- Author: Pamela S Kan-Rice
CSAC honors UCCE San Luis Obispo team
A representative of the California State Association of Counties (CSAC) presented the County of San Luis Obispo with the 2023 CSDC Challenge Award during the Board of Supervisors meeting on April 9.
The annual award is presented to California counties to highlight innovative programs developed at the county level.
CSAC CEO Graham Knaus presented the CSAC Challenge Award for the Cross-Sector Partnerships for Food and Nutrition Security program to Jen Miller, County of San Luis Obispo health promotion division manager; Shannon Klisch, County of San Luis Obispo department head and director of UC Cooperative Extension in San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura counties; and Mishelle Costa, CalFresh Healthy Living, UC community education supervisor.
The team developed partnerships with multiple organizations to ensure that fresh produce is more available in the surrounding community. They collaborated to increase the number of markets that accept CalFresh and offer Market Match, provide a more consistent and welcoming experience for CalFresh customers across markets, and increase the visibility of farmers market nutrition incentives.
Together, they have increased equitable access to healthy food and support for local farmers.
According to the County of San Luis Obispo, 8.4% of all residents and 9.7% of all children countywide are defined as food insecure, or "lacking consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life."
Battany honored with ASEV Extension Distinction Award
Mark Battany, UCCE water management and biometeorology advisor in San Luis Obispo and Sant Barbara counties, has been selected for the 2024 American Society for Enology and Viticulture Extension's Distinction Award.
The ASEV Extension Distinction Award is given to a current ASEV member and extension educator based on their contributions to enology or viticulture through their extension program, or the translation of novel research findings into commercially applicable tools for enologists or viticulturists.
Battany will present “Flipping dimensions: A vertical weather view helps illuminate vineyard challenges,” at the 75th ASEV National Conference in Portland, Oregon, on June 19.
CalFresh Healthy Living, UCCE Riverside and partners win health equity award
CalFresh Healthy Living, UCCE Riverside, CFHL, UC Davis and the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians Community Wellness Committee Partnership are being honored with the first National Cooperative Extension health equity award.
The 2024 National Cooperative Extension Priester Health Equity Award recognizes extraordinary programs and professionals that are modeling next-generation work in the area of health and well-being.
The project includes nutrition, garden and physical activity education with the Torres Martinez community. The overarching goal is to foster greater health and well-being through activities that engage the participants with culturally relevant materials and work to restore traditional food systems.
The team includes Claudia Carlos, CFHL, UCCE Riverside supervisor; the Coachella Valley team of community nutrition educators Esmeralda Nunez, Vianca Nunez and Jackie Velarde; Andra Nicoli, CFHL, UC Davis project policy analyst; and Chutima Ganthavorn, UCCE nutrition, families and consumer sciences advisor emeritus.
UCCE Riverside County farm advisor Philip Waisen, through a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention grant titled ACORNS, pairs lesson activities with farm and nutritional health webinars. UCCE Riverside Master Gardener Brad Hardison offers garden support, resources and education.
Tribal Council Vice Chairman Joseph Mirelez and Community Wellness Committee members anchor health-education initiative activities in local tradition and events for sustained effectiveness.
The award will be presented at the National Health Outreach and Engagement Conference on May 13-15 in Greenville, South Carolina.
Kudos for Rose, Casseer
Kendra Rose, senior contracts and grants officer and Dilshan Casseer, proposal development coordinator, earned gratitude from Whitney Brim-DeForest, UCCE director in Sutter and Yuba counties and rice and wild rice advisor.
“I would like to shout out Kendra Rose and Dilshan Casseer for their incredible help in preparing a grant for submission!” said Brim-DeForest. “They have both gone above and beyond, assisting in editing and writing, helping me and my co-PIs prepare draft documents for submission. Their guidance, preparation and timely meetings have made this process incredibly easy for my colleagues and me. Thank you so much to both of them!”
Larson receives ASI Bradford-Rominger Leadership Award
Larson has spent more than 40 years working for UC Cooperative Extension to address opportunities and issues that California ranchers face in their agricultural businesses. Her interdisciplinary approach to issues facing livestock producers, rangeland owners and managers, and the public aims to maintain and increase the sustainability of agriculture systems and the environment, with a particular focus on ecosystem services in counties under threat from encroachment by urban development.
“Stephanie is the gold standard of what a UC ANR advisor should be – she has a robust, relevant county program, provides leadership and vision for statewide programs; she offers her service to professional societies and she is highly regarded by all who work with her,” said Theresa Becchetti, UC Cooperative Extension livestock advisor, one of the 20 UCCE peers who nominated Larson for the award.
Larson and Main will receive their awards at a ceremony featuring distinguished speaker Hannah Wittman, interim co-director of the University of British Columbia Centre for Climate Justice, on Wednesday, May 15, 4–7 p.m. To register for the event, visit https://registration.ucdavis.edu/Item/Details/1137.
