- Author: Ben Faber
Grower and the Public are invited to see, taste and hear about the citrus fruits and trees that make an industry and an iconic fruit in this State. There are two separate days, One for Growers and One for the general Public. Note the two different days and Pick your special day.
Citrus Growers - Current and Future
Date: December 14, 2018
Time: 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Contact: Jasmin Del Toro: 559-592-2408 ext 1151
Sponsor: Lindcove Research and Extension Center
Location: Lindcove Research and Extension Center
Event Details
Citrus growers and other Ag professionals are invited to attend the Citrus Fruit Display and Tasting on Dec 14, 2018. You can discuss new low seeded citrus varieties with Dr. Mikeal Roose and ask UC advisors Craig Kallsen and Greg Douhan your citrus questions. In addition to taste-testing fruit, there will be a walking tour at 10:00 AM starting with a presentation of the Citrus Clonal Protection Program by Dr. Georgios Vidalakis, continuing on to the demonstration orchard with Dr. Tracy Kahn who will discuss varieties and a tour of the new lemon variety trial by Dr. Roose.
Directions: Take Highway198 east to Mehrten Drive (approximately 15 miles) and follow the signs to our Event. The University of California, Lindcove Research and Extension Center is located at 22963 Carson Avenue, Exeter, CA.The Conference Center is located at the end of Carson Avenue on the right. If you have any questions please contact Jasmin Del Toro at 559-592-2408 ext 1151 or jzdeltoro@ucanr.edu
Grower day schedule of events 2018
Public
Date: December 15, 2018
Time: 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Contact: Jasmin Del Toro: 559-592-2408 ext 1151
Sponsor: Lindcove Research and Extension Center
Location: Lindcove Research and Extension Center
Event Details
The general public is invited to join us for a family friendly Citrus Tasting Event. You can see and taste more than 100 citrus varieties that are grown at Lindcove Research and Extension Center. Take a bag of fruit home for $10. Choose from Cara Caras, Navels, Mandarins, or assorted citrus from 4 bins located in front of the Conference Center. The Master Gardeners as well as UC Cooperative Extension Advisors will be happy to answer questions from home gardeners and citrus connoisseurs.
Directions: Take Highway198 east to Mehrten Drive (approximately 15 miles) and follow the signs to our Event. The University of Lindcove Research and Extension Center is located at 22963 Carson Avenue Exeter, CA. The Conference Center is located at the end of Carson Avenue. If you have any questions please contact Jasmin Del Toro at 559-592-2408 Ext 1151 or jzdeltoro@ucanr.edu
/h2>/h1>/h2>/h1>- Author: Ben Faber
These are hard days for navel oranges. Drought stress. Salt stress due to drought. Then a heat wave in July that messed the trees up. And now we head into a weird fall with maybe rain. Maybe no rain. Maybe a little rain. This is ripe for navel splitting. This time of year when they are starting to build sugar, they are also ripe for splitting.
Years of drought, and a stressed tree are a perfect set up for navel oranges and fruit splitting.
The days have turned cooler and suddenly out of nowhere there is rain. That wonderful stuff comes down and all seems right with the world, but then you notice the navel fruit are splitting. Rats! No, a dehydrated fruit that has taken on more water than its skin can take in and the fruit splits. This is called an abiotic disease. Not really a disease but a problem brought on by environmental conditions.
Fruit splitting is a long-standing problem in most areas where navel oranges are grown. In some years, the number of split fruit is high; in other years it is low. Splitting in navel oranges usually occurs on green fruit between September and November. In some years, splitting may also occur in Valencia oranges but it is less of a problem than in navel oranges.
Several factors contribute to fruit splitting. Studies indicate that changes in weather including temperature, relative humidity and wind may have more effect on fruit splitting than anything else. The amount of water in a citrus tree changes due to weather conditions and this causes the fruit to shrink and swell as water is lost or gained. If the water content changes too much or too rapidly the rind may split. In navel oranges the split usually occurs near the navel, which is a weak point in the rind.
