PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Dr Mariana Jooste
LEAD INSTITUTION: Stellenbosch University
BENEFICIARY: Stone Fruit
The results of this study will aid the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) and the Perishable Products Export Control Board (PPECB) in their negotiations with the OECD countries to allow South African plums with broken stones to be marked as Class I. This will reduce the financial losses incurred by the current OECD standard substantially. There is also a possibility that the results will assist producers and exporters to predict the incidence and severity and broken stones, which will aid in the marketing of the fruit. The results of the CT scans will aid plum breeders in selecting parents with a reduced risk of producing offspring with broken stones. The use of foliar Ca(NO3)2 and/or K2SO3Si applications may reduce the incidence and/or severity of broken stones in Japanese plum cultivars currently grown in South Africa.