The Bradford-Rominger award recognizes and honors individuals who exhibit the leadership, work ethic and integrity epitomized by the late Eric Bradford, a livestock geneticist who gave 50 years of service to UC Davis, and the late Charlie Rominger, a fifth-generation Yolo County farmer and land preservationist. The annual award was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic and these will be the first awards given since 2020.
- Author: Mark Battany
Irrigation frequency and volume
One fundamental decision that a grower needs to make is how frequently to irrigate a vineyard; either applying small amounts of water frequently, or larger amounts of water less frequently. This choice determines how large the soil "flower pot" is that supports the vines, while also having implications for nutrient availability, salinity conditions and potential limitations on water infiltration. Changing from frequent small irrigations to infrequent large irrigations, either as an ongoing practice or as a one-time event, may lead to unanticipated outcomes and thus should ideally be done after ensuring that the conditions are adequate for this practice. For this reason it can be beneficial to evaluate the soil and water quality conditions at a site before making large changes in irrigation practices. Factors to consider include the potential depth of the rootzone, the presence of any layers in the soil which may cause infiltration problems, the salinity of the irrigation water, and the potential nutrient conditions affected by changing the wetted soil volume.
Root zone depth
If applying a large volume of irrigation water, the soil needs to have the capacity to store this water while providing adequate porosity conditions allowing gas exchange for proper root function. The soil depth to bedrock needs to be considered; if this depth is shallow in areas of the vineyard, this can lead to poor performance with large irrigations if they result in ponded water above the bedrock or large variations in total available soil water due to varying soil depths.
Most of our vineyards are located on deeper alluvial soils where shallow bedrock is not a concern. For a given rooting depth, finer-textured soils with their relatively high water holding capacity can store more water and thus be irrigated with larger volumes less frequently, while coarse-textured soils with their lower water holding capacity generally need to be irrigated with smaller amounts more frequently. Grapevine roots can grow very deeply in the soil, more so if that is where available water is found; however a vine which has developed mostly shallow roots from a history of shallow irrigation may not be able to take advantage of recently applied deeper soil moisture until it has developed the roots to do so.
Less permeable layers
Common throughout the Central Coast are different types of low-permeability layers in soils which can impede the movement of water, resulting in ponding or saturated conditions above the restrictive layer with negative impacts on any roots in that zone. These less permeable layers may not have been been given much attention until well after a vineyard has been planted, for example when mature vines are observed to suffer stress in heavy rainfall years or with a change to longer duration irrigation in the summer. A thorough evaluation of a site prior to planting should include an assessment of the deeper soil conditions to identify any potential restrictions on the movement of water or penetration of roots. Sites which have such conditions that cannot be corrected are not good candidates for applying large volumes of irrigation water in the summer, if doing so results in water saturation of the active root zone.
Impermeable layers can exist due to a variety of physical and/or chemical conditions in the soil. A hardpan can be formed naturally in the soil due to the gradual compaction and cementing together of soil particles. Agricultural practices of using moldboard plows and heavy equipment can also create hardpan conditions.
A clay lens is a horizontal layer of clay in between soil layers; this clay can be an effective barrier to both water movement and root penetration. These clay lenses can occur below the depths which can be effectively corrected with tillage, leading to perched water tables which can be particularly troublesome by preventing deeper drainage.
Another type of textural barrier occurs in a stratified soil, when a fine-textured soil horizon overlies a coarse-textured horizon. Water does not flow downward out of the fine-textured horizon and into the coarse-textured horizon until the former is fully saturated with water. This may seem counter intuitive, because we generally associate coarse soils with good drainage; in reality this stratified condition results in water-logging of the fine soil layer when large amounts of irrigation are applied. With small volumes of irrigation this fine soil layer may be wetted enough to support the bulk of the vine roots; a subsequent change to a large volume of irrigation can saturate this same soil and negatively affect root function.
Chemical weathering of the soil can also form low-permeability layers over thousands of years. An example are the "calcic" (also known as "caliche") soil horizons which are formed by rainfall dissolving the naturally occurring lime in the upper soil horizons, which then moves downwards where it precipitates out of solution (becomes solid) again at a deeper depth. Because the precipitation of the lime occurs within the existing soil pores, this process gradually clogs these soil pores and creates a barrier to water movement and root penetration.
