Your source for orchard news & information in the Sacramento Valley
How are we doing on chill so far this year? Because there is not a CIMIS station close to Yuba City, Janine Hasey calculates chill based on a temperature recorder at the UCCE office in Yuba City. Chill data will be updated weekly. Continue reading
Walk your orchard blocks to look for fresh horseshoe shape and plugged side hole of pocket gopher mounds. This postharvest period is a key time to manage your gopher problem and make sure you’re giving yourself a clean slate for 2020! Continue reading
As we approach winter in the Sacramento Valley and almond trees enter dormancy, pruning becomes a top priority for many growers. Rain events are strongly correlated with the spread of fungal canker pathogens whose primary infection sites are pruning wounds. Results from sampling over 140 almond orchards found 21 different fungal pathogens associated with these canker diseases. While the pathogens differ in biology, there are common approaches to prevent infections. Continue reading
It is important to consider irrigation of perennial tree crops leading up to dormancy to foster carbohydrate storage in the trees and to guard against the occurrence of freezing temperatures in dry orchards putting them at more risk to cold injury. Continue reading
Join a panel of your Sacramento Valley Area IPM and Farm Advisors to hear about the latest research updates, 2019 field observations, and discuss key production and pest management issues in almonds and walnuts as we wrap up the season and look toward 2020! Continue reading
Survival is the number one priority of a new orchard planting. Bacterial canker plagues many young prune orchards and rootstock selection can make a major impact on bacterial canker susceptibility. Learn which rootstocks have 100% survival in a UC prune rootstock trial at a high bacterial canker pressure site. Continue reading
With the right varieties, a new almond orchard should be profitable for at least 20 years. Many decisions contribute to successfully meeting that target. One key decision is variety selection. Knowledge of the current and past variety planting trends of almonds in California may be helpful in this decision. Continue reading
You’re certainly familiar with the differences in almond hull split and subsequent harvest timing between different varieties. A typical case of this can be observed with early splitting and harvest of Nonpareil relative to other later varieties. However, you may not often think about differences in hull split influenced by rootstock. Continue reading
Adequate potassium is critical to sustained yields in an almond orchard. There are many approaches to providing almond trees with the potassium they need, depending on your local climate conditions, orchard infrastructure and budget. Continue reading
The higher the yield per acre early in the life of an orchard, the sooner the orchard covers development costs and returns a net profit to the grower. With new, well-anchored prune rootstocks now in the market, especially Krymsk 86 and Viking, it is worth reviewing young orchard pruning trial data. Continue reading
The yellowing Howard problem is one specific instance of waterlogging induced root death. Howard appears sensitive to problems following cool, wet springs. The key management solution to the yellowing Howard problem is irrigation management. Continue reading
A single yellowing walnut tree in an otherwise healthy orchard has been a frequent sighting when driving along the roadways of the Sacramento Valley this summer. These yellowing trees have also been common this summer. The most likely cause of this yellowing and tree collapse was waterlogging induced root death. Continue reading
The sudden November 2018 freeze event that caused extensive damage in many walnut orchards is a stark reminder that we must do our best to prepare against extreme events. Continue reading
I am retiring on July 1st after nearly 38 years working for UC Cooperative Extension and over 36 years as an Orchard and Environmental Horticulture (EH) Advisor in Sutter-Yuba Counties. What an honor to work with all of you growers, PCAs, and others in the Ag industry, and such a privilege to collaborate with so many talented UC colleagues solving challenging problems together. Continue reading
During about the second or third week in June, many Howard walnut trees experienced nut drop of perhaps as many as 100 nuts per tree, with many trees losing no more than 60 nuts per tree. These nuts were full size with the shell beginning to harden. Cutting open an immediately dropped nut, you could see darkening of the inside watery kernel material. Several possible causes are explored in this article. Continue reading