Source: WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY submitted to NRP
EVALUATING FACTORS OF HARD CIDER PRODUCTION
Sponsoring Institution
State Agricultural Experiment Station
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
STATE
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1000194
Grant No.
(N/A)
Cumulative Award Amt.
(N/A)
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Jul 1, 2013
Project End Date
Jun 30, 2018
Grant Year
(N/A)
Program Code
[(N/A)]- (N/A)
Recipient Organization
WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY
240 FRENCH ADMINISTRATION BLDG
PULLMAN,WA 99164-0001
Performing Department
Mt. Vernon Res & Ext Unit
Non Technical Summary
The cider program at the Washington State University (WSU) Mount Vernon Northwest Research and Extension Center (NWREC) is one of the most active in the U.S., and is engaged in research including variety descriptions, juice characteristics, cider quality evaluations, mechanical harvest, and pest management. The cider block at WSU-NWREC includes approximately 60 unique cider apple varieties; this isthe largest U.S. research orchard for cider apples in terms of number of varieties. As the market for cider continues to expand, the demand for specialty cider apples is also increasing. Since the only use for these varieties is for cider making, growers need reliable information regarding juice characteristics, harvesting alternatives, mechanical pruning systems, costs of orchard establishment, and pest management. As the base of a value-added crop with expanding nationwide potential, we propose to establish cooperative cider projects with researchers in Virginia (Virginia Tech), Michigan (Michigan State University Extension), and New York (Cornell University).
Animal Health Component
90%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
90%
Developmental
10%
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
5011110200080%
6011110209020%
Knowledge Area
601 - Economics of Agricultural Production and Farm Management; 501 - New and Improved Food Processing Technologies;

Subject Of Investigation
1110 - Apple;

