The harvest of fruit from trees in Poland in the 2016 season, especially apples, was a record one. In recent years, the production has grown dynamically. There have been many new intensive orchards set up, and consequently, there has been a noticeable increase in the yield of most fruit species from trees, especially apples and cherries, reports the Central Statistical Office of Poland (GUS).
The total production of fruit from trees in 2016 was estimated at 4,064.7 thousand tonnes, i.e. about 14.8% more than in 2015 and a much higher figure than in previous years. There are still very large differences in yields between high-yield orchards and small orchards in which production inputs are low.
The apple harvest, excluding the production outside orchards, was estimated at 3,604.3 thousand tonnes in 2016, which is about 14.6% above the high yield obtained in the previous year. Apple orchard yields increased by 16.6% compared to 2015 and showed a significant improvement compared to previous years.
Achieving such high yields was possible thanks to the entry into full production of newly set up plantations with higher planting density and more productive trees. The apple orchard acreage, in fact, was similar to that of 2015. There were still three main varieties: Idared, Champion and Jonagold (their combined share in the apple acreage decreased only by 1 percent). Meanwhile, the share of the Gala, Golden Delicious and Ligol increased.
Despite the reduction of the acreage devoted to pear cultivation in orchards, the harvest volume from pear orchards amounted to approximately 81.5 thousand tonnes, i.e. 23.8% more than in 2015 and significantly more than in previous years. This increase was the result of the very high yield in the orchards.
The production of plums in orchards amounted to 109.5 thousand tonnes and was 20.6% greater than the small harvest obtained in 2015, exceeding also the figures recorded in previous years. The yields in plum orchards were significantly higher than those obtained in the previous year, while the acreage devoted to plum cultivation in orchards recorded a slight growth.
The harvest of sour cherries from orchards is estimated at 194.8 thousand tonnes, about 12% more than in the previous year, despite the fact that a significant amount of fruit was left on the trees. The cherry crop in 2016 was exceptionally high, but for economic reasons, not all fruits were harvested, with many growers abandoning the harvest due to the low purchase prices.
The production of sweet cherries from orchards in 2016 was record-breaking and amounted to 53.8 thousand tonnes, i.e. more than 17% above the total obtained in 2015 and a lot more than the average production achieved in previous years. This was primarily a result of the very good yields, while the acreage devoted to the fruit's cultivation increased only slightly compared to the previous year.
Lastly, the total production of peaches, apricots and walnuts in orchards was estimated at 20,900 tonnes, i.e. slightly higher than the production achieved in 2015. Compared with the previous year, only the apricot harvest decreased slightly, while the production of peaches and walnuts was higher. In recent years, a gradual reduction of the peach and apricot acreage has been observed in orchards.
Source: sadyogrody.pl
