• Updated by The Kelpak News Team/Pedro Larrain

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Held once every four years the International Cherry Symposium is the most important gathering of experts from the cherry growing industry. Kelp Products International is proud to have been a key sponsor at the Cherry Symposium, held in Yamagata City, Japan, in June this year. It was good to see distributors, growers and researchers all participating in this exciting event.

Not only was this a valuable networking and learning opportunity, where experts from around the globe provided technical seminars, our own delegates also gave an oral presentation covering the benefits of Kelpak on cherry production, which was well received. The discussion focussed on Bing cherries and how various timings improves fruit set and yield. The work was conducted over three years by one of Chile's most recognized cherry consultants, Mr. Andres Ureta and carried out by Miss Catalina Atenas, both from Centro de Evaluacion Rosario, Chile. The oral presentation was given by Pedro Larrain, part of the Kelp Products International technical and marketing team.

We would like to thank our team and all our colleagues who made the event a huge success. For more information and insights into Kelpak on cherry production continue reading or download our conference brochure using the button below.

• Written by Heino Papenfus & Janine Dahms

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Kelpak is used by farmers around the world to improve overall plant growth and yield in a large variety of crops. Recent trials have shown that spraying Kelpak on flowers improves fertilisation and fruit set which leads to better yields. This method of application has been especially effective in improving yield in cherries, avocados and nut trees.

Since fruit set showed noticeable improvement after spraying flowers with Kelpak, it was deemed necessary to evaluate pollen growth characteristics after Kelpak application. For this reason the following in vitro pollen growth study was conducted on cherry cv. ‘Bing’ pollen at the well known Klondyke cherry farm in South Africa:

The method

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Pollen growth studies are routinely conducted by introducing pollen grains into a liquid medium containing specific concentrations of boron, calcium, magnesium, potassium and sucrose. Using an in vitro system, pollen growth characteristics such as pollen germination and pollen tube elongation can be examined using a compound microscope.

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Kelpak on Pollen germination and pollen tube elongation:

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Statistical analysis was conducted using a one-way ANOVA (analysis of variance). Means (± SE) significantly different from each other are indicated by different letters according to Duncan’s multiple range test P≤0.05 (n=6). Germination data was arcsine transformed before statistical analysis.

The result

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Introducing a dilution of 0.1 - 0.13% Kelpak into the pollen growth medium significantly improved both pollen germination and pollen tube elongation when compared to the control.

This improvement in pollen growth coincides closely with the increased yields obtained when applying Kelpak to Cherry flowers in the field. Since Kelpak has the ability to improve pollen growth characteristics, it is highly probable that the improved yields found after treating cherry flowers with Kelpak is directly related to the stimulatory activity of Kelpak on pollen growth.

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Kelpak on Cherry cv. ‘Bing’ yield when applied directly to the flowers :

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Various independent scientific trials have been conducted on cherries in several countries including Chile, California, France and South Africa, all indicating significant benefits from increased fruit size and quality to improved colour. Application directly to cherry flowers now shows the important benefits of applying Kelpak during the early growth stages of cherries ensuring improved germination and fruit set and ultimately a better crop for the user:

• Improves pollen germination
• Increases fruit set and fruit retention
• Reduces fruit split
• Increases fruit size and weight
• Improves marketable yield
• Maintains excellent fruit quality
• Improves fruit colour