| Apples—7-Day Application for Hard-to-Color Varieties |
Managing Variable Fruit Maturity and Quality with ReTain® Plant Growth Regulator
Variable fruit maturity leads to multiple picks and poor storage quality for many apple varieties. Growers need a product that can be stored in good condition, so they can meet consumer demands months after the harvest comes out of storage. ReTain® Plant Growth Regulator Soluble Powder slows the fruit’s maturation and ripening processes to minimize fruit drop and maximize marketable yield. ReTain offers tremendous flexibility allowing applications up to 28 days before expected harvest. But for some hard-to-color varieties, such as Gala and Honeycrisp, an application 7 days before expected harvest may be the best solution. Creates more even ripening (starch conversion) by controlling ethylene Delays maturation Extends the harvest window and provides more flexible labor management Delivers better quality going into storage with 1-MCP products
Improve Fruit Quality and Full Color Development ReTain was applied to Honeycrisp apples 7 days before harvest and the result was even color throughout the block. Research has also shown that double applications of ReTain , when timed correctly, have been shown to be effective in multiple picks without impacting color. ReTain won’t make red fruit green. Photo taken on September 14, five days after application. Location: Western, NY.
19 Fruit Firmness on Gala—Farms 1 & 2 Untreated ReTain
Ethylene at Harvest—Farms 1 & 2
15 16 17 18 19 20
100
80
18.5
75
17.3
50
16.1
25
13.4
0
Untreated
ReTain
Harvest
Storage (8 DAH-RT)
ReTain applied 7 days before a normal harvest stopped ethylene production and held fruit firmness— providing a powerful harvest management tool and higher returns with better quality fruit coming out of the orchard.
• 1st pick of ReTain -treated fruit occurred 13-days following 1st harvest of untreated fruit
• ReTain rate = 333 grams/A • DAH-RT = Days After Harvest-Room Temperature
117
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