– Rain: Week 7 brought just over one inch of rainfall – 27.2 mm and it was well distributed throughout the week.
– Temperature: Minimum air temperature reached 21.4°C (69.2°F) – just 0.7°C higher than prior week. However, we only had one day during which the minimum temperature reached 20°C (68°F) – lessening the risk of NDF causing stress to plants. The average temperature increased to 26.2°C (79.1°F). Soil temperature remained stable at 25.7°C (78.2°F). Solar radiation was intense, and no data for relative humidity was available.
– Observations: Good distribution of the precipitation during the week as well as the slight increase in the air temperature makes great pineapple growing weather! Also, it leads us to assume that we have had a lower risk of NDF during week 7. Fruit quality is showing more stability during the sampling process in comparison to the previous weeks. The farms are increasing fruit age at harvest, striving to have 100% of the fruit harvested at the same age and thus reduce the variability caused by different ages. Ribbon placement (identifying natural flowering plants) has initiated (see picture attached) but events being inventoried have small incidence as demonstrated by few color ribbons in the fields.