Journal for 12th August 2011
The English season is really getting under way; Discovery is still available as Conventional, and Organic Discovery will run for some time yet. The first Delbard Estivale will be appearing on the shelves this weekend and first picks of Worcester Pearmain and Early Windsor have started on early sites.A comment from a major supplier; "in 23 seasons this is the earliest season I have seen by at least 10-12 days!
We can expect a rapid increase in the presence of English Apples on the shelves in the next 2-3 weeks and with main stream varieties Cox and Gala running equally early, we can anticipate the 'possibility' of Cox from 'early sites' on the shelves by the end of the first week of September with Gala close behind.
At this time of the year, as the main harvest approaches, there are a number of opportunities for growers to visit other growers orchards. Fruit societies and orchard competitions create the opportunities.
On Wednesday evening, The English Apple Man joined a large group of growers at Nigel Bardsley's Rectory Farm near Sutton Valence in Kent for a walk around the prize winning farm in the 61st Paddock Wood Orchard Competition.
This annual event is a worthy appraisal of a growers husbandry skills as it judges the 'whole farm' rather than one orchard. As one of the judges remarked to me, it is easy to find at least one good orchard on many farms, but to find a whole farm of this standard is a much more difficult task.
Rectory Farm is a testament to the skills of Nigel Bardsley and his staff, for the very high standard of yield and quality prevalent throughout the 20 hectares (48 acres) of orchards. It is rare to find such even yield and quality across a whole farm. The farm lies on the southern slopes of the The Greensand Way and the soil varies from greensand at the top of the farm to clay at the bottom. Since 1984 95% of the farm has been replanted.
Varieties at Rectory Farm are; Cox 55% Bramley 20% Conference Pears 11% and 14% made up of Cameo, Egremont Russet and Worcester Pearmain. There is also a small area of Rubens, the first Rubens to be planted in the UK. Of particular interest is an impressive area of new Conference Pear orchards.Nigel outlined his belief in the capability of English growers to reverse the trend of the decreasing acreage of English Pears. The use of improved clones and root stocks is part of the 'equation' for success, but as Nigel intimated, water is a critical element. Pears need a high water table to drive the growth of the tree, as strong wood is essential for the production of yield, quality and fruit size. Nigel told us the size of Conference pears needs to be in excess of 60mm diameter, much larger than the accepted size profile of 20 + years ago.
The commitment to future successful pear growing is evident with a 3 million gallon reservoir and new Conference orchards planted on intensive wire work systems in 2007 and 2010. Nigel stressed the need to support the young branches in the optimum position ensuring strong wood and good fruit size.
With Cox under pressure from modern varieties like Gala and Braeburn, it was refreshing to see a heavy crop of Cox with superb skin finish. It was difficult to find any fruit with areas of russet. Fruit size considering such a heavy crop was good and red colour looks promising. The season is early, but I would expect the Cox at Rectory to be picked for harvest in about two weeks time, sufficient time for an increase in size of another 2-5mm. Red colour will improve if the days are warm and the nights cold.
The evening finished with the presentation of trophies for the many class winners. Below Nigel Bardsley receiving the BASF Championship Trophy for The Overall Winner from Simon Townsend of BASF and Claire Whiddon receiving The N.P.Seymour Trophy from Nick Seymour.
Automation in the orchard!
In my second review, the Robotic Finger-Touch Harvesting presentation by
Dr Nick Wettels, Chief Operating Officer, SynTouch LLC introduced the work on the development of finger-touch sensors for use in automated harvesting machines.
Finger-touch sensors will enable delicate fruit such as strawberries to be harvested without damage. Sensors have been designed to be robust and durable and therefore applicable to field-use when incorporated into harvesting machines. Nick reasoned that if robots are to duplicate humans, it is reasonable to assume they will in some cases resemble human form. Components for mass production are available 'off the shelf' and not expensive. An inbuilt camera in the robot hand may solve local selection problems.
Touch sensing is biomatic tactile sensing with a subcutaneous touch. Touch is multi sensory and sensory perception depends on force applied. BioTac fingerprints require sensitivity to temperature, pressure and force. Tactile sensitivity is necessary when handling products like eggs and strawberries. Prior to his work with SynTouch, Nick Wettels worked in prosthesis an ideal precursor to his current development roles in robotics.The Barrett 3 thumbed hand is a robot restricted to simple tasks. Sensors enable the robotic fingers to feel.
Nick outlined the benchmark for future development with fruit harvesting in mind. 'Sensitivity of touch v Human finger'. The robotic finger under development is 'softer' than the human finger; women he said, are twice as 'touch' sensitive as men. An interesting aside!
The BioTac® sensor is SynTouch's solution to the unmet need for advanced tactile sensing in mechatronic systems. The patented sensory technology integrates the full sensory capability of the human fingertip that is packaged into a robust field-serviceable design, making it well suited for practical applications.
Extracts from the SynTouch website can be seen below.
"SynTouch is presently working with select independent academic laboratories on our Alpha-version product. Feedback from these studies is being used to refine our products and services.
SynTouch also offers a substantial know-how regarding biomimetic signal processing and control algorithms for various haptic tasks.
Sensor pricing and consulting services can be arranged to suit your application needs.
Electromechanical adapter kits are now available for Barrett and Robonaut2 and under development for Shadow and Robotiq hands"
The complexity of the BioTac Biometric Tactile Sensor Array can be seen on this extract from the website.
Next week, The English Apple Man will review another farm walk at Clive Goatham's Gore Farm Upchurch in Kent and a further in depth review of ZARI.
FINALLY Today, The English Apple Man website celebrates its second birthday with a big thank you to ALL followers. The visit numbers for the second year are 3 times the hits for year one!
Take care
The English Apple Man
