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Conducting Your Own Research: Why it Matters

Conducting Your Own Research: Why it Matters . Mr. Dudley Calfee General Manager Ferris Farms. Why do your own research? . As a grower you may have a unique and different perspective from researchers and scientists.

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Conducting Your Own Research: Why it Matters

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  1. Conducting Your Own Research:Why it Matters Mr. Dudley Calfee General Manager Ferris Farms

  2. Why do your own research? • As a grower you may have a unique and different perspective from researchers and scientists. • Conducting “on-farm trials” should make you a better grower through careful observation and attention to detail. • New practices and technologies can be more quickly evaluated for success or failure if numerous small test sites are evaluated and the information shared. Growers can play a key role in this process.

  3. Some variables you can control and study • Fertilizers • Irrigation practices • Pine bark types • Soil type – with amendments • Water and pine bark pH effects • Hydrogen cyanamide • Pruning practices • Your unique ideas to improve production • And of course, “snake oil”

  4. Variables you can control and study • These variables can affect your bottom line • We should not spend money on things that do not increase profitability. • How do we know that what we are doing with fertilizers, nutritionals, and cultural practices makes a difference with fruit production? • Remember, without an untreated control we have no means for evaluating products or practices.

  5. How do we evaluate our plants? • What do we hear/say? • The plants look great • Nice flush • Nice bloom set • Nice fruit set • But… • We can’t sell leaves • Not every bloom becomes a berry • Not every berry is the same size or weight.

  6. How do we evaluate our plants? • And…. you can’t see a • 5%, • 10% • or even 20% difference in yield on the bush.

  7. So how can we determine? • What makes a difference in yield • What makes the fruit ripen earlier • What is more profitable Research = get the data.

  8. Example of an on-farm experiment • 5 plant plots x 3 with replicate control plots x 3 = 6 plots per “trial.” • Separate the plants into plots with PVC risers. • Designate one picker as your “experimental harvester”. Pay them for their time and berries they pick. • Harvest the plots before each pick, weight the fruit and record the data – note fruit quality and condition.

  9. Data Sheet

  10. Evaluating Results • Review the data at the end of the harvest season. • Look for timing of harvest • Did the fruit come in earlier/later? • You may get less fruit, but it may be worth more if it came in earlier.

  11. Evaluating Results • Look at total production – how much did each plot yield? • Compare the results using current year’s price per pound. • Boil the data down to dollars.

  12. Evaluating Results • Just because something made a difference this year, it may have a different effect next season. • Different weather, chill hours • More or less rain • Extremes – remember the 2009-10 and 2010-11 winters? • Repeat the experiment to see if you can duplicate the result.

  13. Questions?

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