Field Of Science
2090 - Statistics, econometrics, and biometrics; 2000 - Chemistry;
Goals / Objectives
1. Varietal evaluation of cider apples for hard cider production, to include tree growth habit including growth type (spur, semi-spur, non-spur, tip bearing), blind wood, spreading vs upright habit, alternate bearing, bloom date, and fruit maturity date. For each variety, we will randomly select 50 lbs of fruit for milling and pressing, and we will evaluate juice for Brix, pH, malic acid and % tannins. In addition, we will evaluate potential variability in juice characteristics of varieties commonly grown by commercial cider producers in the region. 2. Investigate the potential of mechanization in cider apple orchards, particularly considering the use of over-the-row machine harvesting on trellis trained trees. Evaluate the use of labor-efficient pruning techniques such as mechanical hedging in mechanically harvested orchards. 3. Developthree cider apple enterprise budgets: A) costs of establishing an orchard in WA; B) comparison of hand harvest with mechanical harvest using currently available equipment (over-the-row small fruit harvesters), and C) comparison of hand pruning with mechanical hedging. 4. Review and compile research about anthracnose infection of cider apple and apple trees in cool humid coastal climate conditions.
Project Methods
1. Variety evaluation: We will collect fruit for juice analysis from the 2.2 acre WSU Mount Vernon-NWREC cider orchard, which was established in 1994 to 2006 and consists of 1 to 5 trees each of approximately 60 cider apple varieties. Each year, in April - May we will record full bloom date and bloom abundance, in the summer we will rate fruit set, and record tree vigor, habit, and disease incidence and severity. In Fall, we will sample fruit each week, measure Brix and starch conversion to determine optimum harvest dates for each variety, and record harvest dates. As each variety matures, we will randomly select 50 lb of ripe fruit, process in a hand cider mill and press, and measure % tannin, pH, titratable acid, Brix, and specific gravity following standard procedures. In the Fall, we will also collect 1 box (50 lb) each of four common varieties from at least four cooperators' orchards, located in areas throughout the region with differing climate conditions, to test and compare juice analyses from these sitesto those at WSU Mount Vernon-NWREC. Results will be published in research and extension publications. 2. Machine Pruning and Harvesting: We will compare mechanical hedging to hand pruning in a new orchard, which was established using a fruiting wall training system. Two common cider apple varieties, Brown Snout and Kingston Black, on Geneva 935 rootstock will be tested.The orchard study will include 4 replications of 20 trees per plot, spaced at 4' between trees and 12' between rows. We will also compare an over-the-row blueberry harvester (2013 BEI Model 1700) with hand harvest for 'Brown Snout' grafted on 2 rootstocks (M9 and M27) in an orchard study that includes 2 replications with 10 trees per plot (30 row feet). We will measure picked yield, weight of apples left on the tree, weight of groundfalls, and calculate the percent apples picked with the mechanical harvester. We will also measure the time to pick and calculate labor costs. Additionally, we will record damage to spurs and limbs for 3 trees per plot. For each plot, we will randomly select 3 boxes of fruit (50 lb per box), and press one box immediately and cold store (32 oF) the other boxes for 2 and 4 weeks, respectively; we will then press and analyze stored fruit and compare results to fresh pressed fruit. We will analyze juice for Brix, pH, malic acid and % Tannins to determine if mechanical harvest has a negative impact on juice characteristics. Results from this study will be used to develop a partial enterprise budget for mechanically harvested cider apples, and presented in research and extension publications. 3. Production cost models: We will estimate the typical costs for establishing and producing cider apples in Washington through focus group meetings. Meeting participants will be experienced cider apple growers. First, participants will describe common horticultural and management practices to produce cider apples. Second, participants will define the baseline assumptions for production, such as the size of the total farm operation, size of the production block, tree architecture, irrigation system, and planting density. Third, participants will identify major field activities, provide estimates for the variable and fixed costs of production, and achieve a consensus regarding average production costs. Fourth, participants will review and validate production cost models, and models will then be reviewed by industry representatives and extension agents. The final step will be to publish the results both as a WSU Extension bulletin and as a scientific journal article. The enterprise budget developed for orchard establishment will serve as the baseline for the partial budget analysis for harvest. The partial budget will focus on changes in costs due to the use of mechanical harvest instead of hand harvest. We will follow the guidelines by Kay et al. (2012) to estimate the factors that reduce or increase profiability, including costs that do not exist in the baseline enterprise budget and accompany the use of mechanical harvest revenue that can be received only when mechanical harvest is adopted; for example, increase in marketable crop yield, and other factors as they become apparent. The entries in the first category (additional costs and reduced revenue) will be aggregated, as well as the entries in second category (additional revenue and reduced costs). The total of each category will then be compared to estimate the net change in profit. 4. Review of apple anthracnose in cool humid coastal climates: Anthracnose is caused by the fungus Neofabraea malicorticis and is the primary disease impacting apple production in western Washington. Since anthracnose does not occur in eastern Washington, there is limited information regarding management of this disease in Washington. We will search the literature and compile information regarding susceptibility of cider apple varieties, and we will record incidence and severity of anthracnose on varieties at WSU Mount Vernon-NWREC. We will also compile information regarding anthracnose management in areas with a similar climateto western Washington. We will implement management strategies in our orchard and use results for the basis of anthracnose management recommendations for western Washington.

