The first stone fruit varieties to bloom in the greater Fresno area are currently out. The bloom this year is mostly uniform block by block, but some blocks are out sooner or later by a few days than they were last year. Low chill hours don’t seem to have had an impact on the uniformity of the bloom in these first few varieties. The bloom appears to be more uniform than it was at this same time last year. The presence of more foggy days this year in the valley may have helped create an environment that allows for better dormancy than last year even though measurable hours were lower.
