Professor Ian James Warrington CNZM is a Palmerston North horticultural scientist and science administrator. He was former chief executive of HortResearch (now Plant & Food Research). He was a senior administrator at Massey University until his position was axed in a cost-saving move. He received the T. K. Sidey Medal in 1984, an award set up by the Royal Society of New Zealand for outstanding scientific research. He was appointed a Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM) in the 2011 New Year Honours.

• Contributors viiDedication: Dr. Christopher B. Watkins xiIan Warrington1. Oakleaf Hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia Bartr.): Horticulture, Genetics, Breeding, and Conservation 1Andrew Sherwood, Matthew D. Clark, and Stan C. HokansonI. Introduction 2II. History and Taxonomy of Hydrangea 3III. Natural Distributions of Hydrangea Species 5IV. History and Distribution of Oakleaf Hydrangea 7V. Morphology of Oakleaf Hydrangea 9VI. Biotic and Abiotic Considerations 11VII. Genetics and Breeding 14VIII. Conservation 25IX. Propagation 26X. Future Prospects 27Literature Cited 282. Biostimulants in Agricultural and Horticultural Production 35Jessica C. Bell, Sally A. Bound, and Michele BuntainI. Introduction 36II. Microbial Inoculants 39III. Humic Substances: Humic and Fulvic Acids 56IV. Seaweed Extracts 64V. Future Direction: Synergism of Biostimulants in Combination 73VI. Future Direction: Biostimulants in Soilless Production Systems 74VII. Conclusions 76Literature Cited 773. Postharvest Physiological Disorders of Banana Fruit: Finger Drop, Senescent Spotting, and Chilling Injury 97Saichol Ketsa and Apinya WisutiamonkulI. Introduction 99II. Fruit Structure and Morphology 100III. Postharvest Physiological Disorders 103IV. Finger Drop 104V. Senescent Spotting 114VI. Chilling Injury 125VII. Conclusions 150Acknowledgments 151Literature Cited 1514. Mechanical Harvesting of Selected Temperate and Tropical Fruit and Nut Trees 171Leili Afsah-Hejri, Taymaz Homayouni, Arash Toudeshki, Reza Ehsani, Louise Ferguson, and Sergio Castro-GarcíaI. Introduction 173II. Mechanical Harvesting Methods 174III. Commercial Harvesters for Nut and Fruit Trees 179IV. Smart Harvesting 220V. Factors Affecting Mechanical Harvesting 224VI. Challenges, Future Outlook, and Recommendations 229Literature Cited 2305. Apple Fruitlet Abscission Mechanisms 243James E. Larson, Thomas M. Kon, and Anish MalladiI. Introduction 244II. Correlatively Driven Abscission 247III. Carbohydrate Stress 250IV. Contrasts Between CDA and CS 254V. Morphological and Exogenous Factors Affecting Fruitlet Abscission 255VI. Conclusions and Future Directions 267Literature Cited 269Subject Index 275Cumulative Subject Index 277Cumulative Contributor Index 311