Progress 07/01/13 to 06/30/18

Outputs
Target Audience:Current and prospective cider makers and plant propagators are the primary target audiences of the information produced from research studies and Extension publications that have resulted from this research program. University colleagues and other agricultural professionals are the primary target audience for journal publications and conference presentations/abstracts that have resulted from this research program. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?New information gained from our research studies was disseminated to growers and scientific professionals at conferences in the U.S. Our research program at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC provides juice and technical support for The Cider School, a certificate course where 80% of cider makers in the U.S. today have participated. One PhD student graduated in this project. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Preliminary and final results were presented at local and regional grower's workshops and conferences, national and international scientific conferences, and in newsletters. Final results were also published in scientific journals and Extension publications. A new Extension manual is being developed, and web pages have been posted to highlight project results. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Bloom date and abundance, fruit habit (e.g., biennial), fruit size, and juice characteristics (pertaining to cider making) were evaluated for 65 cider apple varieties at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC, and we published this information on our website. We continue to collect data each year with the end goal of having at least 10 years of data on all varieties. This information provides a better understanding of which varieties have a strong tendency to alternate bearing, a critical factor to consider when selecting a variety for planting. We are creating a specialty cider apple variety web page and including all the above information plus varietal cider sensory evaluation information that we completed last year. We published a study to evaluate ciders made with 1 variety that was handpicked and picked mechanically; evaluation was done by a sensory evaluation panel at WSU Pullman in collaboration with Dr. C. Ross, and using the electronic tongue. A long-term goal of our project is to develop an electronic sensory analysis protocol for cider. Mechanical harvest may be a significant cost-saving production practice for cider apples, and we have a new extension manual in press that provided management guidelines for an orchard that is designed for mechanized pruning and harvest. We are carrying out another study to determine the costs of establishing a cider apple orchard for three scales of production: small (10 acres), medium (25 acres) and large (50 acres). We are testing mechanical pruning in our cider apple orchard to determine if this mechanization has any short-term effects on tree health and fruit productivity of 65 specialty cider varieties. In a separate research study including 30 specialty cider varieties, we are testing two non-destructive fruit quality meters (Delta Absorbance Meter, and Produce Quality Meter) and will correlate results with juice characteristics, with the end goal of developing a non-destructive assay to determine optimal time to harvest fruit. In another study, we published cultural methods as well as fungicide sprays to control apple anthracnose canker on cider trees at NWREC; overall, we found disease incidence was reduced but not eliminated. We are assisting our new WSU instructor with the lab portion of the Cider School.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2018 Citation: Garton,W.J., M. Mazzola, N. Dasgupta , T.R. Alexander and C.A. Miles. 2018. Evaluation of canker excision in combination with cauterization and/or fungicides for the management of anthracnose canker on cider apple trees in western Washington. HortTechnology 28:in press.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Alexander, T.R., C.F. Ross, E.A. Walsh, and C.A. Miles. 2018. Sensory comparison of ciders produced from machine- and hand-harvested 'Brown Snout' specialty cider apples stored at ambient conditions in Northwest Washington. HortTechnology 28:35-43.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Garton, Whitney J., Lisa W. DeVetter, Mark Mazzola, and Carol A. Miles. 2018. A review of Neofabraea malicorticis biology and management of anthracnose canker in apple orchards in the maritime Pacific Northwest. J. Amer. Pomol. Soc. 72:113-121.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2018 Citation: Alexander, T.R., S. Mussachi, E. Scheenstra, J. King and C.A. Miles. 2018. Establishing a cider apple orchard for mechanized management. HortScience: in press.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2018 Citation: Alexander, T.R., C.F. Ross, E.A. Walsh, and C.A. Miles. 2018. Comparison of the polyphenol profiles of juice and cider derived from machine- and hand-harvested Brown Snout in northwest Washington. HortScience: in press.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Alexander, T.R., E. Scheenstra, J. King and C. Miles. 2018. Varietal ciders: From branch to bottle. National Cider Conference, CiderCON. Baltimore, MD. 1 February, 2018.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Garton, W., C. Miles and M. Mazzola. 2018. Anthracnose canker integrated management plan for home gardeners in western Washington. Washington State University Extension publication FS275E, 8p.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Garton, W., C. Miles and M. Mazzola. 2018. Anthracnose canker management plan for commercial apple orchards in western Washington. Washington State University Extension publication FS295E, 8p.


