Dr. John Cline is testing new technology that reduces fruit tree thinning labour costs

In an article in The Grower, Cline provided an update on his trials aimed at de-risking a spray thinning compound developed by Valent BioSciences.

Cline collected data from the Ontario Crops Research Centre in Simcoe, which is owned by the Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario and managed by U of G through the Ontario Agri-Food Innovation Alliance, as well as commercial orchards in the Vineland area.

Cline will run four trials in 2024: two with plums and two with peaches, funded in part by the Alliance.

“The process of hand-thinning is time-consuming, labour-intensive and expensive,” he says. “By reducing the need for hand-thinning, this product could save tender fruit grower time and money while improving the quality of fruit produced.”

Read more in The Grower: Reducing labour by regulating plant growth in tender fruits

Read the Alliance story about the peach trials that began in 2021: U of G researchers’ product testing could revolutionize the tender fruit industry

Additional funders include OMAFRA, Ontario Tender Fruit Growers, the Niagara Peninsula Fruit and Vegetable Growers’ Association, BC Fruit Growers’ Association and Valent BioSciences. Specific funding from NSERC is targeted at understanding how the product works in the plant.