Resources (Research)

Tree Fruit Insect and Mite Pest Management

Photos, fact sheets, seasonal recommendations and answers to FAQs to help you ID and manage orchard insect and mite pests.

Insect and Mite Fact Sheets

Identification, scouting, and management of common fruit insect and mite pests.

Frequently Asked Questions about Orchard IPM and Monitoring

Answers to common questions we receive on applying IPM practices in orchards.

Best Horticultural Practices for Orchards

Fact Sheets and seasonal observations on orchard fertilization, weed control and various cultural practices affecting fruit quality.

Commercial Fruit Production Fact Sheets

Fact sheets that will help you plan, establish and manage an orchard or small fruit planting.

Tree Fruit Production Videos

Short "Learn Now" videos on sustainable and innovative production practices.

On-line Courses for Beginning Commercial Growers

Top-Working Decision Workbook

This workbook can be used to help you evaluate whether top-working an established apple block to another cultivar is economical. It estimates the cost of the various steps in the grafting process and compares them with the alternative of purchasing new trees, preparing the site, and replanting the orchard.

Tree Fruit Disease Control

Fact sheets and seasonal observations to help you ID and manage common orchard diseases.

Fruit Disease Fact Sheets

Symptom, life cycle and management information for common fruit diseases.

Orchard Spray Record-keeping

The most recent versions of the Penn State Extension Orchard Spray Record-keeping tool.

Orchard Spray Record-keeping

A tool for managing spray application records for an orchard, designed with EPA record-keeping and reporting to processors and packing houses in mind.

Team Reports

2019-2020 Tree Fruit Team Report

PDF document, 395.6 KB

2018-19 Tree Fruit Team Report

PDF document, 295.3 KB

2017-18 Tree Fruit Team Report

PDF document, 2.3 MB

Specialty Crop Innovations - Progress and Future Directions

PDF document, 663.8 KB

Penn State Extension Tree Fruit Team - Putting Knowledge to Work in PA Orchards

Workshop Presentations

Employee Recruitment and Retention

Penn State Extension session conducted during the 2020 Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention.

2019 Winter Tree Fruit Schools

Folder for all of the 2019 Winter Tree Fruit School presentations and associated files.

2018 Winter Tree Fruit School

Historical presentations from the 2018 Winter Tree Fruit School in Biglerville, PA.

Workshops & Events

Presentations, files, and multimedia from workshops where FREC and Penn State Extension faculty, researchers, and educators have participated.

Resources for Small and Beginning Growers

Information on farm business management, including the Start Farming project, models for the future, land acquisition, value-added agriculture and food for profit. Resources also available for new women farmers, young next generation producers and next generation Hispanic producers.

Start Farming--Support for a Next Generation of Farmers

Pre-plant Bio-remediation of Orchard Sites

Penn State Extension partners with growers in a "Models for the Future" project to provide on-farm demonstrations for new, young, and minority farmers. Two years of bio-remediation with rotation crops suppressed nematodes and improved soil health.

Model Apple Plot Presentation, Mid-Atlantic Fruit & Vegetable Convention

PDF document, 1.4 MB

Building Coalitions - the Key to Developing Markets

PDF document, 643.3 KB

Lunch & Learn presentation for Young Specialty Crop Growers by Dr. Brent Hales, Director of Penn State Extension.

Field Guide to Tree Fruit Disorders, Pests, and Beneficials

PDF document, 3.3 MB

This full-color field guide will help you identify common fruit disorders, pests, and beneficials and provide basic principles of sustainable fruit production. For ease of use, the disorders are color-coded by the fruit type and the plant part where you may initially notice a symptom. Project supported by PDA Specialty Crop Block Grant ME#44187248.

Resources in Spanish

Recursos para los agricultores.

En Espanol

Sesión Especial para los Horticultores Hispanoparlantes en la Convencion de Frutas y Hortalizas del Atlántico-Medio

Tree Fruit Training and Self-Paced Learning Resources in English and Spanish

Bilingual Produce Safety Education

Guía de Campo para Desordenes, Plagas y Benéficos de Arboles Frutales

PDF document, 3.6 MB

Esta guía de campo te ayudara a identificar desordenes, plagas y organismos benéficos comunes de los huertos de frutas y te dará los principios básicos del manejo integrado de plagas. El financiamiento para este proyecto fue otorgado por el Subsidio de Bloque de Cultivos Especializados.

Tree Fruit Budgets

Within the Penn State Tree Fruit Production Guide are budgets for tree fruit production. When considering planting an orchard or removing an existing block and replanting, you may use the budget tools to calculate your potential costs. You may also use these tools to calculate your production costs on a per acre basis.

Excel Spreadsheet of Tree Fruit Budgets

Excel 2007 spreadsheet, 85.7 KB

From 2022-2023 Tree Fruit Production Guide.

Apple High Density Planting Budget

PDF document, 362.6 KB

Apple Medium Density Planting Budget

PDF document, 217.3 KB

Dwarf Sweet Cherry Production Budget

PDF document, 228.2 KB

Fresh Market Apple Production with Mating Disruption

PDF document, 490.3 KB

Fresh Market Apple Production without Mating Disruption