BULLETIN 472 FEBRUARY, 1931 Bloom Period and Yield of Apples C. W. Ellenwood OHIO AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Wooster, Ohio 111111111111111111 llllllllllllllllllili~llij~flll~~~iil~liji~~~~~3 6267 01222027 6 This page intentionally blank. BLOOM PERIOD AND YIELD OF APPLES A 20-YEAR A VERAGE--1910-1929 C. W. ELLENWOOD The relation of date of bloom to frost injury and also to cross pollination is recognized as having an important bearing on the fruitfulness of apple orchards. The 20-year record of date of bloom and yield of the several varieties included in these records is presented in the hope that the data may be of some value to persons planting orchards. The data on blooming dates may be helpful in correcting trouble in bearing orchards due to lack of compatible varieties for purposes of pollina­ tion. Bearing habits and age at which profitable production is reached are also important factors in securing and maintaining profitable yields. The blooming dates as shown in the accompanying tables would probably be actually applicable to a rather narrow latitude. How­ ever, the relative variation in dates of bloom of the several varieties at Wooster would likely hold true in other sections; for instance, Oldenburg in southern Ohio is known to be an early blooming variety while Rome Beauty in all sections of the State is one of the later blooming varieties. Since soil and climate no doubt influence yields, the record of yields here presented might vary for orchards in certain other sections; for example, Delicious at Wooster, on a silt loam soil, has not come into bearing as early as it probably would on sandy soils. Baldwin, a standard mid-winter variety for northern Ohio, becomes a late fall variety in southern Ohio. The data supplied in this bulletin are therefore presented as representative of trees of aver­ age vigor growing in the Station orchard, approximately 55 miles inland from Lake Erie. One hundred and fifty-nine varieties are considered in this bulletin. A number of these varieties were not bearing at the beginning of the period, and these exceptions are noted in the tables. In addition to yield and date of bloom, information on the regularity of bearing and trend of production at various ages is presented. Crop failures, as used here, refer to trees yielding less than 1 bushel in any year. (1) 2 OHIO EXPERIMENT STATION: BULLETIN 472 TREATMENT OF ORCHARDS Most of the Station orchards considered in this bulletin were cultivated for the first half dozen years, then seeded down, and maintained under the grass mulch system. Grass mowed in the orchard was used for mulch. Straw and similar materials from outside the orchard were also added where necessary to provide a satisfactory mulch. For the last 7 years of the period, 1923-1929, a moderate amount of nitrogen fertilizer was used annually ; phos­ phorus was also applied occasionally, but not annually. The trees were given an annual light to moderate dormant pruning. An effort was made to train the trees to a modified leader type of tree. The spray treatment varied from year to year, and each year a number of different dust and spray formulae were used in various sections of the orchard. In recent years the tendency has been towards the use of dusts and dilute summer sprays rather than stronger solutions. On the whole, it may be said that the spray treatment was compatible with good commercial care. Thinning was quite regularly done but probably not to the extent of modifying total yields. Bees in sufficient numbers to provide proper pollination were kept in or nearby the orchard throughout the entire period. PERIOD COVERED BY RECORD The first comprehensive notes on date of bloom and yield in the Station apple orchards were taken in 1910. Each year since that time data have been compiled for all varieties represented in the Station orchards showing the date on which the variety opened its first bloom and the date on which the maximum number of blossoms were open (full bloom). The date of picking and the yield per tree were also recorded annually. The period here reported upon embraced the years 1910 to 1929, inclusive; thus, for those trees old enough in 1910 to bloom and bear fruit the record covers a 20-year period. Reports on date of bloom and yield of many of the varieties included in this report were made at the conclusion of the first 10 years (2) and again at the end of 15 years (3). It was thought that a 20-year record of date of bloom ought to provide an even more reliable average. The average dates of full bloom of 28 well known varieties for the first 10-year period, the 15-year period, and, finally, the full 20-year average are presented in Table 1. BLOOM PERIOD AND YIELD OF APPLES 3 TABLE 1.-Date of Full Bloom 10-, 15-, and 20-year period Variety 10-year period 1S-year period 20-year period 1910-19 1910-24 1910-29 Astrachan ........................................... May6 MayS May4 Baldwin .............................................. May6 MayS May6 Ben Davis ............................................ May9 May10 MayS Delicious •.............................................. MayS May9 MayS Fallawater ........................................... May9 MayS MayS Grimes ................................................ May7 May7 May6 Jonathan ............................................. May9 MayS MayS King •.................................................. May7 May7 May6 Mcintosh ............................................. May7 May7 May7 Mann ...•.............................................. May6 May6 MayS Northern Spy •......................................... Mayll May10 May10 Northwe stern (Greening) ........................... MaylO May 10 May9 Oldenburg ............................................ MayS MayS MayS Ralls•.................................................. May16 May 1S May14 Rambo................................................ MayS MayS May7 Red Canada •.......................................... MayS MayS MayS Rhode Island (Greening) .............................. MayS MayS May7 Rome Beauty ........................................ May 12 May12 Mayll Roxbury (Russet) .................................... May9 MayS MayS Stark ................................................. MayS May7 May6 Stayman ............................................. May9 MayS MayS Wealthy •.............................................. May9 May9 MayS White Pippin .•........................................ MayS May7 May7 Winter Banana....................................... MayS May6 MayS Winesap .............................................. MaylO MaylO MayS Yellow Bellflower ..................................... May7 May7 May7 Yellow Transparent ................................. May9 May9 MayS York Imperial •..••.••................................. MayS May9 May9 Average .......................................... MayS.4 MayS.2 May7.6 The average date of full bloom for the first 10 years was prac­ tically the same as it was for the 15-year period, but the average date of full bloom for the 28 varieties for the full 20-year period was almost a day earlier than it was for the first 10-year period. This is accounted for by the fact that there were more years when full bloom was reached before the average date during the latter half of the 20-year period than was true for the first 10-year period. Taking into consideration 10 commercial varieties, Table 2, it will be noted that in only one year (1910) of the first 10 years did these 10 varieties show an average date of full bloom as early as May 1. There were four years, 1921, 1922, 1925, and 1929, in the second 10-year period (1920-1929) when the same varieties had an average date of full bloom of May 1 or earlier. RELATION OF DATE OF BLOOM TO FROST INJURY During the 20-year period the Station orchards were exception­ ally free from commercial frost injury. This was at least partly due to their being located on land well elevated above the surround­ ing country. Frost destroyed a considerable number of fruit buds, but not to the extent of seriously affecting total yields in 1910, 1913, 1925, and 1929. The most serious loss from this source prob- "'" TABLE 2.-Date of Full Bloom of 10 Standard Varieties 0 1!:: 20-year period, 1910-1929 >-1 I 0 Mean Minimum No. days temper- t.".J Yellow Averages temper- Mean temperature ature dropped Olden- Rome ature temper- following full below freezing Trans- burg Wealthy Mcintosh Grimes Jonathan DeliciouS: Baldwin Stayman 10 ~ parent Beauty varieties for March ature bloom and following full t.".J and for May prior to bloom and prior April June 1 to June 1 ~ -------------------------------------------------- is: t.".J 1910 .. Apr. 22 Apr. 13 Apr. 29 Apr. 20 Apr. 17 Apr, 22 Apr. 25 Apr. 24 Apr. 26 May 1 Apr. 23 4S. 7 54.S 25 5 1911 .. May12 Mayll May12 Mayll Mayll May 12 May14 May12 May13 May 15 May 12 40.7 63.6 33 0 z 1912 .. MayS May6 May7 MayS May7 May7 MayS May10 MayS MayS MayS 40.2 61.2 36 0 >-'3 1913 .. May5 May4 May6 May4 May4 MayS MayS MayS May6 May7 MayS 43.7 S7.9 2S 3 r:n. 1914 .. May 1S Mayll May 16 May10 May12 May 14 May12 May 12 May12 May 1S May13 41.3 S9.S 30 1 191S .. May10 May4 May10 May9 MayS May 10 May9 MayS MaylO May 12 May9 42.2 5S.6 2S 2 1916 .. May17 Mayll May16 May 12 May12 Ma.v 13 May 12 May13 May1S May 16 May14 39.4 60.2 34 0 1917 .. May22 May19 May20 May20 May21 May20 May21 May21 May21 May24 May21 42.1 S2.6 34 0 ~ 191S .. May6 MayS May6 May6 May6 Ma.v7 May6 May7 May7 May9 May7 45.9 6S.O 37 0 0 1919 .. MayS May6 May6 May6 MayS May? May6 May6 May6 MayS May6 44.2 SS.1 3S 0 z 1920 .. May1S May 12 May19 May 17 May 17 May20 May19 May19 May19 May21 May1S 43.0 S6.4 42 0 1921.. Apr. 21 .......... Apr. 22 Apr. 19 Apr. 21 Apr. 21 Apr. 21 Apr. 21 Apr. 20 Apr. 2S Apr. 22 Sl.6 60.6 31 1 1:0 1922 .. Apr. 30 Apr. 26 May1 Apr. 30 May2 May2 May2 May2 May2 May6 May1 46.2 62.2 33 0 q 1923 .. May 14 MayS May14 May 14 May 13 May1S May 1S May 1S May15 May 1S Ma.v14 42.1 S6.9 35 0 1924 .