Your source for orchard news & information in the Sacramento Valley
Clarissa Reyes, Orchard Advisor, Sutter-Yuba, Butte, and Placer Counties Peach harvest can be predicted fairly accurately by the temperatures in the first 30 days following bloom. Other factors such as weather near harvest, soil, tree nutrition, and water status can … Continue reading
Domena A. Agyeman, UCCE Economic Advisor; Butte, Glenn, and Tehama Counties Managing farm finances can be challenging—especially for small growers who cannot afford to hire experts. However, understanding key financial statements and metrics is crucial for making informed decisions and … Continue reading
University of California Sacramento Valley Integrated Pest Management Update April 7, 2025 Disclaimer: Pests/natural enemies’ activities and abundance updates provided on this site are for reference purpose only. Information provided here do not replace or supersede your orchard site-specific pest activity … Continue reading
Curt Pierce, UCCE Irrigation and Water Resource Advisor Luke Milliron, UCCE Orchard Systems Advisor With the days only just warming and (at the time of this writing) significant rain still falling in the North Sacramento Valley, few are likely to … Continue reading
Luke Milliron, UCCE Orchards Butte, Glenn, Tehama Phoebe Gordon, UCCE Madera and Merced Roger Duncan UCCE Stanislaus, Emeritus What varieties do we know the most about? New almond varieties are always coming out from public and private breeding programs around … Continue reading
Themis J. Michailides & Victor Manuel Gabri, University of California, Davis / Kearney Ag Research and Extension Center In the last several years, walnut growers in California experienced unusually high levels of mold in their crop. Particularly in 2018, growers … Continue reading
Jaime Ott, UCCE Farm Advisor, Tehama, Shasta, Glenn, and Butte Counties According to Dr. Jim Adaskaveg, UC Riverside professor who has been studying walnut blight for decades, these are the most common mistakes growers make in their blight control program: … Continue reading
Becky Wheeler-Dykes, Orchard Systems and Weed Ecology Farm Advisor, UCCE Glenn, Tehama and Colusa Counties Luke Milliron, Orchards Advisor, UCCE Butte Glenn, Tehama Counties In February 2025, Dr. Roger Baldwin gave an excellent presentation on vertebrate pest management at … Continue reading
These updates are provided as reference information for Sacramento Valley orchard pest and natural enemy activity. Continue reading
Jaime Ott, UCCE Tehama, Glenn, Shasta, Butte Luke Milliron, UCCE Butte, Glenn, Tehama Infection by Cytospora and other fungi is a major cause of scaffold and tree loss in prunes, resulting in reduced yield. These fungi can also infect young … Continue reading
CLICK HERE FOR A LINK TO THE PRUNE FUNGICIDE EFFICACY TABLES (right click -> “Open link in new tab”)
Ryan J Hill, UCCE Tehama County, Agronomy and Weed Science Advisor Preemergent herbicides are a valuable tool in an orchard’s integrated weed management plan. If you survey a room full of growers, you will get answers across the board as … Continue reading
Click Here for the Almond Fungicide Efficacy and Timing Tables Link
Kat Jarvis-Shean, Orchard Systems Advisor UCCE Sacramento-Solano-Yolo Depending on where you grow and how you count, this is shaping up to be a low-to-moderate chill winter. As discussed previously in 2023 and 2024, walnuts are one of the highest chill … Continue reading
Almond Orchard Management Considerations: February & March Becky Wheeler-Dykes, UCCE Farm Advisor, Glenn, Tehama, and Colusa Counties Luke Milliron, UCCE Farm Advisor, Butte, Glenn, and Tehama Counties Weed management: Prepare your preemergent herbicide program with your PCA. Cost savings in … Continue reading