- Author: Mark E Lundy
Please mark your calendars for a May 9th, 2024 field day at the UC Davis Department of Plant Sciences Field Facility. Program will start in the morning and include lunch with presentations on small grain variety development and agronomic management of small grain crops. Full details and registration will be posted on the UC Small Grains Blog closer to the date. We hope to see you there!
- Author: Mark E Lundy
- Author: Nicholas E Clark
UC COOPERATIVE EXTENSION FIELD DAY
Cool Season Cropping Systems in the San Joaquin Valley
4/18/2024
9:45 AM – 12:30 PM
Location: Westside Research and Extension Center
17353 W Oakland Ave, Five Points, CA 93624
CEU (available):
CCA: 0.5 SWM, 0.5 IPM, & 1.0 CM
CDFA INMP: 0.5 N Mgmt. & 1.0 Irrig. Mgmt
CEU (applied):
CA DPR: 1.0 Other
FREE to Attend. REGISTRATION requested. Please register HERE.
9:45 Sign-in
10:00 Introduction of new UC Cooperative Extension Academics
10:10 Mark Lundy (UC Davis/UCCE):
Deficit irrigation and water productivity in small grains: Do planting date and crop choice matter?
10:25 Caitlin Peterson (PPIC):
Measuring and comparing winter water use resulting from deficit irrigated small grain and fallow fields
10:40 Josh Hegarty (UC Davis):
Selecting small grain varieties with improved N use efficiency and reduced environmental impacts in the SJV
10:55 Josh Hegarty (UC Davis) and Mark Lundy (UC Davis/UCCE)
Small Grain Plot Tours
11:15 Jorge Angeles and Nick Clark (UCCE):
Weed control options for ALS-resistant chickweed in wheat
11:30 Giuliano Galdi (UCCE):
Glyphosate injury in glyphosate tolerant alfalfa: could it happen in the SJV
11:45 Nick Clark (UCCE):
Garbanzo bean variety trial and plot observations
12:00 Nick Clark (UCCE) and Christine Diepenbrock (UC Davis):
Garbanzo Plot Tours and Survey
12:15 Lunch
WSREC Field Day 4 18 24 Agenda F
- Author: Thomas Turini
- Author: Nicholas E Clark
Between 22 and 27 Feb, Ascochyta blight in garbanzo beans was detected in the Five Points/Lemoore area.
This disease has potential to cause economic damage, is favored by wet conditions and moderate temperatures, and rain is in the forecast for Friday, March 1st and Sunday, March 3rd.
Fungicides, such as Endura (boscalid), Headline (pyraclostrobin), or Quadris (azoxystrobin) applied to garbanzo foliage preventatively will reduce risk of loss due to this disease.
Consult product labels carefully before applying a fungicide treatment to ensure the most effective application method, timing and rate.
Here are recent resources for more information about Ascochyta blight in garbanzos:
https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=26328
https://ipm.ucanr.edu/agriculture/dry-beans/ascochyta-blight-garbanzo-beans/
Below are photos by Tom Turini showing typical signs and symptoms of Ascochyta blight of garbanzo on plant samples recently collected in the Five Points/Lemoore area.
Circular lesions with dark centers and foliar dieback on garbanzo bean plant.
Garbanzo bean leaves with necrosis and small dark ifungal structures (pycnidia) of Ascochyta rabiei.
Garbanzo bean plant with stem lesion and substantial dieback.
- Author: Michelle Leinfelder-Miles
UC Cooperative Extension will host a Healthy Soils Program field demonstration day on cover cropping in rice systems. The meeting will take place on Thursday, February 29th, from 9:30am to noon, on Staten Island in San Joaquin County (23319 N. Staten Island Road, Thornton). Presentations will describe field trials to evaluate winter cover cropping, incentive programs for growers, and weed management topics ahead of the 2024 growing season. There will also be an opportunity to view different cover crop species for performance. Attendance is free, and registration is not required. CCA continuing education credits will be offered (0.5 PM, 1.0 CM, 0.5 PD). The agenda is pasted below, and a downloadable version is attached. Thanks for your interest in UC Cooperative Extension programming, and we hope to see you later this month!
9:30am Arrive at Staten Island grain silo to sign in (See yellow star on the map)
9:45am Depart to field location – Don't be late!
