Dear IREC Friends and Supporters,

It is with deep personal regret that I inform you that Steve Orloff passed away yesterday. Steve died after a difficult struggle with cancer. Steve was a Siskiyou County Farm Advisor for more than 20 years and his research and community outreach played an instrumental role in progressing Northeast California agriculture. His tremendous knowledge and overwhelming support for agriculture will be deeply missed. We have lost a dear friend and valued colleague! On behalf of all the IREC staff our thoughts and prayers go out to his family. Below is an announcement from UC ANR Vice President Glenda Humiston regarding this sad news including a message from his family.

Rob Wilson

IREC Director/Farm Advisor

 

Dear Colleagues,

It is with a heavy heart that I pass along the sad news that Steve Orloff, UC Cooperative Extension director and advisor in Siskiyou County, has died. Last night, I received the message below from his family:

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our much-loved husband, father, son, brother, uncle, friend and mentor, Steve Orloff. His entire family would like to thank everyone for all the prayers and support we have received from those of you who love and appreciate Steve as we do. He will be deeply missed for his kind and generous heart, as he so freely shared his knowledge and experience with anyone who asked for his help. But anyone who knows Steve will especially miss him tremendously for his sense of humor and fun-loving spirit. We are grateful to know that he is back in God's loving arms and pain free. We are not sure at this time of our plans to honor Steve, but we ask that you remember him as he always lived – happily spending time with his family and friends, helping others, and surfing.

Thank you, The entire Orloff Family

Over the 33 years that Steve has been a member of the UC ANR family, I'm sure that many of you have worked with this kind and affable man, whether it be at county director meetings, on alfalfa research or Program Council or other projects. We'll all miss Steve's good nature, willingness to help others and his expertise.

Please keep his wife, Islia, and their three sons Michael, Danny and Rob in your thoughts and prayers. Our deepest sympathies go out to them. We'll be in touch with his family as their plans to honor Steve develop and to find out how we can help. As funeral arrangements are known, we will pass that information along.

Sincerely,

Glenda Humiston
Vice President

 

**Re-posted with permission from the UC Agronomy Research and Information Center - Small Grains**

Results from the 2016-2017 Fall-planted small grain variety trials throughout California are now available. These include tests of commercial and advanced varieties of common wheat, durum wheat, triticale, and barley, with multi-year productivity, disease and agronomic traits summaries included as well as single-site summaries from all Fall-planted 2017 trials. Results are available on the UC Agronomy Research and Information Center (AgRIC) Small Grains website:

http://smallgrains.ucanr.edu/Variety_Results/2017/

 

 

 

Over $3.75 Million in Incentives Available.

Grants and incentives are available through the Healthy Soils Program for implementation of several management practices including cover crops, compost application, reduced tillage, vegetative barriers, windbreak establishment, woody plantings, and silvopasture.  The program is funded by the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and stems from the California Healthy Soils Initiative, a collaboration of state agencies that promotes the development of healthy soils on California's farmlands and ranchlands. 

Further details of the 2017 Healthy Soil Program (HSP) Incentives Program, eligible agricultural management practices, program requirements and information about the grant application process can be found in the “Healthy Soils Program Incentives Program Request for Grant Applications” document at https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/oefi/healthysoils/docs/2017-HSPIncentives_RGA.pdf.   Local NRCS offices can provide additional information on eligible agricultural management practices.

Only One Month to Apply! The application period is from August 8 until September 19. CDFA Grant application workshops and webinars are available between August 15-25. Applications are due by 5 PM Sept 19, 2017.

Applications for the HSP Incentives Program and Demonstration Projects are available on the HSP website https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/oefi/healthysoils/ The application process is web based and can be accessed through the State Water Resources Control Board website at http://faast.waterboards.ca.gov

Program requirements include a three year minimum duration for all projects where funding will cover implementation of eligible practices for years 1 and 2. Applicants are required to continue the implementation for year 3.

A chance of thunderstorms most of the week and moderating air temperatures will promote prolonged leaf wetness and high humidity in the crop canopy both of which are favorable for development of several plant diseases. The smoky air also moderates solar radiation contributing to prolonged leaf wetness. Below are some tips for growers to consider avoiding aggravating these conditions and possibly preventing problems in the coming weeks. 

Onions
Many onions fields in the Basin are bulbing, which often correlates with the start of several foliar diseases such as purple blotch and Stemphylium leaf blight, which have been on the rise in recent years. We are also seeing quite a bit of bacterial leaf blight in onions, which is often amplified after thunderstorms and frequent overhead irrigation.   Hot temperatures the last couple of weeks required growers to irrigate every 3-5 days to keep up with crop water use, but crop water use should taper in the coming weeks. Growers should spend a lot of time digging to check soil moisture in multiple locations in each field and avoid unnecessary irrigation after rain and high humidity. If onion leaves remain wet for prolonged periods and/or onions are damaged by thunderstorms, grower should strongly consider starting a preventative fungicide program. Onion thrips populations are high in many fields, which can also increase the incidence and severity of foliar onion diseases. Be on the lookout for white rot as we are starting to see early signs of the disease in our research plots.

Stemphylium-Leaf-Spot

Bacterial Leaf Blight on Onion

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Potatoes
Many potato fields are in the bulking stage right now. Crop water use in most fields has decreased significantly with potato crop canopy growth complete and potato vines shading the hills. Growers should spend a lot of time checking soil moisture especially around potato tubers. If tuber lenticels are swollen or ruptured, irrigation MUST be tapered to prevent lenticel scarring and infection by diseases such as pink rot and soft rot. Conditions are very favorable for several foliar diseases including late blight and white mold. If potato foliage remains wet for prolonged period or fields are hit by thunderstorms, growers should consider preventative fungicides that are active on late blight and white mold such as Omega.

Late Blight Lesion on Potato Leaf

Late blight lesion on potato stem

 

 

 

 

 

 

White Mold Sclerotia

Early Blight on Potato Leaf

 

 

 

 

 

Small Grains
Most fields are past the point of irrigation and are drying down for harvest.   If late-planted fields are still being irrigated, conditions are favorable for stripe rust. We are seeing stripe rust pustules increase dramatically in late-planted wheat and barley fields at IREC. Growers should look for heavy stripe rust pockets in mature fields, which can cause overheating problems with harvesting equipment.

 

Alfalfa and Grass Hay
Alfalfa growers need to focus on keeping up with crop water use. The hot weather the last several weeks in combination with short cutting intervals can easily lead to drought stress. Growers should check soil moisture often and make sure irrigation after cutting re-wets the soil profile. Grass hay growers be on the lookout for a second generation of armyworms. Nick Macy has seen a high number of moths in several fields and the first generation of armyworms caused significant damage to many grain fields.