Improve performance based on these parameters.

For example, if you harvest your orchard with 18o brix, you will get a conversion from fresh fruit to dried fruit of 3.5:1, i.e. for every 10,000 kg of fresh fruit you will get 2,860 kg of dried fruit, instead if you harvest with 22o brix the conversion from fresh to dry will improve and you will be closer to a ratio of 3:1 , therefore, for every 10,000 kg of fresh fruit you will get 3,330 kg of dried fruit, this corresponds to 16% more dry kilos due to the higher content of .brix. If we take it to calibre, the same orchard harvested with 18o brix could achieve an average caliber of 77pc/lb, instead if expected up to 22o brix the average caliber will improve to 66pc/lb only for the effect of the higher sugar content of the fruit.

When to start?

Fruit maturation begins with the pint or color change of the plum skin and 20 to 30 days later harvest maturity is reached when the pressure is between 4-3 lbs.
When the color change begins the fruit pressure is close to 10 to 12 lbs, during maturation the firmness begins to decrease 1 to 2 lbs per week until it reaches 3 to 4 lbs, at which time the maximum sugar content of the fruit is obtained.
Pressure is the main harvest indicator and together with the brix are the most important parameters for estimating the harvest date.
It is very important to monitor at least weekly these 2 indicators, to measure pressure or firmness of the fruit a pressureometer is used and it is recommended to start measuring from the start of the pint or color change of the skin. A refractometer is used for the measurement of the brix and its evolution must be recorded in conjunction with firmness.
To monitor maturity it is recommended to take random samples of each barracks (a barracks consists of no more than 5 hectares). The sample consists of 25 fruits collected from 5 different trees and representative of each barracks, also consider fruit from inside and outside the tree.

Did you know that the yield and caliber are directly related to the sweetness or brix grades of the fruit?
We are starting the period of harvesting plums for dehydrated and to be better prepared we remind you of the following tips that will allow you to obtain the best profitability and quality of our plums.

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