Citrus

EXPERIMENTS AND PILOTS

Location: Israel

Partners: ARO, MTEX

Experiments conducted in Israel encompass a wide range of agricultural techniques, such as irrigation optimisation and the use of plant growth regulators (PGRs). Irrigation is an important orchard management practice that ensures optimal water availability, which is crucial for plant growth, nutrient transport, photosynthesis and poses a strong influence on citrus cracking. PGRs are substances that influence numerous plant physiological processes, such as flowering, fruiting, and stress responses, by mimicking or inhibiting natural plant hormones to enhance fruit yield and quality.

Location: France

Partners: INRAE

Experimental activities in France will focus on germplasm research, providing insights on genetic factors playing a role in citrus cracking. This will help breeding programs aimed at improving traits essential for fruit cracking mitigation and environmental adaptability in unstable climatic conditions.

Key technologies which are tested and applied in Israel and France are:

Fruit discoloration monitoring is utilised to assess the changes in fruit skin colour as an indicator of ripeness, nutritional quality, or the onset of physiological disorders, such as changes that may precede fruit cracking.

Dendrometers are utilised to measure changes in both fruit and tree trunks, providing data on water status and growth patterns essential for adjusting irrigation and predicting harvest quantity.

UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) tree and plot mapping is utilised for high-resolution aerial surveys of orchards and is applied to assess a wide range of factors contributing to fruit cracking (such as tree health and plot variations).

Soil texture, moisture, and mineral analysis are one of the key physical and chemical properties of the soil, analysed to provide targeted fertilisation and irrigation practices to enhance plant growth and soil health.

Satellite imagery and environmental monitoring involves large-scale observation of crop conditions and climatic factors and will be combined with meteorological data to provide a precise environmental image of the experimental regions.

Once developed, optimal orchard management practices selected for fruit cracking mitigation will be utilised large-scale on multiple commercial orchard models.