The Rural Voice, 2001-09, Page 49one gallon per hour per plant. Each
row is watered for 12 hours twice a
week.
"Irrigating made all the difference
in the world. The vines grew twice as
fast," said Draper.
The kiwi fruit is hand-picked at the
end of September. Unlike Australian
kiwi, the hardy varieties have smooth
skin and are the size of grapes. The
centre of the fruit is green with small
seeds like kiwi, but the flavour is
sweeter. When ripe, the skin is a
crabapple colour and gives a tart
taste.
Likeapples, the fruit can be
stored for several months in
refrigerated conditions. Kiwi
will then ripen at room temperature.
High in natural pectin, it makes a
flavourful jam when the skins are left
on. Draper said the strawberry/kiwi
jam is a nice combination, and
becomes a value-added product.
"Everybody loves them," Draper
said, but warned the kiwis have a
laxative effect.
Holtby does not use any chemicals
in the crop, but does fertilize with 16-
16-16 in the spring and 6-24-24 in
August.
The milder climate close to Lake
Huron is ideal, as the biggest danger
is a late frost. Holtby said high winds
can damage the ripening fruit, but
/neither birds nor possums bother
eating the kiwis.
One male vine is planted per
every five to seven female. The kiwi
blossoms are small, with little scent
or colour. Pollination is both by wind
and honey -bees.
Once the tender vines are
growing, they are hardy and resistant
to diseases. Pruning sucker growth
and wrapping the vines around the
trellis are ongoing manual tasks.
"You can almost watch them
grow," Draper said.
While kiwis may be a healthy
crop with an uncertain market,
hazelnuts are in demand — but a
devastating blight may diminish Ron
Farrell's harvest.
He planted his first Eastern
Filberts in 1990, but says this year
may be his last for a decent crop.
A wind-borne fungus has infected
his trees, killing the essential inner
layer under the bark. Cutting them
down may be the only way to control
the disease.
Farrell said chemical sprays
against the fungus are not legal in
Canada, but are used in the United
States and Europe, which supply
hazelnuts to consumers here.
On top of these problems, this
summer's drought hit the crop hard.
When rains finally arrived they were
too late to do much good. "Three
weeks earlier would have been nice,"
Farrell said.
"It's pretty frustrating. But, it's no
different from any other kind of
farming," Farrell said.
Although discouraged about this
year, Farrell made $19,000 from his
25 acres of hazelnuts and 15 acres of
hay last year.
He sells naturally -dried hazelnuts
at $3 a pound in the shell from his
road -side stand. Farrell said his many
European repeat customers
appreciate the freshness of his
product, as hazelnuts in stores are
drier, and may be up to two years
old.
"We don't have a market. It just
comes to us!" Farrell said.
The hazelnut catkins (blossoms)
are wind -pollinated in the spring. A
late frost will not damage the
blossoms.
Farrell said the tree will abort any
small nuts and direct its energy to
producing clusters of five hazelnuts.
His best tree will produce six to 10
pounds per year.
In October, the ripe nuts fall out
of their husk, and Farrell uses a
vacuum machine to gather them off
the ground. He rigged up an old grain
fanning mill to separate the nuts from
the chaff.
Farrell fertilizes the orchard with
400 pounds to the acre of 6-24-24.
He clips the grass and tills the ground
between the trees, and sprays with
Roundup every three years to control
weeds. The trees are pruned every
year and the prunings burnt to
prevent the spread of disease.
A typical farmer, Farrell
recognizes the risks and rewards of
growing an alternative crop.
"We wanted to prove we could
lose money on another type of
farming," Farrell joked.
The eternal optimist, he hopes the
new shoots growing from the base of
the trees will give him a fresh start
next year, but admits blight -resistant
varieties are needed.0
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The Lancaster Silage Processor model 60 uses the same patented roller
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Ivan J.H. Carmichael
Chatsworth
Hwy. 6 & Grey Cty. 40
519-794-2480 1-800-533-4215
SEPTEMBER 2001 45