Alberto Dorigoni Franco Micheli

Fondazione Edmund Mach, Italy Fondazione Edmund Mach, Italy

[email protected]

Guyot planting system

Development of a cultivation system

for multi-leader trees
Info With respect to quality and labour, a narrow fruit wall offers great advantages when com-
pared to a traditional spindle. The challenge is to optimise the relationship between the
EFM 2018-02 productive tree volume and the non-productive space between the rows to ensure that the
In the EFM edition of advantages of the narrow fruit wall are combined with the highest possible production. This
February 2018, Alber- can be achieved by adapting the planting system.
to Dorigoni presented
his multi-leader or
Guyot system. A tree Tree architecture plays a pivotal role in the sys- alternative to the spindle or other traditional
shape is not the only tem used in an orchard and affects most of the training systems. It is the latest stage in the devel-
thing that matters, it choices growers have to take (Fig. 1). The Guyot opment from the standard conical-shaped spin-
is be considered to- training system was recently proposed as an dle, through intermediate shapes including the
gether with the plant-
ing and cultivation
system. Parallel to the
development of the Fig. 1: Tree architecture is a pivotal factor in the jigsaw puzzle
tree shape, Dorigoni
has also developed
and researched a suit- Crop protection
able planting sys- Rootstock
tem. The principle on Crop load management
which it is based is the
maximum production
of fruit of the highest
quality per hectare of Plant
fruit trees. During the spacing
Interpoma Congress, Multi-task nets
‘The International
Show of the Apple’, in
mid-November 2018,
Dorigoni presented Tree
the results of trials Pruning
with this planting
architecture
system.
Mechanization

Soil management

Automation

Harvest Crop quality

All photos & figures Alberto Dorigoni

8 EFM 2019-5
 The Guyot system
for apple and pear
Is the slender spindle
in apple going to be
replaced by narrow
hedge systems? The
advantages of narrow
hedges (fruit walls)
are, among others:
more light (skin col-
our), better labour ef-
Fig. 2: Guyot training: a developmental step beyond the permanent multi-leader ficiency and the pos-
sibility to automate
Bibaum® and multi-leader, to a two dimensional through 90°, leaving one or two horizontal stems cultivation measures
canopy, where there are no secondary branches as the only permanent structure. The secondary and (in future) even
and not even permanent branches. structure is formed by upright semi-permanent to robotise them.
During the last few
branches (Fig. 2). Because there are no downward decades, researcher
The multi-leader Guyot hanging branches, production can start close Alberto Dorigoni of
to the ground (35 cm). The vertical branches Fondazione Edmund
The multi-leader Guyot system creates a narrow are tied to the wires 15-25 cm apart (Fig. 3). The Mach in San Michele
tree canopy that is just 35 cm deep. This peculiar main challenges growers face when they decide all’Adige (Italy), has
shape is made feasible by the amazing plasticity to radically transform the trees in their orchards done research into
of fruit trees, whose standard shape is rotated into this innovative tree shape are row spac- narrow fruit hedges
and matching tree
ing and machinery. In fact, the result of such an
shapes. In 2005 a start
ultra-narrow fruit wall is an entirely new range was made with trees
of orchard parameters concerning tree height, with two central lead-
spacing, machinery, etc. As a consequence we ers (Bibaum®). In the
must re-think the orchard system, exploring to- following years trees
tally new ways to produce fruit that resemble with 3, 4, 6 or 8 central
the techniques used in viticulture (the cultiva- leaders were planted.
In this article, he pre-
tion of grapevines). Starting from a suitable tree
sents the advantages
purchased from the nursery will simplify what and disadvantages
the grower has to do in the orchard. of trees with several
central leaders: the
No lateral branches multi central leader or
Guyot system.
The Guyot training system lacks lateral branch-
ing and therefore allows:
y Extensive mechanisation (thinning, pruning,
leaf removal, in the future even robotic har-
vesting)
y Totally uniform fruit exposure to light from
top to bottom
y The fruits to be easily seen and reached (hand
thinning, efficient picking)
Fig. 3: Vertical branches are tied to the wires y The fruits to be held firmly in the same posi-
15-25 cm apart tion from spring to harvest (Fig. 4)

EFM 2019-5 9
 a. Lower financial investment due to fewer
trees/ha
b. Suitable for high-fertility soils and vigorous
varieties/rootstocks