Such extensive deep tillage may not be desirable or feasible for a variety of practical and philosophical reasons; in that case the irrigation management needs to be adapted to the presence of these soil barriers to water movement. Lighter, more frequent irrigation can avoid problems due to deeper restrictive layers. Alternatively, applying irrigation more broadly by increasing the number of emitters per vine (two 1/2 gph emitters instead of one 1 gph emitter for example) can increase the wetted soil volume while avoiding the potential deeper problem layers if applied volumes remain small. A heavy summer irrigation which results in the extended saturation of the soil horizon containing the most active roots can result in vine collapse and death, but the same soil conditions during the winter will not impact the vines in the same manner; thus applying large irrigations to soils during the winter to increase their water storage can be more successful than during the summer when roots are active and the vine root water uptake is at its maximum. This type of winter irrigation is more useful in dry regions where rainfall is limited, and may not be suitable for areas that receive heavier precipitation.
Soil salinity considerations
Another factor to consider when determining the irrigation frequency is the potential for soil salinity to impact vine growth. Groundwater quality throughout the Central Coast is highly variable; sites with relatively poor-quality irrigation water, particularly those having rootstocks susceptible to salinity, need to take this into consideration when choosing their irrigation frequency. To understand why, consider this example: after applying irrigation, assume that the electrical conductivity of the soil water is the same as the irrigation water. As the soil water is consumed by root uptake and evaporation, the volume of soil water is reduced but most of the salts remain behind in the soil water. As a result, the concentration of salts in the remaining soil water gradually increases as the volume of soil water decreases. This adds an additional stress on the vines, an osmotic stress, which reduces the vine's ability to take up the remaining soil moisture. We can minimize this osmotic stress by increasing the frequency of irrigation, which ensures that at least a small volume of the soil is maintained at a higher water content and therefore a lower salinity level. With higher frequency irrigation, the vines won't experience the same degree of increasing salinity stress towards the end of the irrigation cycle as they would between large, infrequent irrigations. This characteristic of high-frequency drip irrigation to maintain a lower osmotic stress is what has permitted successful crop production where conventional irrigation would not be feasible due to the poor quality irrigation water.
Nutrient considerations
The choice of whether we are growing the vines in a "big pot" or a "small pot" has important implications for nutrient management as well. When a larger volume of soil is wetted with irrigation, this can increase the total amount of soil nutrients which are available to the vines; this can be good or bad, depending upon the situation.
As the soil dries out over the summer and early fall, the most active roots will be in the volume of soil wetted by irrigation. If this soil volume does not contain sufficient nutrients, then deficiencies can occur. A common example is potassium; it can exist in adequate quantities in the drier soil outside the wetted volume but is not readily available to the roots under these dry soil conditions. This is an example of an induced deficiency, where the nutrient is present, but conditions do not permit its uptake by the vine. This condition is typically addressed by fertilizing with the nutrient in the wetted soil volume, generally by fertigation. Increasing the wetted soil volume can allow the vines to access nutrients which previously were not as accessible such as the potassium example above. It may also increase the availability of other nutrients, for example nitrogen which had leached below an earlier shallow root zone. An increased level of available nitrogen may lead to excessive vegetative growth, thus these deeper nutrient levels may need to be evaluated before increasing the soil wetted volume.
Summary
Prior to making major changes in the irrigation frequency and amounts at a site, the soil and rooting conditions should be evaluated to predict whether or not such changes might have any negative effects on the growth of the vines. The factors involved are relatively straightforward but can be difficult to evaluate due to the need to dig deeply in the soil, and often at multiple locations if there is much variability at the site. Making this effort can help predict what types of changes may occur due to alternations in the irrigation patterns, and help identify situations beforehand that could result in undesired outcomes.
Videos of water movement in soils
Water Movement in Soils, a classic 1959 video produced by Washington State University has some excellent demonstrations of how water moves in soils; some key examples:
A coarse soil layer underlying a fine soil layer:
https://youtu.be/DmTNFIEc2VA?t=227
A clay layer (which will behave similarly to a hardpan layer or a strong calcic horizon):
https://youtu.be/DmTNFIEc2VA?t=395
A more recent video from the University of Arizona has similar demonstrations of water movement in stratified soils:
https://youtu.be/Ph-7tQuIbz4?t=899
A historical perspective on hardpan soils
For a history of local farmers dealing with hardpan soils on the Central Coast a century ago, see the earlier blog article: The rise (and demise) of the UC Experiment Station at Paso Robles
This story originally published in Grape Notes.
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
"We see clearly what a bust cycle looks like," said Mark Battany, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources viticulture and soils advisor in SLO County. "Ranchers have no choice but to sell off their cows and rebuild the herd when the rain comes back."
Sahagun reported that ranchers in the area have suffered severe drought for centuries.
"During a drought that ended in 1864, some ranchers drove their herds off cliffs and into the ocean below to stop their suffering," the article said.
The current drought is leaving landowners few options. The county placed a two-year moratorium on new agriculture that depending on the aquifer, so rangeland can't be converted to vineyards at the moment.
"Ranchers are getting hit hard from every direction," said Royce Larsen, UC ANR natural resource watershed advisor in SLO County. "It's a grim and desperate outlook."
