Posts Tagged: Agriculture
Investments in farm-to-school program stabilize farms, expand climate-friendly farming practices
Small and midsize farms, women and BIPOC farmers especially benefit
A new report reveals that California farmers participating in the state's Farm to School Incubator Grant Program are increasing sales of fresh, local and organic produce, meat and dairy products to schools, according to researchers evaluating program impacts. The report found that 57% of the program's farmers made sales to schools between April and September 2023, representing an average of 33% of their total farm revenues. All food producers funded by the Farm to School Grant Program state that they use or plan to use climate-smart agricultural practices in their operations during the grant period.
While existing research shows that kids who engage with farm-to-school programs eat more fruits and vegetables, are more willing to try healthy foods, and even perform better in class, the California farm-to-school evaluation project examines a gap that most farm-to-school research hasn't addressed: how local purchases from schools affect the agricultural sector and the environment.
The report found that the investments are flowing primarily to the farmers the state seeks to support through this program: Of the 50 producer grantees evaluated in this report, 42% are owned by people who identify as Black, Indigenous and People of Color, and 62% are owned by women. Nearly all (94%) are small to midsize operations.
Three producer grantees revealed that the Farm to School Incubator Grant Program funding likely prevented them from going out of business. “This grant … has and will enable us to do things on the farm that would probably take us a decade to do but we'll be able to do that in one or two seasons. So [it] really moves us forward a lot,” noted one farmer.
Beth Katz, a lead researcher and executive director of Food Insight Group, said, “Farmers are expanding their relationships with local school districts, increasing their sales to schools, investing in infrastructure and staff, and forming new relationships with food hubs that can help them with the often complex purchasing requirements unique to school food. While we're still at a very early stage of understanding the impacts of these investments, we're beginning to see patterns emerge.”
A Humboldt County farmer noted that food hubs, which are also supported by the grant program, are critical to their success in accessing the school food market: “[The food hub] is really a huge game changer to be able to make that one drop in town, even though it's an hour away, rather than going to [several school sites] and just making all these little drops. That's been one of the ways that it's very . . .appealing to us as a farm to participate.”
The report also examines the potential for environmental impacts through direct investments in farmers who use climate-friendly farming practices.
“I'm inspired by the potential for the farm-to-school program to support farmers using environmentally beneficial practices like reducing pesticides, planting cover crops and growing organic — and to help farmers expand or adopt these practices. It's essential these farmers have a market for what they grow to see durable environmental benefits,” said Tim Bowles, who is leading the environmental impacts assessment for the evaluation team and is an assistant professor in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy & Management at UC Berkeley and lead faculty director of the Berkeley Food Institute.
“We're also seeing farms actually expand their acreage in order to sell to schools, suggesting this is a desirable market. We're investigating the environmental impacts from these investments, especially for climate,” Bowles said.
As with many new programs aimed at building out long-delayed infrastructure, school food systems improvement demands a deep-rooted approach.
“The challenges around changing a complex school food system are substantial,” Gail Feenstra, a pioneer in farm-to-school research and co-lead on the project from UC ANR stated. “Decades of research shows the value to children from fresh, locally sourced food. However, what is becoming more clear from this research is that long-term investments in the full farm to school system are crucial. Without regional-level infrastructure, staffing, aggregation and distribution in place to support getting that locally grown food from farms to the schools and kids, we'll have challenges moving the needle.
"Fortunately, the state's strategic and innovative investments in the entire farm to school supply chain – meaning funding for school districts, farmers and also their regional partners, combined with support from CDFA's regional staff – are beginning to address those long-standing challenges.”
/h3>Visual ID guide from UC aids in managing new almond pest
Nut orchard hygiene key to control carpophilus beetle, say UCCE, UC Integrated Pest Management experts
Since the first reports of a new almond pest – the carpophilus beetle (Carpophilus truncatus) – came in during fall 2023, it has become clear that the beetle is widely dispersed across the San Joaquin Valley.