Trials and the field experience

In all training systems, row spacing is linked to
tree height. The optimum ratio between height
and row spacing varies according to latitude,
from 1.1 in Southern European countries includ-
ing Spain, France and Italy to 0.8 in the Northern
European countries including UK and Norway.
For example, in Italy 3.5-metre high spindles
need at least a 3.2-metre row spacing for two
reasons: 1) to have enough space for 1.4-metre
Fig. 4: The lack of downwards hanging branches allows production to start close to wide tractors and 2) enough light for the scaf-
the ground (0.35 m) fold branches that hold fruits at about 1 metre
from the trunk. 2D Guyot trees are much shorter
y The canopy to shrink to a depth of 0.35 m and and narrower, which means that a 3.2-metre row
reduce the alleyways to < 2 metres spacing would be unnecessary for machinery and
y The canopy to be easily ‘segmented’ into equal sunlight interception and would waste space.
sections to allow precision horticulture criteria
to be applied Growth control tools
Simple or double Guyot On 3D spindle trees (Fig. 7), crop and vegetation
tend to move upwards and outwards during the
There are two types of Guyot training system life of the orchard and it is challenging to coun-
(Fig. 5 and 6); the simple Guyot system that uses teract this tendency through the years by using
traditional one- or two-year old knip-trees and pruning and growth control methods (Fig. 8). In
the double Guyot which uses Bibaum trees. The addition to the standard ways of controlling vig-
main advantages and disadvantages are: our (root pruning, plant growth regulators (PGRs),
1. Simple Guyot from spindle etc.), the Guyot system allows other specific tools
a. Better precocity due to high number of to be used. Because each tree has 8-15 vertical
trees/ha (2500-4500) branches rising from 1 or 2 semi-horizontal stems
b. Suitable for medium- and low-fertility soils instead of 1 central leader, any kind of summer
c. Better orientation on steep slopes or winter pruning of the lateral twigs that grow
2. Double Guyot from Bibaum® on these weak shoots results in much less re-

Fig. 5: Simple Guyot Evelina in Val di Non (2nd leaf: 11 kg/tree) Fig. 6: 2nd leaf of double Guyot Pink Lady (Ferrara)
with 25 kg/tree

10 EFM 2019-5
 Fig. 7: 3D conical shape of traditional spindle

Fig. 8: After 10 years, super spindle tops become dif-

ficult to manage

Fig. 9: Weak regrowth after summer pruning of laterals

trol the trees and keep the fruiting wood young

without losing crop.
Fig. 10: Unlike any other single leader training sys-
tem, all strong branches are replaced at a very low A new planting system
height, 0.5 metres from the ground

How to handle the cultivation operations in Guy-

ot orchards?
growth than the same cut performed on the There are different planting solutions. The chal-
thick branches springing from a single vertical lenge is not really machinery; in fact there is
leader tree (Fig. 9). For this reason, the horizontal plenty of cheap small-sized equipment on the
shoots can be cut back very short, to 2-3 buds. market. The problem is the 110-120-cm square
Another formidable tool for controlling vigour bin that must fit in the space between the rows
is given by the peculiar position of the main during the harvest. Rotating bins, like the ones
stem(s) that are trained horizontally 0.5 metres used by the bin fillers of some harvesting ma-
from the ground. In Guyot-trained trees, the chines, need 160 cm of free space between the
vertical branches (20,000-30,000/ha) are not per- rows and are therefore not very suitable for use
manent: this allows the successful replacement with the Guyot system. The inter-row space of just
of any strong vertical branch with a new one, 2 metres also reduces the effectiveness of con-
starting at the same height, just 0.5 metre from veyer belts. There are at least 2 planting options:
the ground, at any time in the life of the orchard y Single rows at 2.0-2.2 metres (semi-pedestrian)
(Fig. 10). When Guyot trees are adult, the yearly y Double rows at 2.0-2.2 + 1.4 metres (pedes-
renewal of 5% of the upright branches can con- trian):

EFM 2019-5 11
 Single rows
Choosing an inter-row spacing of 2.0-2.3 metres,
like that used in modern viticulture, allows most
standard orchard machinery to be used, if some
pruning is done in early summer and after the
harvest. Often it is not tractors that have difficul-
ty with the width, but the mowing machines or
other equipment that, if such inter-row spacing is
chosen, must be replaced by narrower machines.
The trees must be kept about 2.5-2.7-metre high,
a semi-pedestrian height (Fig. 11). Crop protec-
tion can be performed every other row using
standard sprayers. In sensitive areas where drift
must be reduced to a minimum, spraying every
Fig. 11: Single row of Guyot-trained Gala at an inter-row spacing of 2 metres results
in a semi-pedestrian orchard 2.5 metres high
row without using a fan is an interesting option.

