- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
USDA plant biologist Andrew McElrone is using high resolution computed tomography – a type of cat scan similar to the medical imaging diagnostic system – to cruise through plant veins and vessels to better understand grapevines’ water transport system.
The research is conducted on live and dry grapevines at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Like in medicine, each cat scan produces numerous digital slices of grapevine, which are stacked on top of each other using special engineering software to reconstruct the system.
“We can then spin the images around into various orientations, moving through individual vessels,” McElrone said.
Grape Day registration begins at 7:30 a.m. Aug. 16 at the Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center, 9240 S. Riverbend Ave., Parlier, Calif. Field tours are conducted from 8 to 9:30 a.m. and classroom presentations will be from 10 a.m. to 12 noon.
Registration is $10 per person. Advance registration is offered online.
Field tour topics are:
- New wine grape varieties for the San Joaquin Valley by UC Cooperative Extension viticulture specialist James Wolpert, UC Davis
- The development of new grape rootstocks for the San Joaquin Valley by geneticist Peter Cousins, USDA-ARS, Geneva, N.Y.
- Using the ‘Paso Panel’ to aid in irrigation scheduling by viticulture farm advisor Mark Battany, UC Cooperative Extension, San Luis Obispo County
Classroom presentations:
- Understanding water use of grapevines by plant biologist Andrew McElrone, USDA-ARS, Davis, Calif.
- Trapping and baiting for gopher control in vineyards by vertebrate IPM advisor Roger Baldwin, Kearney, Parlier, Calif.
- Critical weed free periods in vineyard development by vegetation management farm advisor Kurt Hembree, UC Cooperative Extension in Fresno County
- Fruitfulness of DOV raisin cultivars by UC Cooperative Extension viticulture specialist Matthew Fidelibus, UC Davis and Kearney.
For more information, contact event coordinator Matt Fidelibus, mwf@uckac.edu, (559) 646-6500.
- Posted By: Jeannette E. Warnert
- Written by: Laura Van der Staay
Forty-two local high school students learned about agricultural career pathways and how to advocate for agriculture by participating in Partners in Agricultural Leadership, a Reedley College-administered USDA Hispanic Serving Institution grant-funded competitive agricultural leadership and education program.
Over the two-year program, Reedley College partnered with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CSU Fresno, Fresno County Farm Bureau, Kingsburg Administrative Committee, Reedley College Ag Backers Council, Tulare County Workforce Investment Board, USDA-National Institute of Food and Agriculture, USDA-ARS (Parlier), UC Davis, and UC Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center.
Students worked with Reedley College mentors, attended seminars and delivered agriculture advocacy outreach to local students.
The 42 students received scholarships totaling over $73,000. Aaron Ramirez of Clovis East High School was the recipient of the $50,000 grant-funded scholarship. Aaron’s mother said that after attending the PAL seminar at UC KARE, Aaron became very enthusiastic about exploring a career in agriculture.
For his outreach project, Aaron worked with UC KARE to collect and sterilize owl pellets. He then delivered a training module that taught students in Aaron’s community about the importance of owls as well as determine what pests the owls were eating by identifying the bones in the owl pellets. Aaron plans to attend Reedley College prior to transferring to a four-year university and pursuing a career in agriculture.
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
The Kearney community marked the retirement of its long-time computer programmer John Rassmussen today. John came to Kearney shortly after graduating from college to manage a brand new integrated pest management outreach system located at the field station. In 1981, IPM was delving into computer communications by offering a weather database, news features and pest management guidelines that could be read on terminals at UC Cooperative Extension county offices.
The computer at Kearney - with its 96 megabyte hard drive and one-quarter megabyte internal memory - cost $125,000, John said. It was connected to terminals in Bakersfield, Visalia, Shafter and Fresno via dedicated phone lines.
Over the years, as technology advanced, John became the self-taught network administrator and computer support professional for the scientists and staff at the Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center. An avid outdoorsman, John plans to spend more time hiking, caving, mountaineering and endurance running during retirement.
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Staff and academics at the UC Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center (KARE) hosted the Central California Blood Center's Blood Mobile today. In all, 22 people stepped up to donate a pint.
The Central California Blood Center says more than 75 percent of Americans who reach age 72 will need blood at some point in their lifetimes; 97 percent will have a loved one or friend who will need life-saving blood. Among the most common procedures that require blood are heart surgery, accidents, organ transplants and bone marrow transplants.
Since blood is a fragile, liquid living tissue, it has a limited shelf life. Red blood cells last 42 days, platelets last 5 days, and plasma can be frozen and stored for one year. CCBC is the sole provider of blood donations to hospitals in Fresno, Madera, Tulare, Kings and Mariposa counties. It strives to always maintain a five- to seven-day supply of blood.
The Kearney blood drive was organized by KARE safety coordinator Alan Cary.
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
A group of farmers from Tongyeong, South Korea, visited the UC Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center today to learn about the scope of research activities under way at the facility.
The visit was arranged by the City of Reedley, situated 4 miles east of Kearney. Reedley and Tongyeong are sister cities.
The visiting farmers produce a diversity of crops in South Korea, including citrus, strawberries, orchids, kiwis, mangos and figs. At Kearney, they toured the post harvest facility, research plots and the greenhouse. This afternoon and tomorrow they will visit local farms and packing houses.
The Korean farmers showed particular interest in UC's Navel and Valencia Export to Korea (NAVEK) program. In 2004, Korea rejected incoming citrus from California when inspectors detected fruit infected with Septoria spot, which is caused by a pest that has not been reported in Korea. UC scientists developed a fruit certification program to ensure that fruit with Septoria spot isn't shipped to Korea.
The Korean farmers' week long trip to the United States will not be all business. They plan to take time to visit the Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona and Las Vegas, Nev., according to their guide, Sonny Er.