Larry Schwankl

Larry Schwankl, UC Cooperative Extension specialist emeritus, died from complications due to cancer May 2, 2022, in Visalia. He was 68.

Schwankl was born to Margaret and Orville Schwankl in Mankato, Minnesota, and attended Mankato State for two years before transferring to Iowa State University for a degree in civil engineering. After earning his masters from UC Davis, he worked for FEMA in Philadelphia on flood control issues.

He returned to UC Davis and obtained his Ph.D. after which he was hired as a University of California Cooperative specialist affiliated with the UC Davis Department of Land, Air, and Water Resources Department.

During his career he worked with growers and industry members on sprinkler, drip and flood irrigation management. He researched irrigation system maintenance and chemigation, irrigation scheduling using soil moisture monitoring and evapotranspiration techniques. 

“I have had the privilege to work with Larry since I was a graduate student at UC Davis back in the mid-1980s, Larry was very instrumental in teaching me practical methods for measuring infiltration rates in the field,” said KhaledBali, UCCE Irrigation Water Management specialist and director of Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center.

“I worked for Larry as a teaching assistant at UC Davis in the 1990s and then had the opportunity to organize irrigation workshops with him over the years. Larry's extension work was very practical and addressed the needs of the growers in California, Larry along with other UCCE specialists published several practical guides for irrigation management including UCANR publications such as Measuring Irrigation Water Flow Rates (Publication 21644) and Maintaining Microirrigation Systems (Publications 21637)."

Ben Faber, UCCE farm advisor in Ventura County, said, “He taught me that you cannot irrigate knowledgeably without a flow meter, and you might as well just gamble away your orchard unless you do a distribution uniformity test on the irrigation system. These are critical tools, creating good water management and healthy orchards.”

In 2004, Schwankl married Carol Frate, UC Cooperative Extension advisor, of Visalia and transferred to Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center near Parlier.

In 2014, the Irrigation Association presented Schwankl with their Person of the Year Award. In their award announcement, Dana Osborne Porter, associate professor and extension agricultural engineer in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering at Texas A&M University, was quoted as saying “Through his well-recognized applied research program, technology transfer efforts and service activities, Dr. Schwankl has dedicated his career to developing, evaluating and promoting water-efficient technologies and irrigation best management practices.”

Schwankl retired from his 28-year UC Cooperative Extension career in 2014.

“During his retirement, Larry used to visit KARE and I always enjoyed talking to him about various topics. He was always organized and soft spoken, very smart person and he enjoyed the outdoors,” Bali said.

In Schwankl's obituary, Frate wrote, “Larry was a thoughtful, kind and generous man who enjoyed fishing (particularly for walleye in Minnesota lakes), hiking, birding, gardening and turning wooden bowls. He loved animals, especially his cats. He attended St. Mary's Catholic Church.”

He is survived by Frate; sister Gail (Dale) Erickson of Mankato, Minnesota, and sister-in-law Vicki Salzberg.

He is survived by his wife Carol Frate of Visalia;  sister Gail (Dale) Erickson of Mankato, Minnesota, sister-in-law Vicki Salzberg, nieces Sarah (Chris) Tracy and Emily Salzberg, grandnieces Anna and Simone, and grandnephews Owen and River of Olympia, Washington.

A rosary followed by a Mass of Christian Burial will be at 1:30 p.m. on July 18, 2022, at Holy Family Catholic Church, 1908 N. Court St, Visalia. Interment will be at a later date in Olympia, Washington. Donations may be made to Pacific Wildlife Care, 1387 Main St., Morro Bay, CA 93442 or to a charity of the donor's choice.