As the Covid-19 pandemic persists, and as government mandates and University recommendations maintain that we should social distance, I have come to the conclusion NOT to hold the annual SJC and Delta Field Crops Meeting in January. Instead, I am working with colleagues to deliver virtual continuing education early in the new year:

The California Plant and Soil Conference will be held virtually February 1-3, 2021, and registration is now open. Please see the website for more information and to register. We have applied for DPR pesticide licensing credits (2.75), CCA credits (12.75), and Nitrogen Management credits (5) to help growers fulfill their Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program requirement. These credits have not yet been approved and are subject to change.

The UCCE Rice Grower Meeting will also be held virtually on February 11, 2021. This meeting is still being developed, and I will post more information once registration is open. In the meantime, please save the date!

Please don't hesitate to reach out to me if you have questions regarding these events. I hope that the pandemic has not severely impacted you or those close to you, and I wish you safe, healthy, and happy holidays.

UC Cooperative Extension will offer a virtual Alfalfa IPM Workshop on December 3rd and 4th. The workshop will run from 9am to 12pm on each day. Registration is required, and there is a $25 fee to help cover our costs of delivering a workshop virtually. Continuing education credits will be offered. (5 "Other" credits from DPR and 4 "IPM" credits for CCAs.)

An abbreviated agenda is pasted below. A detailed agenda is available here, and registration is available here. (Fee goes up on November 24th.) We hope you can join us for this event!

Day 1. December 3 (9 am - Noon PST) Weed and Pest Management Strategies

• Price & Acreage Trends -- Josh Callan, The Hoyt Report, Twin Falls, ID
• California Regulatory Update--Dennis Albiani, Ag. Management, Sacramento, CA
• Key Agronomic Strategies for Pest Management--Dan Putnam, UC Davis
• Poisonous Weeds of Concern in Alfalfa--Larry Forero, UCCE, Redding, CA
• Weed Control Strategies for Establishment and Production -- Earl Creech, Utah State University, Logan, UT
• Recent Weed Control Trials in Alfalfa--Tom Getts & Giuliano Galdi, UCCE, Susanville and Yreka, CA
• Weed Mangement Strategies for Pastures--Josh Davy, UCCE, Redding, CA

Day 2. December 4 (9 am-Noon PST) Insect, Disease Management Strategies

• Process of Pesticide Regulation in California--Aron Lindgren, DPR, Sacramento, CA
• On-Line Tools for Pest Management Information--Jose Luiz Carvalho de Souza Dias, UCCE, Merced, CA
• Management of Insecticide Resistance in Alfalfa--KEvin Wanner, Montana State Univ.
• Biological Insect Control in Alfalfa: A Case Study--Ian Grettenberger, UC Davis
• Update on Low Desert Forage Insects--Michael Rethwisch, UCCE, Blythe, CA
• Summer Worm Management--Rachael Long, UCCE, Woodland, CA
• Potential Use of Drones for Insect Management--Ken Giles, UC Davis
• Key Diseases and Management in Alfalfa--Deborah Samac, USDA-ARS, St. Paul, MN

The 2020 UCCE Delta field corn variety trial, located on Tyler Island, was planted on April 21^st by air planter and consisted of three replicate blocks of seventeen varieties. The seventeen varieties included fourteen varieties submitted by seed companies and three submitted by the grower. All varieties were glyphosate tolerant. Over the course of the season, we evaluated stand count, bloom, disease incidence (Fusarium ear rot, head smut, common smut; Fig. 1), lodging, and yield. The field was harvested on September 25^th.

Table 1 presents mean values for the three replicates. The statistical method used to compare the means is called the Tukey's range test. Varieties were considered statistically different if their P value was less than 0.05, or 5 percent. Twelve varieties have a letter “a” following their mean yield, which means that those twelve varieties all yielded similarly in the trial.

In addition to yield, there were also statistical differences among varieties in Fusarium ear rot, head smut, common smut, ear height, grain moisture, and bushelweight. The CV, or coefficient of variation, is the standard deviation divided by the mean, or a measure of variability in relation to the mean. For the diseases, the variability among the three replicates was very high.

For a printable report with more description of the trial, please visit my website. Special thanks go to the cooperating growers, Gary and Steve Mello, and the participating seed companies.

Figure 1. Diseases monitored in the UCCE Delta field corn variety trial: A) Fusarium ear rot, B) head smut, and C) common smut. These three diseases are generally managed by variety selection.

Table 1. 2020 UCCE Delta field corn variety trial results. Results for each variety are expressed as the average across three replications.

* Data were transformed for analysis. Arithmetic means are presented.

‡ Yield adjusted to 15% moisture.

As the Covid-19 pandemic persists, and as government and University recommendations maintain that we should limit social gatherings, I have come to the conclusion NOT to hold the annual Delta field meeting at the corn variety trial this year. The trial will be harvested in the next few weeks, and I anticipate having results ready and available on this blog by early November. It is regrettable not to be able to host the meeting this year because I know that seeing a trial can have a lot of meaning and impact. Let's hope that next year brings better circumstances. Thanks for your understanding, and please don't hesitate to reach out with questions.