Proper irrigation and other cultural practices can help reduce fruit splitting. Maintaining adequate but not excessive soil moisture is very important. A large area of soil around a tree should be watered since roots normally grow somewhat beyond the edge of the canopy. Wet the soil to a depth of at least 2 feet then allow it to become somewhat dry in the top few inches before irrigating again. Applying a layer of coarse organic mulch under a tree beginning at least a foot from the trunk can help conserve soil moisture and encourage feeder roots to grow closer to the surface.
If trees are fertilized, apply the correct amount of plant food and water thoroughly after it is applied. If the soil is dry, first irrigate, then apply fertilizer and irrigate again.
- Author: Ben Faber
- Author: Mary Lu Arpaia
Of the many known varieties, they fall into three broad categories based on whether they are of the Mexican, Guatemalan or West Indian races of Persea americana, the avocado specie and the crosses that occur between these races. For example, ‘Hass' has the thick skin of the Guatemalan but turns black like a Mexican. Generally speaking, California varieties have been the result of crossing between the Mexican and Guatemalan races. West Indian race varieties are not common here because of their generally lower cold tolerance. There are lots of factors approaching the identification of an avocado and its origins, and here is a brief run down on those that need to be considered.
Grafted?
Is it a grafted tree, or is it a known variety with known characteristics which the tree can be compared to? Look for the change in bark texture at the base of the tree where the graft was made.
Leaf characteristics
When you crush the leaf, does it have an anise smell (Mexican) or not?
Is the leaf edger smooth (Hass) or wavy (Zutano)?
Is the color of the new leaves red and turn green (Mexican) or are green (Guatemalan)?
Canopy shape
Is it columnar (Bacon, Reed) or umbrella (Hass)?
Is the mature tree big (Hass) or under 20 feet in height (Holiday, Littlecado, Gwen)?
Fruit
Is the fruit round (Nabal), pear shaped (Fuerte), thin necked (Pinkerton) or broad shouldered (Lamb-Hass)
Is it thick skinned (Guatemalan) or thin skinned (Mexican)?
Is it green when ripe (Guatemalan) or black (Mexican)?
Is it big (more than 16 ounces; Daily 11 is 5 pounds) or small (Mexicola is 5 ounces)?
When is fruit maturity; winter, spring, summer or fall?
The combination of all these factors go into describing a variety and distinguishes it from other varieties. When varieties have mixed parentage, they will take on those characteristics of each parent, so often the lines of either Mexican or Guatemalan get blurred.
- Author: Cynthia Reynolds
DPR license and certificate holders: Renew early! Get those last-minute hours with help from UC IPM
Learn about opportunities to receive continuing education hours. October is upon us and before you know it, we'll be wrapped up in the busy holiday season. If you hold a license or certificate from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) and have a last name that begins with letters A through L, this is your year to renew. DPR encourages license and certificate holders to avoid the end-of-the-year rush and submit renewal applications by November 1.
Early renewal has its advantages. DPR can take up to 60 days to process a renewal application. Submitting applications now not only avoids late fees and gives you time to fix any problems that DPR may find, such as not having enough continuing education (CE) hours to renew, but also ensures that you will have your new certificate or license by the first of the year.
Without a renewed license in hand, you are not allowed to use or supervise the use of pesticides after January 1, 2019 until you receive it. You also run the risk of having to retest if there are problems with the renewal application and not enough time to fix them.
