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 Research has indicated the importance of proper timing for the first application of Apogee[TM]to be
targeted to 1-3" of new shoot growth. Treatment applications commenced on 15 May, which correlated
to 5 days after petal fall and an average of 21/2" of new shoot growth. Although the initial application
fell within the recommended timeframe, it was applied during the later stages of the target window.
Due to this delay in the initial application, three applications were deemed necessary for season long
growth control. The second application was applied on 27 May (12 days after the first), and the third
application was made on 9 June (13 days after the second). All applications were made during early
morning hours to assure slower drying conditions. The spreader/activator Regulaid®(1 oz/25 gal) was
added to the tank mix as per the 1999 BASF Study Protocol.
Tree row volume (TRV) was established at 250 gallons per acre dilute. The treatments were
applied at 1.5x concentrate (165.3 gpa) using a 400 gallon Rears model Pull-Blast airblast sprayer
retrofitted with a 10' tower, that utilized 15 nozzles per side, to apply the treatments. Ceramic TeeJet
D2 and D4 disks with size 25 cores were alternated along the spray manifold to produce a uniform
hollow cone spray pattern from top to bottom. The sprayer is equipped with a constant velocity
centrifugal pump that operates at 170 psi. Output of the nozzles at this constant pressure was calibrated
to 0.712 gpm per nozzle for the D4/25's and 0.395 gpm per nozzle for the D2/25's. Forward ground
speed of the tractor was calibrated to 2.56 mph, and the travel time for each tree was 3.2 seconds per
side, for a total of 6.4 seconds/tree per application. High operating pressures and ball valves in the
nozzle bodies assured proper nozzle shut-off, which prevented possible overspray contamination
between treatments.
In accordance to the study protocol, subsequent measurements of the five shoots per tree were
again measured at consecutive intervals of 4 weeks after the final application (9 July), 8 weeks after the
final application (3 August), and at harvest (3 November).
Treatments were harvested during the final week of October and the first week of November. Each
tree was harvested and total yield weighed. Picking time per tree was also collected and recorded in
order to determine any time reduction that may occur in the harvest process due to better visibility of
the fruit.
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