"Rain has been the true protagonist of the past few months but, thanks to the anti-rain net protecting our cherry orchard, we managed to salvage most of our production," reports Marco Foglio from Fratelli Foglio di Verzuolo (Cuneo), which installed Agrintech's Water-Insect Proof (WPI) a few years ago.
"We own two hectares in total, planted with the Grace Star, Sweet Valina and Sweet Saretta varieties. A block of 1.5 hectares is protected with the Water-Insect proof net. The weather penalized our whole area this year, but we managed to salvage production thanks to the nets. I have calculated 78% of first-choice cherries and 11% of second-choice ones. If we consider that it has been raining practically every day, we can be very pleased with these figures."
Out of the produce harvested by Foglio, 80% is grade 30+, which is remunerated well on the market. "The good thing is that the rain does not reach the fruits, it slides on the net and falls towards the center of the row, so the root crowns also remain dry. Cherry varieties also have more or less the same resistance to cracking, so water must be kept away as much as possible."
Grace Star variety.
"In order to guarantee certain quality standards, side anti-drosophila nets are also essential to avoid attacks and therefore reduce anti-parasite interventions, meaning the net system can be multi-purpose."
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Agrintech's single-layer anti-rain net is therefore performing very well. It manages to limit water percolation almost entirely, while guaranteeing good ventilation and avoiding high humidity levels on the fruits and leaves. "We risked frost in April but, by using anti-frost candles together with the cover, we managed to reduce the effect of thermal inversion and prevent frost from forming on the plants. This way, we managed to maintain the temperature in the orchard 3.5°C higher than outside."
"The weather changes every year and we also see it in our results. Orchard management cannot be standard and we are all getting different results in the various companies."
Grace Star variety.
For example, the Saretta variety grown using the columnar technique developed rot problems and low grades due to the excessive production load. I believe next year we will thin directly in May so as not to compromise production."
The single-layer anti-rain net was developed after years of study and experiments by Agrintech together with Universities and Research Centers, aimed at combining protection against water, hail, birds and scalding together with air circulation. Another advantage is the limited shading compared with other types of nets, which improves production and quality. Side nets also protect against potentially-dangerous insects such as Drosophila suzukii, aphids and stink bugs.
For more information
Agrintech srl
+39 0828 332978
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www.agrintech.it