Date Palms were planted in the Coachella Valley of California, which is approximately two hours east of Los Angeles in the early 1890s. And now, plantings cover over 6,500 plus acres. These acres produce over 40 million pounds of our four primary varieties, which are the Deglet-Noor, the Medjool, the Barhi and the Zahidi.Date palms need plenty of ground water to drink, but high heat and arid weather to produce fruit. Therefore, date palms grow best in hot and arid climates.

Come learn about our date industry in California at the 2017 Date Palm Field Day

Time: 8:00 A.M – 3:00 P.M

Location: Coachella Valley Agricultural Research Station 86501 72nd Ave, Thermal, CA 92274

http://agops.ucr.edu/cvars/

$15.00/person

Registration link coming soon

(Online registration available on site day of for walk-ins – payment by Card only)

Agenda

8:00   Registration

8:20   Welcome – Sonia Rios, CE Advisor

8:30   Tom Perring, UCR - Pink Hibiscus Mealybug biocontrol

9:00   Robert Krueger, USDA/ARS - Nitrogen assessment of date palms  

9:30    Tony Fortier, Phoenix Agrotech - Tissue Culture date palms

10:00     Break

10:15   Peggy Mauk, UCR/CE - Establishment of date palms-Tissue Culture vs Off-shoots

10:45   MaryLou Polek, USDA/ARS -  Role of the USDA Germplasm Repository

11:15    TBD

11:45     Lunch

(Included in registration)

1:30    Field tours

If you have any questions contact: Sonia Rios, UC Farm advisor

sirios@ucanr.edu

951.683.6491 Ext. 224

INVESTIGATOR: Roper, C.; Borneman, JA.; Jassby, DA.; Rolshausen, PH.; Vidalakis, GE.; Maloney, KA, N.; Liu, HA.

PERFORMING INSTITUTION:
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, RIVERSIDE
RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA 92521

DEPLOYMENT OF A SPECTRUM OF BACTERICIDES TO CURE AND PROPHYLACTICALLY TREAT CITRUS HUANGLONGBING

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: Our research objectives are to design and identify bactericides that can cure/suppress or prophylactically treat Huanglongbing (HLB), and to target these bactericides to the phloem where the associated bacterium, Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas), resides. We will develop two classes of bactericides, the first based on silver and sulfur nanoparticles, the second rooted in natural product discovery, mining anti-CLas compounds produced by microbes that inhabit HLB survivor trees in Florida. The difficulty with any anti-HLB formulation is optimizing its delivery to the phloem. In all cases, delivery of the bactericides to, and within, the phloem sieve tubes to kill CLas will be of paramount importance. Thus, we will perform detailed analyses of the phloem transit routes that a given bactericide takes when introduced through common application methods (trunk injection, foliar application or root applications). We will also continue to develop a promising, new petiole/branch delivery system for use in field trees. We will explore the chemistry of bactericides to optimize uptake by the sieve tubes. Because significant amounts of phloem plugging occurs in CLas-infected trees, we will evaluate bactericide transit pathways at the whole-plant level at varying stages of infection. This work on HLB-phloem transit routes will provide important information for us and for others in the HLB research community who are evaluating delivery of materials to the phloem. We will integrate this research with a robust extension and outreach program that will be coupled with an economic cost-benefit analysis structured around adoption of these treatments into commercial citriculture.

We are in the midst of a new and changing era of Worker Protection Standards (WPS). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) recently published the revised WPS, which is meant to increase protections for agricultural fieldworkers and pesticide handlers from pesticide exposure when they're working in farms, forests, nurseries and greenhouses. The changes are already affecting California agriculture!

What major regulatory changes have already gone into effect?

Several changes are required to have been in place as of January 2, 2017. These include:

• All 417,000 fieldworkers in California must attend annual pesticide safety training.
• Records of all fieldworker pesticide safety trainings must be kept on file for 2 years.
• Fields must be posted when the restricted entry interval (REI) exceeds 48 hours.
• “Application-exclusion zones” must be implemented to prevent the entry of anyone into areas up to 100 feet from pesticide application equipment.
• Instructors previously qualified via a DPR-approved Instructor Training programs (Train the Trainer) are qualified to train through 2017. If you wish to be qualified to train fieldworkers and handlers after December 31, 2017 using this qualification, you must complete an updated, DPR-approved Train the Trainer workshop.

Now is the time to make sure these changes are put in place!

What major regulatory changes are still in store for us? When will they happen?

The regulatory changes that must be in place by January 2, 2018 include:

• Additional training topics for fieldworkers and handlers have to be added to the curriculum.
• Handlers have to suspend an application if anyone enters the application exclusion zone.

Who do these changes affect?

Many people who work in the California agricultural community will be impacted by the WPS revisions. These include fieldworkers, pesticide handlers, farm labor contractors, private and in-house safety trainers, growers, farm managers, licensed pesticide applicators (private and commercial), pest control advisors (PCAs), and crop consultants, to name a few.

How do I know if I am qualified to train?

If you attended one of the DPR-approved Train-the-Trainer programs you are qualified through 2017. However, if you wish to continue training after the end of the year, you must complete a DPR-approved Instructor Training Program, which includes the 2018 training topic requirements.

If you maintain certain licenses/government designations, including PAC, QAC, QAL, PCA, and certain County Biologist licenses you are qualified to train. UCCE Advisors are also qualified to train.

How can I get qualified as a trainer?

To become a trainer, take an Instructor Training program that is approved by DPR for 2018 topics. The University of California Pesticide Safety Education Program (part of the UC Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program, UC IPM), in partnership with AgSafe, will offer multiple workshops this spring that cover the new federal requirements for fieldworker and handler training. You can reserve your spot now. At the end of the training you will be a certified pesticide safety instructor.

If I am currently qualified, how can I make sure I stay up to date on all the new requirements?

If you are currently qualified as a trainer because you maintain a California PAC, QAC, or QAL, or if you are a PCA, you can attend an Instructor Training Program this spring to learn about the new WPS requirements and additional training topics. While a certification may qualify you, an Instructor Training Program will prepare you to train! Register today!

UC IPM Pesticide Safety Education Program