In the orchard, supervision and control of provisions

PERLIM, the leading association of Limousin apple producers in France, has a young orchard at its disposal …

THE LIMOUSIN SOIL: A SOIL FAVOURABLE TO THE PRODUCTION OF A GOLDEN DELICIOUS OF SUPERIOR GUSTATORY QUALITY

Three elements contribute to the specific character of this soil:

• Soil: light and deep, composed of gneiss and mica schist with 15% retained clay; results in the absence of irrigation

• Altitude: the orchards are planted on domes of between 350 and 450 metres altitude.
In these areas, there are more hours of sunshine than on the plains (fog)
Furthermore, the altitude contributes towards limiting yields per hectare (30 tons on average), a primordial factor for gustatory quality.

• Temperature: often reaching frost in spring, the tree suffers which produces better fruit at harvest. Similarly, considerable differences in temperature between night and day encourage the apples to go pink.

This soil produces a flavour that is typical to the Limousin golden delicious; the forthcoming securing of the controlled appellation of origin (AOC) will make its specific character official.

THE PERLIM ORCHARD: YOUNG AND LOCATED AT HIGH ALTITUDE

1800 hectares of young orchards (average age: 7 years), located on the plateaux of Haut-Limousin, between Brive and Limoges belong to 200 producer-co-operators; the gradual installation of frost protection meshes (approximately 90% coverage) ensures that the quality of production is maintained.