09/16/05 Drip irrigation, apples, and Idaho

One of the many fruit related research projects conducted by Dr. Essie Fallahi at the University of Idaho Parma Research Center is the benefits of drip irrigation to the apple orchard. What Fallahi and his staff are learning is that drip irrigation uses less water than sprinkler irrigation, and produce both larger and better looking fruit. Of course, the proof will be the taste tests of the apples later this month. But Fallahi's work is gaining some attention, such as the reviews at the recent Parma pomology field day. Washington State fruit grower Denny Hayden is a board member of the Washington State Tree Fruit Research Commission, an organization that is providing funding to Fallahi's research into drip irrigation and apples. HAYDEN: Essie is doing that work where he's looking at different systems. Very significant environmentally, water usage, fisheries, you know, it hits all the hot buttons. The quality looks like its going to be very excellent under drip conditions, which we have kind of thrown out with the bathwater several years ago in Washington Fellow Tree Fruit Research Commission board member Jim Doornik adds the research could go a long way in solving the problem of balance between h20 and fruit quality. . DOORNIK: The key thing is you have to have fruit quality with reduced water. You can't have reduced quality with reduced water. And I think that's what we need is engineer to make sure we're not decreasing the value or the quality of the product.