A farmer's work is never done. Here in Mattawa, Washington, post harvest management of stress in cherry trees is critical for ensuring a quality crop the following season.
Future productivity and yield potential are affected by how growers are maintaining growth and keeping the trees healthy after harvest is done.
Maximizing growth
The main goal should be maximizing the tree's growth potential and avoiding yield-affecting stress. Although trees' water demand is relatively low compared to previous stages, post harvest is not necessarily the time to cut irrigation. Let the tree's real-time water demand dictate how much you should irrigate. Follow the trunk' growth and MDS (Maximum Daily Shrinkage) rates to see the tree's immediate response to your irrigation. No need for guesswork.
A steady climb in the growth graph and no-stress status means the tree is on its course towards a bright future of optimal production. Keep a close eye on the recommended amount of irrigation and let Phytech be your navigation system, in terms of timing, quantity and duration of water delivery.
Let data tells the story of the tree
The following screenshots illustrate how growers changed their water delivery according to real-time data from the tree - MDS and growth rate.In the first example we can see that after a week of keeping a steady growth with no stress and just green status, the trees entered a yellow status, which was indicated also by a large MDS. water demand was high. Grower immediately responded with irrigation and the plant status changed back to green while MDS was reduced.