“My lab has identified infestations from every county in the San Joaquin Valley; we have found infestations in both almonds and pistachios, and we will likely find infestations in walnuts this fall,” said Houston Wilson, a University of California Cooperative Extension entomology specialist at UC Riverside. The California Department of Food and Agriculture has confirmed the beetle's presence in Stanislaus, Merced, Madera and Kings counties.
Historically a major threat to almond production in Australia, the beetle – as larvae and adults – feeds directly on the nut kernel. In California, some almond growers have lost 10 to 15% of their yield – a “significant economic loss,” according to Jhalendra Rijal, University of California integrated pest management (IPM) advisor for the region. Given the prominence of almonds as a commodity, even a 1% overall reduction statewide represents an approximately $70 million loss.
“This year there has been a lot more reports from PCAs [pest control advisers]; they're sending me the pictures of the damage and beetles,” said Rijal, noting that the increase is likely due to greater awareness of the pest.
To help almond growers identify the carpophilus beetle and develop management plans, Rijal, Wilson and their IPM colleagues have put together a visual ID guide for the beetle and the damage it causes, as well as telltale signs of navel orangeworm (Amyelois transitella) and ant damage. In particular, the experts would like PCAs and growers to differentiate between the carpophilus beetle and navel orangeworm, another key pest in almonds.
“Even though their way of causing damage looks more or less similar, we're dealing with two different types of insects,” Rijal explained. “One is a Lepidoptera moth [navel orangeworm], and the other one is a beetle – many of the management practices and biological controls would be different for these two different things.”
To control carpophilus beetle, ‘sanitize, sanitize, sanitize'
One crucial cultural practice for managing both pests, however, is destroying the remnant “mummy” nuts – the nuts that remain in the orchard postharvest. They serve as overwintering habitat for the carpophilus beetle, as well as its sustenance for the next generation of beetles in spring.
“The best way to manage this pest is to do the orchard hygiene – continuing the winter sanitation, destroying the nuts that are on the ground and on the tree and on the berms,” Rijal said.
Based on observations in Australia and locally, carpophilus beetles tend to rely more on mummies on the ground, whereas navel orangeworm generally favors mummies in the tree canopy. Correctly identifying the pest – with help from the new ID guide – enables growers to better target and prioritize their management efforts, Rijal said.
“What we are strongly emphasizing is that growers need to sanitize, sanitize, sanitize to control both pests,” Wilson added.
Correct identification of the pest would also prevent unnecessary application of insecticides, as those used for controlling Lepidoptera such as navel orangeworm would be largely ineffective on the beetle.
Indeed, another insight shared by Australian experts is that the carpophilus beetle cannot be controlled just by insecticide.
“Insecticides are not very efficient, given the cryptic nature of these beetles; exposing these beetles to the insecticide is very hard,” said Rijal, noting that the beetle spends most of its life cycle protected inside the nut.
Reporting carpophilus beetle infestation helps researchers
This harvest season, Rijal advises almond growers to harvest as efficiently as possible, to minimize the number of mummies that need to be cleaned up. And because signs of damage (like damaged hulls and frass) are most obvious during harvest time, Rijal said growers should review the new guide, using the photos and other resources to help identify potential pests.
If the grower or PCA suspects a carpophilus beetle infestation, they should contact the UCCE farm advisor in their area.
Scientists are looking to expand their knowledge about this relatively new pest to California. In the coming weeks, for example, researchers are planning to survey for the carpophilus beetle in the Sacramento Valley.
“Technically it has not been found there, but we suspect that we'll find it this fall when we go looking for it,” Wilson said.
Researchers are also collecting samples from infested orchards to better understand the biology of the species, as well as how it progresses through and responds to seasonal and climactic changes. In addition, they are analyzing data from a trial study of an insecticide that might be used as a supplemental control measure.
