,000. The majority of the production (5,000,000 lbs) was used for processing.

1,100 acres of black raspberries, valued at $5,510,000. The vast majority of this crop is also used in the processing industry.

There are 7,900 acres of blackberries, and about half (4,000 acres) are Marion(black)berries, the primary variety used for processing. The value of the blackberry crop in OR is $43,000,00.

Marionberry has been the primary blackberry used for the processing market for many years. However, the new cultivar, from Dr. Finns program, Black Diamond, is increasing in popularity.

Spotted Wing Drosophila

As was the case last year, Spotted Wing Drosophila (SWD) is present throughout NC this year. We have been finding them in our research plots in blackberry and raspberry plantings. This year we also see them in black raspberry trials. This pest is a big deal, I urge you to check out Dr. Hannah Burracks blog to find out the latest information, including factsheets and spray schedules. http://ncsmallfruitsipm.blogspot.com/

Rotating Cross Arm Trellis

RCA trellis with young untrained canes at Piedmont Research Station, 2011.

At our Piedmont Research Station, in Salisbury NC, we (Gina Fernandez and Penny Perkins-Veazie) have started evaluating the Rotating Cross Arm Trellis system. This project is in cooperation with Dr. Fumi Takeda, USDA-ARS. Dr. Takeda has been working on this system for many years and is helping us train and manage the canes on this trellis.

This year we are determining if row orientation will impact blackberry fruit quality. Row are orientated N-S and E-W. The set in the foreground is running  E-W while the second set of trellises in the background of this image runs N-S. We will be collecting yield data and post harvest attributes. We think that this type of trellis may improve fruit quality and yield.

This trellis system also has potential to enable growers to cover the plants in the winter or during spring frosts like the one we had this year. The trellis arms rotate, so the canes can be layed down and row covers could be placed over the trellis to protect the plants, similar to what is done in strawberries. Here is a picture of a field with the RCA in Ohio in the summer and winter.

The trellis was donated by Trellis Growing Systems (http://trellisgrowingsystems.com/).

Specialty Crop Grant Awarded

The USDA just announced its 2011 Specialty Crop awards. We were one of the lucky ones, our grant "Partner with North Carolina State University to develop high quality raspberry cultivars that can be grown in the southern United States and are suitable for both local sales and commercial shipping" was funded. To see what else was funded go to:

http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5093992

Coming soon to your community

Have you seen the "Got to be NC Grown" panels on trucks around the state? Well now we have a truck that has a blackberry and raspberry theme! Thanks to the NC Tobacco Trust Fund Commission, NC Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and NC State University for promoting these fantastic crops.

Heat stress in raspberries, part 3

The final chapter in the raspberry heat stress story is about picking the right parents.  We have determined that some species of raspberry do better than others in the heat so we are using them in some of our crosses.

Above is a picture of 'Mandarin'.  This variety was released from NCSU in 1955. It is more resistant to heat than other varieties (note the other plots in the field behind it that are not doing as well). 'Mandarin' is 1/4 R. parvifolius, a species that is native to Asia. 

'Mandarin' is not available from nurseries, the fruit is small and soft and the yields are low, so it can not compete with newer varieties. However, we are using 'Mandarin' and some of its relatives in our program and are making progress in finding a heat tolerant variety with good fruit traits.