1. Towards Automated Pneumatic Thinning Of Floral Buds On Pear Trees

Thinning of pome and stone fruit is an important horticultural practice that is used to enhance fruit set and quality by removing excess floral buds. As it is still mostly conducted through manual labor, thinning comprises a large part of a grower’s production costs. Various thinning machines developed in recent years have clearly demonstrated that mechanization of this technique is both feasible and cost effective. Generally, these machines still lack sufficient selectivity... N. Wouters, R. Van beers, B. De ketelaere, T. Deckers, J. De baerdemaeker, W. Saeys