Other news over the weekend included:
Holy S***! Almonds require a ton of bees
Tom Philpott, Mother Jones, May 25, 2015
Growing almonds in California takes about 1.7 million bee hives, drawing a large fraction of the nation's available bee hives. Why don't they stay in California? The state is already home to 500,000 of the nation's 2.7 million hives, said Eric Mussen, UC ANR specialist emeritus based at UC Davis. The almond bloom is great for a few weeks, but in terms of year-round foraging, "California is already at or near its carrying capacity for honeybees," he said.
Farm Beat: Here is how hikers, cattle can coexist
John Holland, Modesto Bee, May 22, 2015
UC ANR released a five-page brochure last month that shows how hikers and other visitors can avoid conflicts with cattle that graze on public land. Cattle fatten up nicely when they can graze calmly – good for the rancher and good for the buyer of the meat down the line, the story said.
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
"Chefs are using what's produced (in the garden) in their kitchens because they know their customers appreciate fresh, local food," said Rachel Surls, the sustainable food systems advisor for UC Cooperative Extension in Los Angeles County.
Surls was part of a recent tour of urban agriculture in downtown Los Angeles, a story that was also covered by the LA Times.
The visitors — who included growers, urban policymakers, consultants, entrepreneurs and representatives of nonprofits — wandered around the vegetable beds and asked questions as they got a taste of the garden. The article said the garden, on the fifth floor of a building at 6th and Figueroa streets, cost about $40,000 to build and yields as much as $150,000 worth of produce every year.
Other news:
Drought clouds future of California wine industry
W. Blake Gray, Wine-searcher-com
The California drought didn't impact the wine industry in 2014, but a dry forecast for next year has growers worried. One major issue is the buildup of salts in soils, said Mark Battany, UC Cooperative farm advisor in San Luis Obispo County. During a wet winter, these salts are washed away. But California hasn't had a wet winter in three years. Farmers were able to irrigate at the beginning of the drought to make up the difference, but increasingly water supplies are restricted.
Battany says that excess salt buildup in the soil can cause grapevines to lose their leaves. "Without a way to process sunlight, you won't see sugar ripening," he said.
Showdown looms as California eyes pesticides
Ellen Knickmeyer, Associated Press
Organic farmers are challenging a proposed California pest-management program they say enshrines a pesticide-heavy approach for decades to come, including compulsory spraying of organic crops at the state's discretion.
The farmers are concerned about the California Department of Food and Agriculture's pest-management plan, the article says. The 500-page document lays out its planned responses to the next wave of fruit flies, weevils, beetles, fungus or blight that threatens crops. Many groups challenging the plan complained that it seems to authorize state agriculture officials to launch pesticide treatments without first carrying out the currently standard separate environmental-impact review.
The article reported that the California organic agriculture industry grew by 54 percent between 2009 and 2012. California leads the nation in organic sales, according to statistics tracked by UC Cooperative Extension specialist Karen Klonsky, who says the state is responsible for roughly one-third of a national organic industry.
/span>- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Dear Colleagues,
I am pleased to announce the 2013-14 recipients of the ANR Distinguished Service Awards, which are given biennially for outstanding contributions to the teaching, research and public service mission of the Division.
Awards were given in six areas:
- Outstanding Extension – Eric Mussen, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in the Department of Entomology and Nematology at UC Davis for bees.
- Outstanding Research – Mark Battany, UC Cooperative Extension advisor in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara countiesfor viticulture.
- Outstanding New Academic – David Doll, UC Cooperative Extension advisor in Merced County for nut crops
- Outstanding Team – Ken Tate, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in the Department of Plant Sciences at UC Davis, and Rob Atwill, director of Veterinary Medicine Extension at UC Davis, are the recipients of the Outstanding Team Award. Since 1994, Tate and Atwill have collaborated on a series of projects assessing the potential risk to rangeland surface-water quality and human health from livestock associated pollutants.
- Outstanding Leader – Pamela Geisel, former director of the statewide UC Master Gardener Program. Although Pam retired recently, since this nomination package was very strong, I believe it's appropriate and important to give Pam this much-deserved award.
- Outstanding Staff – Michael Yang, UCCE agricultural assistant in Fresno County for small farms.
Each of the recipients will receive $2,000 and a certificate, except for the team award recipients, who will receive individual certificates and share $5,000.
The DSA nominations were reviewed by the Academic Assembly Council Program Committee, which gave me its recommendations. The committee was chaired by Joe Grant and included Rachel Surls, Becky Westerdahl, Scott Oneto and Jennifer Heguy.
On behalf of ANR, I thank the DSA recipients for providing excellent service to the people of California. I hope you will join me in congratulating them on this well-deserved recognition.
Barbara Allen-Diaz
Vice President
View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.
This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.