If you need a few last-minute credits, take a look at the online courses the UC Statewide IPM Program (UC IPM) offers:
Laws and Regulations
- Proper Selection, Use, and Removal of Personal Protective Equipment (1.5 hours) $30.00 charge NEW for 2018
- Proper Pesticide Use to Avoid Illegal Residues (2 hours) $40.00 charge
- Providing Integrated Pest Management Services in Schools and Child Care Settings (1 hour Laws and Regulations and 1 hour Other)
Other
- Citrus IPM: California Red Scale (1 hour)
- Citrus IPM: Citricola Scale (1 hour)
- Citrus IPM: Citrus Peelminer (1 hour)
- Citrus IPM: Citrus Red Mite (1 hour)
- Citrus IPM: Cottony Cushion Scale (1 hour)
- Citrus IPM: Forktailed Bush Katydid (1 hour)
- Pesticide Application Equipment and Calibration (1.5 hours)
- Pesticide Resistance (2 hours)
- Tuta absoluta: A Threat to California Tomatoes (1 hour)
- Urban Pesticide Runoff and Mitigation: IPM – Pesticide Properties (1 hour)
- Urban Pesticide Runoff and Mitigation: Impact of Pesticides - Urban Pesticide Runoff (1 hour)
- Urban Pesticide Runoff and Mitigation: Water Quality and Mitigation: Bifenthrin and Fipronil (1 hour)
- Urban Pesticide Runoff and Mitigation: Herbicides and Water Quality (1 hour)
UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UC ANR) is also offering monthly webinars on specific pest issues for CEUs. More information can be found on the UC Ag Experts Talk website.
Check out the list of DPR-approved continuing education courses. For more information about license renewal, visit DPR's licensing and certification webpage.
Learn about pest management and other training opportunities from UC IPM.
- Author: Ben Faber
DAVIS, Calif. — For Scrivner Hoppe-Glosser, a small farmer in Pleasant Grove, Calif., he can't help but beam at the newest thing to pop up in his farm field. It isn't one of his 40 different specialty crops that he grows for popular restaurants in the Sacramento area but a structure made of wood, metal and plastic tarping.
“When I first heard that NRCS could help me install a high tunnel, I applied but didn't really believe that it would happen,” said Hoppe-Glosser. “But then it did. I couldn't be happier. This high tunnel will help me extend my growing season so we can grow more crops and generate a full year's income from our farm.” With the help of the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and their high tunnel conservation practice, Hoppe-Glosser has achieved his goal.
NRCS in California began assisting farmers with high tunnels, sometimes referred to as hoop houses, in the 2008 Farm Bill and the conservation practice's popularity has only skyrocketed throughout the 2014 Farm Bill. In Fiscal Year 2014, NRCS provided approximately $400,000 to assist farmers to install the structures. This past fiscal year, 2018, NRCS provided $1.4 million to new farmers to install the same practice. Over a five-year span, NRCS provided $4.4 million in total.
Similar to Hoppe-Glosser, Tong Vue of Beyond Bok Choy farm in Fresno, Calif., was attracted to NRCS's high tunnel practice because it would allow her to grow more Asian crops, year round, protected by winter's elements. It is not uncommon to see at least four different crops growing inside her high tunnel at any point in the year, especially basil which typically has a short growing season.
And not limited to just certain regions like California's Central Valley, high tunnels are effective in arid regions as well. When Kyung Pil-Kim and his wife Mary finished long careers in uber-urban Los Angeles, they were ready for something different — and they got it. They started a jujube farm on 20 acres of high desert in Lucerne Valley near Victorville, Calif.
The first practice they worked with NRCS on was to install a hoop house. “The opportunity is to diversify beyond jujubes to squash, tomatoes, peppers, herbs, tender lettuces, chard and kale —things that could never withstand the desert's brutal sun and wind,” said Pil-Kim.
High tunnels have created a niche for smaller farming operations and historically underserved landowners who had not previously taken advantage of Farm Bill programs. The high tunnel frame must be constructed of metal, wood, or durable plastic; and be at least six feet in height at the peak of the structure. The covering must be either polyethylene, polycarbonate, plastic, or fabric.
Since its inception in 1935, NRCS has worked in partnership with private landowners and a variety of local, state and federal conservation partners to deliver conservation based on specific, local needs. Please visit www.ca.nrcs.usda.gov for more information about NRCS.
–USDA NRCS California
High tunnels have created a niche for smaller farming operations and historically underserved landowners who had not previously taken advantage of Farm Bill programs. (NRCS Oregon, Flickr/Creative Commons)