Tom Glasgow
As any gardener knows, fruit, vegetable and nut crops don’t develop overnight.
Some develop faster than others, but in all cases it’s a process, and a lot of things have to play out “just right”. Or at least reasonably close to just right.
Development of a pecan crop is a particularly lengthy process. According to an article from New Mexico State University (Growth and Development of Pecan Nuts,
Herrera, 2005), there are two phases to this process. Phase I occurs from pollination in the spring to shell hardening sometime in the summer. Phase II occurs from shell hardening until the mature shuck splits. Kernel development takes place during this second phase.
Green Thumb: Looking ahead to the Summer vegetable garden
Tom Glasgow
In last week’s discussion of cold weather protection for the winter vegetable garden, I mentioned that hot weather brings challenges as well. We naturally associate summer heat with increased disease, insect and weed pressure. But heat also represents a physiological stress, with high temperatures impacting both fruit set and fruit quality.
In a July 2016 article, Area Extension Agent Lisa Rayburn notes that as daytime temperatures rise over 90ºF to 95ºF and nighttime temperatures above 70º to 75º, fruit set in many vegetables declines and in some cases stops. This is partially due to poor pollen or sterile pollen production warm nights. As Lisa observes, this is a very common issue in coastal areas where the evenings do tend to stay warm.