Sacramento Valley Field Crops

Guest authors Tunyalee Martin, with the UC IPM Program, and Gene Miyao, farm advisor, describe a parasitic plant that has been found in some parts of Yolo County and the Delta.

Soil compaction is often a problem in field crop production and occurs when soil particles are pressed together, reducing available pore space for air and water. About half the soil volume is composed of particles, the other half is soil pores.

Last year, we saw a number of disorders in sunflower that were mainly related to a heat stress by parental line interaction. Despite extensive testing by the USDA and UC ANR for pathogens in many affected sunflower plants, no causal agents were found.

Join us on Thursday May 17th for this year's University of California Small Grains - Alfalfa/ Forages Field Day. The event will take place at the UC Davis Agronomy Field Headquarters on Hutchison Drive. Registration, parking, and lunch are free.

With crops being planted in the field, now is a good time to refresh our knowledge of on-farm diagnostics to try to stay ahead of problems. Diagnosing on farm issues requires us to know what normal, healthy crops look like, and to observe in field clues.