CULTURAL CONTROLS

Essentially, growing plants at the correct time of the year (seasonally) and on land or soil that suits that plant, will reduce the likelihood of pests and disease. Just like humans –a healthy plant is more likely to be able to resist attack from pests and disease then a plant under stress.

Other cultural and management controls used in berry production are:-

proper land preparation and attention to drainage prior to planting
raised beds for growing the berry cane
rigorous weed and sucker control
mowing of grassed inter- beds to minimise natural habitat of many pests
best quality of nursery stock
primocane management to allow good air flow through the canopy
regular harvesting to avoid over ripe fruit on canes proper post harvest cooling and handling of fruit
soil and leaf testing for more precise analysis of plant’s health

More recently, the industry has moved to more capital intensive production of berries. We have seen:-

use of protective covering for better control of climatic conditions (Haygrove tunnels)
highest quality of root stock (with companies like Driscolls supplying world’s best varieties) to selected growers
focused watering (drip irrigation) and use of fertigation to put water and nutrients in the root zone of the berry plant
use of water misting or fogging to relieve plants during extremely hot weather conditions.