In 2000, we initiated a pruning management study at both locations. In 2001, our plantings have been completed. The easiest and least costly pruning management technique would be to simply cut the plants to the ground each winter. The plants would likely flower and fruit each summer, but the harvest may not be as large as with a much more labor-intensive selective pruning system where only the old wood is removed each winter. Four replications of each treatment were established with four plants per plot.
Plants are four feet apart with ten feet between rows.
Total number of plants per site is 192. Yields will be determined each summer for six or more years, beginning in 2002. A variety of other horticultural and economic data will be collected from the plots as appropriate. Elderberry accessions under cultivation at the Southwest Research Center, Mt. Vernon, and the SMSU State Fruit Experiment Station, Mountain Grove, 2001.