Your source for orchard news & information in the Sacramento Valley
This tutorial consists of three shorter videos which combine for about 40 minutes of instruction. It focuses on making irrigation decisions in orchard crops during the early years of orchard establishment, as the trees grow from transplants to the early … Continue reading
This tutorial consists of four videos adding up to slightly more than one hour of instruction for growers and consultants. It introduces free weekly crop ET reports. They are heavily geared towards orchard crops and are available throughout the Central … Continue reading
Given this spring’s prolonged leaf-out window, it is likely that there will also be a wide window in the timing of hull split and a need for two shakes in some varieties. Ethephon is a commonly used tool for advancing hull split and harvest-readiness in walnuts. Remember that there are two potential timings of ethephon, based on different goals. Continue reading
The 2020 prune bloom and crop set monitoring carried out by UCCE farm advisors showed dramatic differences in the prune set between different prune production regions. Some orchards require thinning this year, while some will achieve great fruit size without thinning. Continue reading
Since mid-April, many advisors up and down the Valley have been receiving calls about unusual leaf-out in pistachio and walnut. The Sacramento Valley has certainly been experiencing this, too. Continue reading
Excessive boron in soil or irrigation water is not widespread in the Central Valley, but where present, it can be a substantial obstacle to almond production. A rootstock trial in Yolo County was designed to find which almond rootstocks do better or worse under high boron conditions. What follows is a summary of findings to date. What follows is a summary of findings to date. Continue reading
Over a dozen different rootstocks have been observed in various orchard situations with local growers in Butte County over the past twenty two years. The complete results of these trials can be found in past Annual Rootstock Project Reports to the Almond Board of California. The following article summarizes what the author believes are the most useful results and conclusions. Continue reading
Researchers have historically been unable to pin down a cause for leafing failure because it was a rare event, only being reported periodically in the last couple decades. The problem was noted periodically before 2000, but most recent reports were made by farm advisors of leafing failure symptoms in 2000, 2006, 2010, 2017, 2018, and 2020. Continue reading
As the 2020 growing season approaches, California growers, PCAs and handlers will have new regulations to take into consideration. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced the new requirements for handling paraquat (paraquat dichloride). The new EPA restrictions on paraquat aim to help protect Restricted Use Pesticide handlers, and others who may come into contact with these pesticides. However, these requirements will have a ripple effect on growers, distributors and the California agriculture community. Label changes emphasizing paraquat toxicity, restrictions and safe handling were completed November 2019. Continue reading
An autumn freeze event in November 2018 caused widespread dieback in both young and mature walnut orchards in the Sacramento and northern San Joaquin Valleys. Following our initial diagnosis in April 2019 and our update on regrowth at the end of May 2019, we revisited several affected orchards at the end of the 2019 season, nearly a year after the freeze event. Continue reading
Prep your sprayer for bloom (blight) sprays. If you use stainless steel nozzles, toss out last year’s and buy new ones. If you are using ceramic nozzles, check them for wear. Ceramic nozzles do wear out, eventually. Once you are happy with your nozzles, check pump and system strainers as well as those at the nozzle. Continue reading
Selecting the optimal walnut rootstock for your orchard is a critical decision. To better understand what rootstock characteristics growers need, these researchers are asking walnut growers to take a ten-minute rootstock survey. Continue reading
Flooding from unprecedented flows of the Sacramento and Feather Rivers in early 2017 through spring, resulted in extensive orchard damage. Although there is little you can do to prepare against the most extreme flooding, some practices can help to reduce damage. Continue reading
Navel orangeworm (NOW) is the key pest of almonds, causing more income loss due to reject nuts than any other pest. Pesticide sprays, alone, cannot control this pest. A combination of several specific practices has been proven to reduce NOW damage and limit loss of grower income. The first of these practices on the orchard calendar is sanitation. Continue reading
The University of California’s Walnut Improvement Program has been hard at work for decades breeding varieties with characteristic that are desirable to both growers and consumers. The following table compares many industry standards with more recent releases. Continue reading