Pg. 19 Is toemaak van lietsjietrosse die moeite werd?*

‘n Vraag wat menige lietsjieprodusent homself elke seisoen na die normale Novemberval stel, is of dit die moeite werd is om die vrugte toe te maak. lndien ‘n produsent van voornemens is om die vrugte uit te veer, is dit deur en deur die moeite werd om die trosse toe te maak. Die belangrikste voordele hiervan is beperkte skade deur die vrugtevlieg en die lietsjiemot, sonbrand en vrugbars. Joubert en Welgemoed (1985) het bewys dat die toemaak van lietsjietrosse groot voordele inhou en veral sonbrandskade beperk omdat temperature laer en lugvog hoer in die papiersak is.

Papiersakke is tot op hede die geskikste en goedkoopste toemaakmateriaal. Die vrugte kleur binne-in die papiersak na ‘n besonder aantreklike rooi kleur. Die verbruiker, vir wie uitwendige voorkoms en kleur belangrik is, word hierdeur beindruk. Vrugte kan ook langer aan die borne gelaat word en dit kan die drukte tydens die plukperiode verlig.

Summary:

• Many litchi producers wonder each season after the normal November fall whether it is worth bagging the fruit clusters.
• If a producer intends to export the fruit, bagging clusters is definitely worthwhile.
• The main benefits of bagging clusters include reduced damage from fruit flies, litchi moth, sunburn, and fruit cracking.
• Research by Joubert and Welgemoed (1985) showed that bagging clusters greatly limits sunburn damage as temperatures inside the paper bags are lower and humidity is higher.
• Paper bags remain the preferred and most cost-effective bagging material.
• Fruit inside paper bags develop an attractive red color, appealing to consumers who value external appearance and color.
• Bagging also allows fruit to remain on the tree longer, helping alleviate pressure during the harvest period.
• A trial with HLH Mauritius cultivar used a new type of open-ended paper bag made of reinforced paper, costing about 6.7 cents each versus 18 cents for completely closed bags.
• Of 1372 fruit in the trial, 581 were controls and 791 were bagged; some bags were left open at the bottom to assess whether they provided similar protection to fully closed bags.
• Fruit was harvested after 77 days with damage assessed; bag condition was also evaluated.
• Proper procedures are necessary: spray for litchi moth and fruit fly before bagging, avoid bagging wet fruit, remove all leaves from cluster stems, seal both ends of the bag leaving a small drainage opening, and limit each bag to about 2.5 fruit.
• After three months, paper bags effectively protected against birds and fruit bats, which cause major fruit loss.
• These bags are suitable as they are larger and easy to fit over large clusters, and open ends can be quickly closed with clips.
• Conclusions:
  • Export-quality litchi fruit fetch very good prices, and bagged fruit can command even better prices.
  • Long-term savings occur due to reduced pesticide use against fruit flies.
  • Bagged fruit sustain less damage during harvest, resulting in good quality fruit for fresh markets.
  • Producers must decide for themselves whether bagging is economically viable based on how and where fruit is marketed.