The annual Apple Day, held on Friday, 21 August 2026, at Campus Klein-Altendorf in Rheinbach, attracted many visitors. The event was hosted by Bio Innovation Park Rheinland e.V., the Dienstleistungszentrum Ländlicher Raum Rheinhessen-Nahe-Hunsrück (DLR R-N-H), the University of Bonn, and the Chamber of Agriculture of North Rhine-Westphalia. The approximately 200 visitors were offered a diverse programme of specialist presentations and exhibitions.
The day started with a welcome address by Prof. Dr. Ralf Pude (University of Bonn), Malte-Friedrich Autsch (DLR R-N-H), and Claus Schlieker, the new president of the German Fruit Growers’ Association. During the guided tours in the morning, visitors received information on current cultivation techniques, plant protection, Elstar mutants, and training systems. On behalf of the University of Bonn, Philipp Wolf presented current research activities, focusing on narrow fruit walls and mechanisation.
In the afternoon, the focus shifted to short machinery demonstrations covering tree and fruit detection, root pruning, spraying, and harvesting, as well as a detailed presentation on tree excavation machinery.
Representing the HortiBonn team, Johannes Kopton and Dr. Katja Schiffers once again participated in Apple Day as exhibitors with Factflow, a startup that emerged from the HortiBonn research group, and engaged in discussions with fruit growers and other practitioners.