Double rows
In many orchards, for economic reasons, grow-
ers prefer to keep to the row spacing that was
previously used and the anti-hail system that is
already in place. If this is the case, a large inter-
row spacing of about 3.5 to 4 metres is often in-
herited from the previous planting. In this case,
double-row planting can be an interesting eco-
nomic option (Fig. 12). Consultants and grow-
ers still remember the bad experiences of the
multiple rows of the eighties. After a few years,
the double rows of spindles resulted in shaded,
vigorous trees that produced a poor quality crop.
This is not the case with Guyot training that, if
well managed, can keep the depth of the canopy
below 0.4 metres.
To understand the pros and cons of double rows,
Fig. 12: Double rows of Guyot-trained Fuji at an inter-row spacing of 2.2 + 1.3 metres
we can learn from the experiences with Tatura
planting, a training system common in Wash-
ington State, USA and Australia. This system is
renowned for its high productivity and low levels
of shading. In addition to its structural complex-
ity that makes it probably the most expensive
way to train trees, Tatura can be regarded as a
particular kind of double-row system in which
the two rows originate from one single line and
are bent outward at a certain angle. All opera-
missing photo 13 tions, including spraying, pruning and harvesting,
must be performed from the outside (Fig. 13).

Alternating 2.2 + 1.4 row spacing

Like the Tatura system, when double-row train-
ing of 2.2 + 1.4 metres is used, spraying and har-
vesting are done from the large inter-row space
(Fig. 14), but unlike in the Tatura system, most
manual and mechanical cultivation operations,
including manual and mechanical pruning, thin-
Fig. 13: Canopy structures of Tatura and double rows ning, soil management, etc., can be performed

12 EFM 2019-5
 Fig. 15: Here, the double row of 2-year old Gala beco-
mes productive before the old Conference pear trees Fig. 14: In double rows of Guyot-trained trees the fruits are harvested from the wide
are grubbed alley

from both the wide and the narrow alleys. Cheap, ent years in a sort of ‘relay race’ with the previous
less-than-1 metre wide, machinery can be used planting, reducing the length of the unproduc-
in the 1.4-metre alleyway to mow the grass and tive phase of planting (Fig. 15). Due to the high
to do other mechanical tasks, including canopy light interception, in a private orchard the pro-
hedging. Vertical branches and posts are also ductivity of fully pedestrian double rows of Pink
preferable to the Tatura angled trellis, both from Lady® and Gala in the first 4 years was similar to
a physiological (upright shooting is natural) and standard 3.5-metre wide Bibaum planting. The
structural (more stability) point of view. The re- challenge is to investigate how long this system
sult is a 2.2-metre high 2D pedestrian orchard, could work without a loss of quality and crop in
all of which can be reached from both sides, but the inside of the double rows, while taking ad-
sprayed and harvested from the outside, just like vantage of being able to replace or even suppress
a Tatura-trained orchard. Crop protection is nor- vigorous vertical branches. It is also important
mally achieved by spraying only in the wide alley, to assess, for each variety, the number of fruits
because there is no need to spray in the narrow per metre of branch that can sustain both good
alley. Double rows can also be planted in differ- quality and adequate flowering.

Guyot training in perspective

As a consequence of its unusual architecture, in the Guyot system there
is plenty of room for SLIM (Small Light Manageable Intelligent) mecha-
nisation, although the traditional powerful and bulky tools are unsuit-
able. Mechanical pruning is an important method to keep the shape of
trees within the narrow allotted space. Mechanical thinning and me-
chanical weed control can be easily used in a Guyot-trained orchard.
As for harvesting, several attempts are being made world-wide to pick
apples entirely by machine. Among others, Osti snc, an Italian company,
is working on a new approach to robotic harvesting specifically for use
in a 2D Guyot-trained orchard. Their idea is to build a picking machine
that will fit in the 2.2-metre alleyways, whose robotic arms would pick
only the ripe fruits and put them immediately into stationary bins with-
out the need for conveyer belts.

EFM 2019-5 13