Progress 10/01/16 to 09/30/17

Outputs
Target Audience:Current and prospective cider makers and plant propagators are the primary target audiences of the information produced from research studies and Extension publications that have resulted from this research program. University colleagues and other agricultural professionals are the primary target audience for journal publications and conference presentations/abstracts that have resulted from this research program. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The Cider School has now become a fixed offering at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC, and our research program provides juice and technical support for these classes. New information gained from our research studies was disseminated to growers and scientific professionals at conferences in the US. One PhD is still working on the project and two MS students successfully completed their research on the project and have graduated. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Preliminary and final results were presented at local and regional grower's workshops and conferences, national and international scientific conferences, and in newsletters. Final results were also published in scientific journals. A new Extension fact sheet is being developed, and web pages have been posted to highlight project results. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We have expanded our research orchard to include a block of cider apples that is at a wider between-row spacing to accommodate a new mechanical harvester that we hope to test in the future (it takes 3 years for trees to start bearing fruit). We also established a new replicated block that includes 3 varieties that will enable us to test management practices and impact on fruit yield and juice quality. We will continue field research projects and laboratory assays to test mechanical pruning and mechanical harvest. We will continue to present preliminary results and publish final results to disseminate results to stakeholders and colleagues.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Bloom date and abundance were evaluated for 55 cider apple varieties at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC and we published this information for 17 varieties as we had an adequate number of years to show year-to-year variation for these varieties; we continue to collect data each year with the end goal of having at least 10 years of data on all varieties. This information provides a better understanding of which varieties have a strong tendency to alternate bearing, a critical factor to consider when selecting a variety for planting. Four varieties were selected for cider making and varietal characteristics were evaluated through sensory analysis. Our focus is to identify determine if varieties with high tannins also have good body and viscosity characteristics. We have completed a study to evaluate ciders made with 1 variety that was handpicked and picked mechanically; evaluation was done by a sensory evaluation panel at WSU Pullman in collaboration with Dr. C. Ross, and using the electronic tongue. A goal of our project is to develop an electronic sensory analysis protocol for cider. Mechanical harvest may be a significant cost-saving production practice for cider apples, however, it is important to understand it's impact on fruit juice and cider quality. We completed a preliminary study to determine the costs of establishing a cider apple orchard for two mechanical harvest systems: shake and catch with new and innovative equipment that our project is leading the effort to test with cider apples, and shake and sweep using equipment currently used in Europe. We continue to work with harvester manufacturers in an effort to test their equipment with cider apples. We have established a new replicated cider orchard at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC with 68 varieties in order to conduct orchard research studies for mechanization for cider apple production. In another study, we tested cultural methods as well as fungicide sprays to control apple anthracnose canker at NWREC, and found disease incidence to be reduced but not eliminated. A new WSU instructor was hired at WSU Mount Vernon to teach Cider School; this is a new position and program for WSU and was created due to the success of our research program.

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2017 Citation: Alexander, T.R., E.A. Walsh, C. Ross and C.A. Miles. 2017. Sensory comparison of hand and machine harvested Brown Snout utliziing a trained panel and ?-Astree II Potentiometric electronic tongue. HortScience 52(9):S in press.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Miles, C., J. King, T. Alexander and E. Scheenstra. 2017. Evaluation of flower, fruit, and juice characteristics of a multinational collection of cider apple cultivars grown in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. HortTech 27:431-439.
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Miles, C., T. Alexander, J. King, and E. Scheenstra. 2016. Comparison of juice quality of hand and machine harvested cider apples. In Cider Handbook 2016-17, Scott Laboratories, Inc., Petaluma, CA 94955/Scott Laboratories, Ltd., Pickering, Ontario L1W2A1, p. 16.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2017 Citation: Miles, C.A., J. King, T.R. Alexander, and E. Scheenstra. 2017. Evaluation of flower, fruit and juice characteristics of a multinational collection of cider apple cultivars grown in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. HortScience 52(9):S in press.


Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16

Outputs
Target Audience:Current and prospective cider makers and plant propagators are the primary target audiences of the information produced from research studies and Extension publications that have resulted from this research program. University colleagues and other agricultural professionals are the primary target audience for journal publications and conference presentations/abstracts that have resulted from this research program. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The Cider School was offered once at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC, and WSU is in the process of hiring a new instructor to take leadership for these classes. New information gained from our research studies was disseminated to growers and scientific professionals at conferences in the US. One PhD and two MS student are working on this project. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Preliminary results were presented at local and regional grower's workshops and conferences, national and international scientific conferences, and in newsletters. Final results were published in scientific journals. A new Extension fact sheet is being developed, and web pages have been posted to highlight project results. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We will continue field research projects and laboratory assays, and will continue to present preliminary results and publish final results to disseminate results to stakeholders and colleagues.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Bloom date and abundance were evaluated for 55 cider apple varieties at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC; this information provides a better understanding of which varieties have a strong tendency to alternate bearing. Juice analysis was performed on 45 varieties, and 4 varieties were selected for cider making. Our focus is to identify varieties with high tannins, which give more body and viscosity to ciders blended with standard dessert apples. Ciders that were pressed in 2015 were evaluated by a sensory evaluation panel at WSU Pullman in collaboration with Dr. C. Ross, and using the electronic tongue. Our goal is to develop an electronic sensory analysis protocol for cider. Cider apples trellised using a center spindle system were harvested with an over-the-row raspberry harvester and fruit were pressed after 0, 2 and 4 weeks of storage in an open barn (following common orchard practices). We found 100% of fruit were bruised and yield loss was significant due to rotting if fruit were not processed immediately; however, there was no impact on juice quality for non-rotted fruit. The person-hours used to mechanically harvest cider apples were significantly lower than for hand harvest, thus mechanical harvest may be a significant cost-saving production practice for cider apples. However, the cost-benefit of mechanical harvest depends, as expected, on purchase or lease costs of the equipment as well as the total number of acres being harvested. Results were published in a journal article and an Extension factsheet. Juice from mechanical harvest is being fermented and chemical and sensory analysis will be carried out in 2017. In a separate 2-year study, we evaluated juice characteristics of four cider apple varieties collected from four commercial orchards in Washington. We found there was no impact due to environment, juice qualities differed from those published from long-term studies in England, and we published our results in a journal article. We are developing the costs of establishing a cider apple orchard for two mechanical harvest systems, and are working with harvester manufacturers to test their equipment with cider apples. We are establishing a new replicated cider orchard at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC in order to conduct orchard research studies for cider varieties. In another study, we tested cultural methods as well as fungicide sprays to control apple anthracnose canker at NWREC, and found disease incidence to be reduced but not eliminated. We hosted the Cider School, organized by David Bauermeister of NABC and taught by Peter Mitchell, Worcestershire, England, and interviewed 2 candidates for the position of Cider School Instructor at WSU.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Alexander, T., J. King, E. Scheenstra, and C.A. Miles. 2016. Yield, fruit damage, yield loss and juice quality characteristics of machine and hand harvested 'Brown Snout' specialty cider apple stored at ambient conditions in northwest Washington. HortTechnology 26(5):614-619.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2016 Citation: Alexander, T., J. King, A. Zimmerman, and C. Miles. 2016. Regional variation in juice quality characteristics of four cider apple (Malus � domestica Borkh.) cultivars in northwest and central Washington. HortScience in press.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Miles, C., T. Alexander, J. King, and E. Scheenstra. 2016. Comparison of juice quality of hand and machine harvested cider apples. In Cider Handbook 2016-17, Scott Laboratories, Inc., Petaluma, CA 94955/Scott Laboratories, Ltd., Pickering, Ontario L1W2A1, p. 16.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Alexander, T., E. Scheenstra, J. King, and C.A. Miles. 2016. Innovations In Mechanical Harvest For Cider Apples. HortScience 51(9):S127.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Alexander, T. A. Zimmerman, E. Scheenstra, J. King, and C.A. Miles. 2016. Washington Regional Cider Apple Juice Characteristics. HortScience 51(9):S376.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Garton, W., M. Mazzola, and C. Miles. 2016. Apple anthracnose life cycle and disease cycle. HortScience 51(9):S377.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Garton, W., M. Mazzola, and C. Miles. 2016. Apple anthracnose canker life cycle and disease cycle. APS Pacific Division Annual Meeting, 28-30 June, 2016, La Conner, WA.


Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15

Outputs
Target Audience:Current and prospective cider makers and plant propagators are the primary target audiences of the information produced from research studies and Extension publications that have resulted from this research program. University colleagues and other agricultural professionals are the primary target audience for journal publications and conference presentations/abstracts that have resulted from this research program. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Workshops for cider makers professionals working with cider are offered twice annually at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC. New information gained from our research studies was disseminated to growers and scientific professionals at conferences in the US. One PhD student and one MS student have been recruited for this project. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Preliminary results were presented at local and regional grower's workshops and conferences, national and international scientific conferences, and in newsletters. Final results were published in scientific journals. A new Extension fact sheet is being developed, and web pages have been posted to highlight project results. Research and Extension Presentations: Invited - National 2/15 Mechanized cider apple harvest. National Cider Conference, Chicago, IL Invited - Regional 12/15 Innovations in mechanical harvest for cider apples. New England Vegetable and Fruit Conference, Manchester, New Hampshire. 2/15 Cider varieties, juice quality, costs or orchard establishment, and mechanization. Cider workshop, Santa Rosa, CA. Invited - State 2/15 Cider apple varieties and juice quality. San Juan Islands Agricultural Summit, Lopez Island, WA. 2/15 National cider research initiative. State of Cider Summit, Everett, WA. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We will continue field research projects, and will continue to present preliminary results and publish final results to disseminate results to stakeholders and colleagues.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Bloom date and abundance were evaluated for 55 cider apple varieties at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC; this information provides a better understanding of which varieties have a strong tendency to alternate bearing. Juice analysis was performed on 45 varieties, and 4 varieties were selected for cider making, with cider to be evaluated in 2016. Our focus is to identify varieties with high tannins, which give more body and viscosity to ciders blended with standard dessert apples. Three ciders that were pressed in 2014 and were evaluated by a sensory evaluation panel consisting of cider makers in western and central Washington. Cider apples that are trellised using a center spindle system were harvested with a raspberry harvester and impact on fruit bruising, juice quality, and labor time were analyzed. Fruit are being pressed after 0, 2 and 4 weeks of storage in an open barn (following common orchard practices) and we are evaluating impact on juice and cider quality. Although fruit was 100% bruised by mechanical harvest, there was no impact on juice quality when fruit were cold-stored for 2 and 4 weeks prior to pressing. The person-hours used to mechanically harvest cider apples was significantly lower than for hand harvest. Thus mechanical harvest may be a significant cost-saving production practice for cider apples, however it is necessary to ascertain impact on stored fruit following grower practices. This is the second year of this 2-year study, and results are being prepared for publication. In a separate 2-year study, we are evaluating juice and varietal cider qualities and characteristics for four cider apple varieties collected from four commercial orchards in Washington; the goal is to measure impact of environment on variety characteristics; results are being prepared for publication. We are establishing a new replicated variety cider orchard at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC in order to conduct orchard research studies. The annual Cider School and the advanced course were held twice in 2015 due to high demand. The courses are organized by David Bauermeister of NABC, and taught by Peter Mitchell, Worcestershire, England, and drew participants from Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia, also from more distant states. In addition, two 1-day cider workshops were held during the year to provide an introduction to cider apple growing, cider making, and the current status of the cider industry in Washington.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2015 Citation: Peck, G. and C. Miles. 2015. Assessing the production scale and research and extension needs of U.S. hard cider producers. Journal of Extension. 53(5): Article 5FEA10. Available at: http://www.joe.org/joe/2015october/a10.php
  • Type: Other Status: Accepted Year Published: 2015 Citation: Miles, C., J. King, A. Zimmerman, and E. Scheenstra. 2015. Recent Advances in Cider Research: Characteristics of Northwest Washington Cider Apple Juice and Varietal Ciders. In Cider Handbook 2015-16, Scott Laboratories, Inc., Petaluma, CA 94955/Scott Laboratories, Ltd., Pickering, Ontario L1W2A1, p. 16


