The average nut set per tree is 5,314, down 30 percent from 1997. The Nonpareil average nut set of 5,129 represents a 34 percent decrease from last year's set. The average kernel weight for all varieties sampled was 1.76 grams, up 11 percent from last year. A total of 95.8 percent of the nuts sized were sound. Sampling Procedures To determine tree set, nuts are counted along a path within a randomly selected tree.
Work begins at the trunk and progresses to the end of the terminal branch.
Using a random number table, one branch is selected at each forking to continue the path. A branch's probability of selection is directly proportional to its cross-sectional area. This methodology is used because of its statistical efficiency. The method also makes it possible to end up at any one of the tree's numerous terminal branches. Since the selected path has a probability of selection associated with it, this probability is used to expand nut counts arriving at an estimated set for the entire tree.