Tom Kon
North Carolina State University, USA
Minimization of stem-end splitting in ‘Gala’ apples with aminoethoxyvinylglycine and GA4+7
Dr. Tom Kon is an Assistant Professor at North Carolina State University in the Department of Horticultural Science. Tom has a multi-state appointment and serves the apple industry in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia (USA). His research and extension program focuses on the development/optimization of cultural and chemical practices to increase orchard productivity and profitability. Additionally, his program has expanded to parallel horticultural research efforts on blackberry. Tom received his B.S. from the University of Nebraska, and his M.S. and Ph.D. from Penn State University.
Stem-end splitting (SES) is a widespread physical defect that can affect multiple commercially important apple cultivars. We investigated the effects and interactions of exogenous applications of plant growth regulators on SES incidence and fruit quality of ‘Gala’. Outcomes of this project and future research directions will be discussed.