- Author: Chris M. Webb
In Belgium, raising greenhouse strawberries in substrate (soil-less culture) is quite successful. Several California researchers are looking for ways to adjust this process for outdoor strawberry production in our state.
“Why?,” might be the question on many minds. The advantages of growing in substrate are: minimal plant diseases and weeds, and therefore no need to fumigate.
The researchers on this project are collaborators of Farm Advisor Oleg Daugovish. A presentation of the study was given at a recent fumigants update meeting at the Ventura County Cooperative Extension office. This presentation, which is also a great example of set-up, design, and overcoming problems encountered during research, has been archived on this page of our website with sound.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Ventura County Cooperative Extension will be hosting a strawberry research update seminar on Friday, May 7, 2010 from 8am-noon at our office. The program is in English with simultaneous translation into Spanish available upon request. There is no cost to attend, but to ensure your participation please contact Oleg Daugovish.
Topics to be covered include:
- Latest regulations for fumigant use.
- Alternative fumigants and emission reduction technologies.
- Raised bed trough substrate systems.
- Soil disinfestation with steam or hot gas.
- Anaerobic soil disinfestation.
- Biofumigational potential of mustards.
- California Strawberry Commission update pertaining to fumigant regulations.
Further information can be found here.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Ventura County Cooperative Extension will be hosting a strawberry irrigation field day on Thursday, February 18, 2010 from 8-11am in Camarillo. The program is in English with simultaneous translation into Spanish. There is no cost to attend, but to ensure your participation please contact Oleg Daugovish. Coffee and refreshments will be provided.
Topics to be covered include:
- Strawberry establishment with drip, partial or standard sprinkler irrigation
- Establishment of large scale irrigation study
- Water use/application and salinity measurements
- Plant performance and differences in salinity in two 4-drip line configurations
- Improvements in irrigation management
- Precision monitoring, affordable and practical irrigation equipment.
Further information can be found here.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Mark Bolda is the Strawberry and Caneberry Farm Advisor in Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Benito Counties. Our own Oleg Daugovish collaborates regularly with him on many projects.
I would like to share with you Mark Bolda’s blog. He has several posts related to the spotted wing drosophila (SWD) previously known as the cherry vinegar fly. These posts include:
- the importance of monitoring for this pest allows growers to manage the insect before the infestation is heavy
- what to look for and steps to take if found
In addition to being informative, the posts on SWD that span about one year are additionally interesting as they are written as the problem unfolds. It is a glimpse into the on-going work and the on-the-ground problem solving that comes with being a UCCE Farm Advisor.
- Author: Chris M. Webb
Like the rest of our researchers, Ventura County UCCE Farm Advisor Oleg Daugovish and Staff Research Associate Maren Mochizuki are busy with many projects. What will be shared with you today is a summary of one of Oleg and Maren’s projects that have the potential to increase agricultural yields using captured greenhouse gases.
More than 7 billion tons of green house gases (GHG) were released in the United States in 2006. Most of the gases are attributable to the combustion of fossil fuels used for electricity and transportation. While current CO2 capture technology focuses on geological storage, an incentive to capture emissions may be offered by agriculture: CO2 could be supplied to plants for uptake and sequestration as an alternative to underground storage. Agricultural plants with C-3 carbon assimilation pathway have shown increased productivity at CO2 levels elevated above the ambient air concentrations. One plant that has such a pathway is the raspberry, which is the fastest growing high value crop in Ventura County (annual value ~$85 million) and appears very suitable for carbon dioxide sequestration: it is a perennial C-3 crop with multi-layered canopy, is grown in tunnels/hoops that protect the CO2 delivery to leaves from wind and rain, and, has existing support structures for the gas delivery system.
Working with collaborators, we evaluated several plant productivity parameters such as fruit yield, berry size, cane size in a large scale replicated study.
The delivery system was successfully designed and installed, applying a total of about 60 tons of CO2 to three specific hoops during the four-month trial. Diurnal measurements of leaf stomatal conductance, CO2 assimilation, and fluorescence showed a mid-day depression, enabling us to make an informed decision about optimum application time. We avoided application at the time of the day when plants would be unable to take up the applied CO2, thereby minimizing waste. We found CO2 concentration in the hoops where gas was applied were 20-25% higher than ambient CO2 concentration during delivery periods (8 h/day), generally returning to ambient levels during hours when gas was not applied. We also found that leaves in the middle and lower canopy, rather than the top, were the most active, prompting us to place our CO2 drip tape for delivery at about 90 cm (35 inches) above ground level.
The number of baskets from the full hoops in which CO2 was applied increased by 36% after CO2 application. Berry weight also increased 0.1% per berry in the CO2 hoops. Cane height, number, and diameter as well carbohydrate content of fruit were similar after CO2 application in all measured plants.
Further information about this study can be obtained by contacting our office.