Articles
Effect of mechanical pruning on fruit quality of ‘Legacy’ blueberries in the U.S. Pacific northwest
Article number
1440_5
Pages
37 – 42
Language
English
Abstract
An on-farm mechanical pruning trial was conducted in 2023 in a 15-year-old field of ‘Legacy’ northern highbush blueberry.
The first harvest was handpicked by a commercial crew, while the second harvest was picked by either hand or a machine.
For the hand-harvested fruits, berry samples underwent a drop test to simulate machine harvest.
Machine pruning slightly reduced fruit size and firmness and increased internal bruise damage (IBD) compared to hand pruning during the first pick; however, these fruit quality parameters were unaffected by mechanical pruning during the second pick.
Postharvest quality of cold-stored fruits was also largely unaffected by pruning treatment, except for fruit size, which was reduced by mechanical pruning in the first pick.
In the second pick, fruit firmness and IBD were similar between drop-tested and machine-harvested fruit from hand-pruned plots but were lower in the drop-test of the machine-pruned plots.
The drop test largely reflected the fruit quality of machine-harvested fruit and can be used to simulate machine harvest of ‘Legacy’ blueberries.
Further research is needed to determine the effect of machine pruning on packing quality.
The first harvest was handpicked by a commercial crew, while the second harvest was picked by either hand or a machine.
For the hand-harvested fruits, berry samples underwent a drop test to simulate machine harvest.
Machine pruning slightly reduced fruit size and firmness and increased internal bruise damage (IBD) compared to hand pruning during the first pick; however, these fruit quality parameters were unaffected by mechanical pruning during the second pick.
Postharvest quality of cold-stored fruits was also largely unaffected by pruning treatment, except for fruit size, which was reduced by mechanical pruning in the first pick.
In the second pick, fruit firmness and IBD were similar between drop-tested and machine-harvested fruit from hand-pruned plots but were lower in the drop-test of the machine-pruned plots.
The drop test largely reflected the fruit quality of machine-harvested fruit and can be used to simulate machine harvest of ‘Legacy’ blueberries.
Further research is needed to determine the effect of machine pruning on packing quality.
Publication
Authors
W.Q. Yang, D. Sarah, D.R. Bryla, J. Hoffman
Keywords
automation, fruit firmness, internal bruise damage, drop test, postharvest, Vaccinium corymbosum
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