Progress 10/01/13 to 09/30/14

Outputs
Target Audience: Current and prospective cider makers and plant propagators are the primary target audiences of the information produced from research studies and Extension publications that have resulted from this research program. University colleagues and other agricultural professionals are the primary target audience for journal publications and conference presentations/abstracts that have resulted from this research program. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Workshops for cider makers and other professionals working with cider are offered twice annually at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Preliminary results were presented at local and regional grower's workshops and conferences, national and international scientific conferences, and in newsletters. Final results were published in scientific journals. New Extension fact sheets have been published and web pages posted to highlight project results. Research and Extension Presentations Invited - National 2/14 Mechanized cider apple harvest. National Cider Conference, Chicago, IL 1/14 Cider apple production and evaluation. EcoFarm Conference, Pacific Grove, CA. 1/14 Cider apple production and evaluation. Empire State Producers Expo, Syracuse, NY. 1/14 Cider apple production and evaluation. Great Plains Expo, St. Joseph, MO. Invited - Regional 5/14 Hard cider for good times. Mother Earth News Sustainable Living Fair, Puyallup, WA. Invited - State 11/14 Hard cider for good times. Focus on Farming Annual Conference, Monroe, WA. 5/14 Costs of establishing a cider orchard in western Washington and mechanical harvest. The Business of Making Cider workshop organized by NABC, Mount Vernon, WA. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? We will continue field research projects, and will continue to present preliminary results and publish final results to disseminate results to stakeholders and colleagues.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Bloom date and abundance were evaluated for 55 cider apple varieties at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC. Some varieties have a tendency to alternate bearing. Early blooming varieties are less susceptible to fire blight (Erwina amylovora) infection than late bloomers, a trait of particular importance in areas of eastern Washington where that disease is a problem. Juice analysis was performed on 48 varieties, and 3 varieties were selected for cider making, with cider to be evaluated in 2015. Our focus is to identify varieties with high tannins, which give more body and viscosity to ciders blended with standard dessert apples. Four ciders that were pressed in 2013 were evaluated by a sensory evaluation panel consisting of cider makers in western and central Washington; the goal is to form a sensory evaluation panel that will evaluate new ciders submitted by cider makers to ensure high quality prior to mass production and marketing. Cider apples that are trellised using a center spindle system were harvested with a raspberry harvester and impact on fruit bruising, juice quality, and labor time were analyzed. Fruit are being pressed after 0, 2 and 4 weeks of storage in an open barn (following common orchard practices) and we are evaluating impact on juice and cider quality. Although fruit was 100% bruised by mechanical harvest, there was no impact on juice quality when fruit were cold-stored for 2 and 4 weeks prior to pressing. The person-hours used to mechanically harvest cider apples was significantly lower than for hand harvest. Thus mechanical harvest may be a significant cost-saving production practice for cider apples, however it is necessary to ascertain impact on stored fruit following grower practices. In a separate study, we are evaluating juice and varietal cider qualities and characteristics for four cider apple varieties collected from four commercial orchards in Washington; the goal is to measure impact of environment on variety characteristics. We are establishing a new replicated variety cider orchard at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC in order to conduct orchard research studies. The annual Cider School and the advanced course were held twice in 2014, due to high demand. The courses are organized by David Bauermeister of NABC, and taught by Peter Mitchell, Worcestershire, England, and drew participants from Washington, Oregon, British Columbia, and also from more distant states. In addition, two 1-day cider workshops were held during2014 to provide an introduction to cider apple growing, cider making, and the current status of the cider industry in Washington.

Publications

  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Peck, G., C. Miles, J. King, T. Bradshaw, N. Rothwell, and I. Merwin. 2014. An introduction to hard cider in the U.S. eXtension, http://www.extension.org/pages/70601/an-introduction-to-hard-cider-in-the-us#.U438Wibn-Ul
  • Type: Other Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Galinato, S.P., K. Gallardo, and C.Miles. 2014. Cost estimates of establishing a cider orchard in western Washington. Washington State University Extension publication FS141E, 6 p.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2014 Citation: Peck, G. and C. Miles. 2014. Surveying the Research and Extension Needs of U.S. Cider Apple Growers and Cider Makers. HortScience 49(9):S402.


Progress 07/01/13 to 09/30/13

Outputs
Target Audience: Commercial cider apple growers and makers with a focus in Washington but also nationally. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Twograduate students received training with this project. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Information is disseminated through: project website; local, regional and national presentations to growers and colleagues; and preliminary reports and factsheets. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Continue field trial of specialty cider varieties and evaluate juice quality. Select 2-4 varieties for cider making and provide varietal ciders to sensory panel for evaluation and description. Evaluate a small fruit harvester for mechanical harvest of cider apples. Update juice and varietal cider data bases with new results, post new information on our website. We will measure the cost of establishing a new cider apple orchard in central Washington, and we will measure the costs of mechanical harvest with a small fruit harvester as compared to hand harvest. Present preliminary results at grower and science meetings in Washington and nationally. Prepare journal articles for publication. Establish a replicated specialty cider apple orchard at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC. Establish a replicated orchard for studies of mechanical harvest.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? We collected and analyzed juice from 34 cider apple varieties growing in our NWREC research orchard. We evaluated 4 varietal ciders and made 2 new ciders to be evaluated next year. We identified effective cider evaluators (professional cider makers in the PNW) who will be available to evaluate ciders to improve quality prior to mass production and marketing. We tested a small fruit harvester (BEI) for mechanical harvest of cider apples, and although it had a lower harvest efficiency than the model tested previously (Littau), the equipment design appears more suitable for cider apples. We measured the cost of establishing a new cider apple orchard in western Washington. We presented results at local, regional and national meetings. We created new factsheets with preliminary results and posted new information on our website. We are preparing 2 manuscripts for submission to scientific journals.

Publications

  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2013 Citation: Miles, C.A., J. Roozen, J. King, K. Hasenhoehrl and D. Bauermeister. 2013. Mechanical harvest of hard cider apples. HortScience 48(9): S237.