10:00am Welcome and Introductions: Michelle Leinfelder-Miles, UCCE Delta Region
10:05am Winter Cover Cropping in Rice Systems – Field Demonstrations: Michelle Leinfelder-Miles, UCCE Delta Region
10:20am Cover Crop Variety Evaluations: Sara Rosenberg, UC Davis
10:35am A Grower's Perspective on Cover Crops: Jerred Dixon, Conservation Farms and Ranches
10:55am Healthy Soils Program – Block Grant Pilot Program: Chris Kelley, CA Land Stewardship Institute
11:10am What's New in Rice Weed Management: Whitney Brim-DeForest, UCCE Sutter/Yuba
11:25am Weedy Rice Updates: Whitney Brim-DeForest and Michelle Leinfelder-Miles, UCCE
11:40am Discussion, Viewing of Field Plots, Evaluation
2024 Rice Cover Crop Field Day Agenda FINAL
- Author: Sarah E Light
- Author: Rachael Long
- Contributor: Taiyu Guan
- Contributor: Clair Akin
Background of the Project
Recent regulations, incentive funding, and the state's goal of reducing organic matter into the waste stream has led to increased organic matter application to California Farmland. With increasing limitations on burning orchard by-products, some alfalfa growers have been applying almond shell mulch to their fields.
Almond shells are distinct from almond hulls, which are high in carbohydrates and fed widely to livestock. Unlike hulls (which are more similar to dried peaches), shells are woody and break down more slowly. Almond shells are high in carbon and low in nitrogen (N).
Link with Alfalfa
Almonds are grown throughout California's Central Valley, in areas where alfalfa is also grown. The application of almond shells to alfalfa is best suited for older, established stands and/or for Roundup Ready alfalfa. This is because almond shell application can interfere with pre-emergence herbicide applications. Concerns about N immobilization in the soil surface are reduced in the case of alfalfa due to N fixation by alfalfa and the deep rooting structure. There is a need to understand how almond shell application impacts alfalfa stand productivity including yield and weed pressure.
This study started in 2021, and is currently mid-stream. Below is a summary of preliminary information collected mid-project by UCCE Farm Advisors Sarah Light and Rachael Long.
Collection of Data
Almond Shells were applied in the Fall of 2021 to a three-year-old alfalfa stand at a rate of four to eight tons per acre with four replications. On April 8th, 2022 and October 17th, 2022, plots were hand-harvested prior to grower harvest. Two square meters were sampled from each plot in three locations per plot. Percent cover of weeds, alfalfa and bare soil were also collected on all harvest dates. Following first cutting, on April 30th, 2022, stand counts were collected to evaluate the potential impact of almond shell application on future stand performance. By spring 2022, almond shells were no longer visible.
Data collected to date indicates that there was no difference in yield between plots that had almond shells and those that did not. Yield differences were not significant between treatments at either harvest date. Almond shell application to established stands does not appear to increase or reduce yields of established alfalfa stands.
Yield data from April 8th, 2022:
Yield data from October 17th, 2022:
Almond shell application did not affect the percent alfalfa, weeds or bare soil between treated and untreated plots either in the spring at first cutting or the following fall, a year after almond shell application. In the first year of the project, the application of almond shells did not affect the percent of alfalfa, weeds, or bare soil.
Alfalfa stands were consistent between treatments and not affected by almond shell applications. This data indicates that there isn't a negative impact to applying almond shells alfalfa fields.
Preliminary Conclusions
Almond shell mulch application to established alfalfa fields does not appear to negatively affect alfalfa stand productivity in the first year after application. Alfalfa fields may provide an opportunity for diverting almond shells from nearby orchards, improving organic matter recycling in the region.
This project will be continued for a second year. To try to measure differences between treatments, almond shells were applied on 11/19/22 at an increased rate of 12.5 tons/A to the same areas that had previously had almond shells applied. Yield measurements, percent cover measurements, and stand productivity measurements will be continued for the next year. In addition, the effect of almond shell application on soil nutrients and soil health will be quantified. Soil moisture measurements will also be collected.
Farmer Supported
Thank you to the California Alfalfa and Forage Research Foundation for funding this project, and to our farmer collaborator without whom this work would not be possible. Please contact Sarah Light, selight@ucanr.edu, or Rachael Long, rflong@ucanr.edu,for more information.