Articles
33 years of fruit growing trials at the Education and Research Center for Horticulture in Erfurt
Article number
1438_25
Pages
215 – 222
Language
English
Abstract
In July 1991, the Education and Research Centre for Horticulture (LVG) was established in Erfurt (Germany). Since then, its aim has been to carry out administrative tasks related to horticultural production in the province of Thuringia, to train apprentices and technicians, and to undertake field and greenhouse trials to optimize the management of the main horticultural crops in the province.
This experimental work has been carried out in the landscaping, fruit, and vegetable growing, as well as the ornamental plants department.
Monika Möhler (1956-2020) was head of the fruit growing department from 1991 to 2020. The first tree fruit trials were planted in 1992. The main topics were, and still are, the testing of new cultivars and rootstocks, as well as irrigation and fertigation, in addition to planting systems for various fruit crops, such as cherries, apples, European plums, and hazelnuts.
Since its inception, sweet cherries have been the most important crop in the experimental program.
A significant result of the first rootstock trial in sweet cherry was that trees grafted on the dwarfing GiSelA 5 produced earlier and higher yields than trees grafted on the more vigorous Colt, F12/1, PiKU 4.17, Tabel Edabriz, and Weiroot 158 rootstocks, in irrigated, fertigated, as well as non-irrigated trees.
In consequence, GiSelA 5 has been widely planted in orchards in Thuringia since the late 1990s.
The use of dwarfing rootstocks enabled high-density planting with more than 1,000 trees ha‑1, compared to the average density of 350 trees ha‑1 in 1992. The higher planting density resulted in a significant increase in the economic profitability of sweet cherry production.
The same applied to the introduction of drip irrigation, which is currently practiced in almost 100% of the cherry orchards in Thuringia.
In the 29 years of Monika Möhler’s work, she significantly supported fruit growers in the transition to high-quality production and the introduction of integrated plant protection.
Martin Penzel became the new head of the fruit-growing department after Monika Möhler passed away at an early age in 2020. A 2024 survey among fruit growers revealed that testing new cultivars, high-density planting systems, mechanization of management tasks, and further enhancing fruit quality are the most relevant topics for the industry regarding future fruit-growing trials.
As part of the applied research described above, 530 horticultural technicians have graduated from the horticultural education program at the LVG, which is comparable to a bachelor’s degree.
This experimental work has been carried out in the landscaping, fruit, and vegetable growing, as well as the ornamental plants department.
Monika Möhler (1956-2020) was head of the fruit growing department from 1991 to 2020. The first tree fruit trials were planted in 1992. The main topics were, and still are, the testing of new cultivars and rootstocks, as well as irrigation and fertigation, in addition to planting systems for various fruit crops, such as cherries, apples, European plums, and hazelnuts.
Since its inception, sweet cherries have been the most important crop in the experimental program.
A significant result of the first rootstock trial in sweet cherry was that trees grafted on the dwarfing GiSelA 5 produced earlier and higher yields than trees grafted on the more vigorous Colt, F12/1, PiKU 4.17, Tabel Edabriz, and Weiroot 158 rootstocks, in irrigated, fertigated, as well as non-irrigated trees.
In consequence, GiSelA 5 has been widely planted in orchards in Thuringia since the late 1990s.
The use of dwarfing rootstocks enabled high-density planting with more than 1,000 trees ha‑1, compared to the average density of 350 trees ha‑1 in 1992. The higher planting density resulted in a significant increase in the economic profitability of sweet cherry production.
The same applied to the introduction of drip irrigation, which is currently practiced in almost 100% of the cherry orchards in Thuringia.
In the 29 years of Monika Möhler’s work, she significantly supported fruit growers in the transition to high-quality production and the introduction of integrated plant protection.
Martin Penzel became the new head of the fruit-growing department after Monika Möhler passed away at an early age in 2020. A 2024 survey among fruit growers revealed that testing new cultivars, high-density planting systems, mechanization of management tasks, and further enhancing fruit quality are the most relevant topics for the industry regarding future fruit-growing trials.
As part of the applied research described above, 530 horticultural technicians have graduated from the horticultural education program at the LVG, which is comparable to a bachelor’s degree.
Authors
M. Penzel
Keywords
cherry (Prunus avium L.), German Fruit Genebank, GiSelA 5, rootstock
Groups involved
- Division Ornamental Plants
- Division Temperate Tree Fruits
- Division Temperate Tree Nuts
- Division Tropical and Subtropical Fruit and Nuts
- Division Vine and Berry Fruits
- Division Vegetables, Roots and Tubers
- Division Horticulture for Development
- Division Horticulture for Human Health
- Division Landscape and Urban Horticulture
- Division Plant-Environment Interactions in Field Systems
- Division Plant Genetic Resources, Breeding and Biotechnology
- Division Postharvest and Quality Assurance
- Division Precision Horticulture and Engineering
- Division Greenhouse and Indoor Production Horticulture
- Commission Agroecology and Organic Farming Systems
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