Best maintained fruit-bearing peach orchard

Within the framework of the “Golden Peach” festival, which took place in the village of Gavrailovo, a competition was also held for the “Best Maintained Fruit-Bearing Peach Orchard”. The prizes for the winners were provided with the support of the National Agricultural Advisory Service (NAAS).

In the Valley of the Peaches, as Sliven Region is called, most of the peach plantations in the country are cultivated.

The “Golden Peach” festival was held for the 19th time in the village of Gavrailovo. One part of the festival programme consisted of seminars and lectures for peach producers. Those present had the opportunity to discuss the state and trends in peach production with the participation of leading experts from the Fruit Growing Institute in the city of Plovdiv. The current topics in peach production in Bulgaria presented at the event were:

• Modern promising varieties of peaches and nectarines – Prof. Argir Zhivondov, PhD
• Weed control in peach plantations. Presentation of results from Project KP-06-N-36-6, financed by the Research Fund under the Call for Funding of Fundamental Scientific Research – 2019. Innovative solutions for plant health protection and obtaining high-quality and healthy fruits – Prof. Zarya Rankova, PhD
• Opportunities for support to the “Fruit Growing” sector under the Rural Development Programme – RDP 2014-2020, until the end of 2021 – Dr. Dimitar Vanev, Director General of the General Directorate “Farm Advisory Services and Analytical Laboratory”, NAAS.

In the discussion on the presentation of plant protection products and fertilizers for peaches and nectarines, the following took part: Viola AE, BASF, Bayer Bulgaria, Syngenta, Summit Agro, Agria, Agro-Bio Trading, Corteva, Bauhaus, Borealis L.A.T Bulgaria, Opticom Ltd., Ekofol AD, Belchim Crop Protection.

The “Golden Peach” festival was held under the patronage of the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Forestry. The organizers of the event were Sliven Municipality, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, the Mayor’s Office in the village of Gavrailovo, the “Slantse 1928” Community Centre in the village of Gavrailovo, the Fruit Growing Institute – Plovdiv, the Peach Producer Organization “Bulgarian Peach” Ltd. and the National Agricultural Advisory Service (NAAS).

Best Maintained Fruit-Bearing Peach Orchard

In addition to the official part of the event, NAAS once again organized a competition for the “Best Maintained Fruit-Bearing Peach Orchard”, and according to the main criteria – appearance, tree habit, fruit load and irrigation regime – out of a total of nine candidates, three orchards were distinguished.

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture Yavor Gechev presented the award – a certificate and professional pruning shears – to the farmer who ranked first, Penka Kirova from Sliven. Second in the competition was Stilina Slavova, also from Sliven. She received her award – a certificate and grafting shears – from the Deputy Regional Governor Antoniy Adonov. A certificate and a backpack sprayer were received by the third-place winner – Ivaylo Bankov from the village of Binkos, Sliven Region. The distinction was presented by Dr. Dimitar Vanev from NAAS.

The Peach Festival, which is traditionally held at the end of July, once again delighted all participants with a rich cultural programme and showcased the diversity of varieties and well-maintained orchards of the fruit crop specific to the region.