Paul M Vossen

Paul Vossen

University of California

Cooperative Extension

Farm Advisor, Emeritus

Paul Vossen was a University of California Cooperative Extension – Farm Advisor in Sonoma and Marin Counties since 1980.  He worked in the areas of fruit tree, berry, and specialty vegetable culture; pest control; and marketing of farm products.  He also managed the Master Gardener and Sudden Oak Death Programs.  He helped local farmers with the evaluation of their land, selection of appropriate specialty crops, cultural practices, and advice on selling their produce.  He was one of the founders of the Sebastopol Apple Promotion Committee (1982), Sonoma County Ag Marketing Program (1986), and the California Olive Oil Council in 1990.  He developed statewide and international expertise in olive oil production, processing, and sensory evaluation, including management of the first olive oil taste panel in the USA to become recognized by the International Olive Oil Council in 2001.  As a UC researcher he worked on the scientific evaluation of organic production practices for various crops including apples and olives, primarily in the control of apple scab, codling moth, and olive fruit fly.  Then he authored two UC manuals on organic production for apples and olives.  He taught many UC short courses and seminars on specialty crops production, working closely with the SRJC Sustainable Ag Program, and completed a new cost study on coastal olive oil production.  He oversaw the Sonoma County Master Gardener Program for more than 30 years.  This program donates over 15,000 hours of volunteer service annually to the community on the subject of sustainable gardening techniques via two help desks (Santa Rosa and Sonoma), library workshops, community gardens, fairs, festivals, farmers’ market booths, a food gardening specialist group, and a Sudden Oak Death outreach program. Their home composting program, at one time funded by Sonoma County Waste Management Agency, helped reduce landfill inputs by 5,500 cubic yards by educating the community to compost and reuse of yard and kitchen waste.  The Master Gardener Pesticide Use Reduction Education (PURE) Project disseminated information to over 10,200 people through workshops, information tables and a demo garden. The PURE Project was supported by a grant from City of Santa Rosa and the Sonoma County Waste Management Agency. The PURE demonstration garden at the Sonoma County Fair annually showcased sustainable gardening techniques such as integrated pest management, water conservation, appropriate plant selection and habitat gardening.  Paul also oversaw the Sudden Oak Death (SOD) program that conducted research into documenting the extent of this exotic fungal infestation in Sonoma County.  The program, funded by a USDA Forestry Dept. grant, teaches landowners, arborists, parks and recreation staff, and the general public about oak tree management issues to prevent SOD and to minimize its spread into uninfested areas.