August 26, 2004

Purdue farm tours feature fall fruit

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - With the end of summer comes the season for apple-picking, winemaking and jack-o'-lantern carving, and a series of educational programs in mid-September sponsored by Purdue University will showcase some of the newest apple, grape and pumpkin varieties for Indiana's fruit and vegetable growers.

The programs begin with tours of two on-farm pumpkin variety trials from 2-8 p.m. on Sept. 14. Tour participants will observe field trials of 20 different varieties of jack-o'-lantern pumpkins on two different farms, one in Whitley County and one in Allen County.

Purdue vegetable specialists will be present at both farms to answer growers' questions about pest management and the variety trials. Rupp Seed will sponsor a dinner at the conclusion of the tours. The tours and dinner are free.

Directions to the on-farm pumpkin trials in Whitley and Allen counties are available from Liz Maynard, regional horticulture specialist, at (219) 785-5673 or emaynard@purdue.edu, or from Gonzalee Martin, Purdue Extension agriculture educator for Allen County, at (260) 481-6826.

For professional and amateur winemakers, the Grape and Wine Fall Workshop will offer a hands-on learning experience from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Sept. 16 at Meigs Farm, the horticulture research farm at Throckmorton Purdue Agricultural Center in Lafayette.

The workshop includes a tour of Purdue's newest research vineyard, featuring more than 50 grape varieties, as well as several opportunities to practice real-world winemaking techniques in Purdue's wine research lab. The workshop is sponsored by the Purdue Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture and the Department of Food Science Wine Research Lab.

During the workshop, teams of participants will sample grapes from the vineyard to learn how to accurately predict harvest quality.

"Unlike many other fruits, grapes are all harvested at the same time," said Bruce Bordelon, associate professor of horticulture who specializes in winegrape production. "This presents a challenge to winemakers because grape clusters, even on the same plant, vary in characteristics like sugar and acid content. Our goal is to help winemakers learn how to sample their vineyards so they may better predict an appropriate harvest date when a majority of their grapes will be at the right stage for winemaking."

After practicing vineyard sampling techniques, participants will have a pizza lunch, then proceed to the Purdue Department of Food Science to observe grape processing and fermentation preparations and measure different parameters of wine quality, such as pH and sugar content.

"There is a lot of chemistry in winemaking," Bordelon said. "We want to teach winemakers how to make some simple measurements themselves, instead of relying on outside consultants."

Also on Sept. 16, beginning at 5 p.m., will be the Twilight Meeting at Meigs Farm. There, participants will sample new varieties of grapes, apples and pumpkins.

Field trials of more than 20 apple varieties and 20 jack-o'-lantern varieties will be on display during the Twilight Tour, and Purdue fruit and vegetable specialists will answer growers' questions.

"This tour provides growers a chance to see how these varieties perform in a real-world situation - our crops are grown under commercial conditions to let growers see how the different varieties will perform in their fields," said Peter Hirst, associate professor of horticulture and state tree fruit specialist.

Hirst also will demonstrate pruning techniques for dwarf apple trees, a type of tree he said is growing in popularity in the apple industry.

"Dwarf fruit trees are more efficient from a management standpoint," he said. "They produce more fruit per acre, and their short height makes them especially well suited to U-pick operations."

The Twilight Tour will conclude with a dinner at Meigs Farm; a $5 fee for the dinner can be paid on-site.

Registration for the Grape and Wine Workshop is $20 for members of the Indiana Winegrowers Guild and $30 for non-members. Registration forms may be found online under the "September Events" link, or from Jill Blume, enology assistant, at (765) 494-1749. Details on the apple, grape and pumpkin meeting at Meigs Farm are online. Directions are available on the Throckmorton Purdue Agricultural Center's Web site .

Writer: Jennifer Cutraro, (765) 496-2050, jcutraro@purdue.edu

Sources: Bruce Bordelon, (765) 494-8212, bordelon@hort.purdue.edu

Peter Hirst, (765) 494-1323, hirst@hort.purdue.edu

Ag Communications: (765) 494-2722; Beth Forbes, forbes@purdue.edu
Agriculture News Page

Related Web sites:
Indiana Wine Grape Council events calendar

Purdue Fruit and Vegetable Connection

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