“This is our first full season dealing with this insect, and there are still many things we need to understand,” Rijal said. “We are continuing our research efforts on all fronts.”
/h3>/h3>/h3>Hands-on learning, training make irrigation best practices accessible
UCCE advisors provide free training to nursery and greenhouse staff
Working as an irrigator seems straightforward at first: if you're not watering plants by hand, you're building and managing systems that can do the watering. What could be complex about a job like this?
University of California Cooperative Extension advisors Bruno Pitton and Gerardo “Gerry” Spinelli can tell you – or better yet, show you.
Pitton and Spinelli, members of the UC Nursery and Floriculture Alliance, offer a one-day technical training in irrigation best-management practices for irrigators working with containerized nursery plants. The comprehensive curriculum – developed with input from two focus groups of California nursery and greenhouse managers – aims to improve irrigation efficiency, reduce water consumption and improve plant health.
Thanks to funding from the California Department of Food and Agriculture, nursery and greenhouse managers in California can request this training for free and advisors like Pitton and Spinelli will travel to conduct the training on-site.
The complexities of irrigation incorporate concepts like evapotranspiration, salinity, irrigation uniformity, capillarity, pressure and flow rate. Spinelli, UCCE production horticulture advisor for San Diego County, said that irrigators have a critical role in the industry because of all the things they must consider to do their job well.
“Our goal is to support irrigators and help them become more confident decision-makers and experts in the field,” said Pitton, UCCE environmental horticulture advisor for Placer and Nevada counties.
Interactive sessions reveal nuances of irrigation
The training consists of a presentation on fundamental concepts for managing irrigation in container plant production and hands-on demonstrations. “In the nursery industry, where precise irrigation is crucial for the health and productivity of our crops, having access to expert knowledge is invaluable,” said Mauricio de Almeida, general manager of Burchell Nursery in Fresno County. “The training's practical demonstrations and real-world examples made the concepts easy to grasp, allowing our team to implement the strategies immediately.”
For one of the demonstrations, the advisors used sponges to model soil saturation when water is applied. Ana, an irrigator at Burchell Nursery, appreciated the step-by-step explanations, which helped her better understand how water pressure differs in drip irrigation, sprinklers and watering by hand. Doing this out in the field, as an example of how irrigation audits occur, was extremely helpful for attendees.
Francisco “Frank” Anguiano, production manager of Boething Treeland Farms in Ventura County, observed his team of irrigators as they learned how to measure distribution uniformity with water collected from sprinklers. “This training isn't just about irrigation and plant management. It's also about savings, both water and costs. Who doesn't want to save money and use less water?” Anguiano said.
Reducing the barriers to learning
Many of the irrigators attending these trainings gained their skills and knowledge from life experience rather than a college education, explained Peter van Horenbeeck, vice president of Boething Treeland Farms. “It's important that my irrigators learn from external experts, but it's more important that they can relate to them. And that's what Gerry was able to do,” van Horenbeeck added.
Regarding content and delivery, and referencing what he learned from the focus groups, Pitton wanted the trainings to be easy to understand and engaging. For example, scientists use the term “matric potential” to describe how soil particles hold water against gravity, which is the same as capillary rise. “We demonstrate this concept with a paper towel held vertically and dipped into a beaker of dyed water that it absorbs,” said Pitton.
Many of the irrigators in attendance agreed that hands-on activities and visual aids were instrumental to their learning. Charli, another irrigator at Burchell Nursery, shared that the in-field examples and hosting the training in Spanish kept them engaged.To address language barriers, Spinelli has been conducting trainings in Spanish – a common request from many nurseries with eager participants.
Maintaining state regulations and partnerships
Although the technical aspects of irrigation management are key elements of the training, regulatory compliance is also addressed. Recognizing the finite availability of water and the environmental impact of pollution, the advisors highlight irrigation and fertilizer management and runoff prevention as critical components of compliance.
Under Ag Order 4.0 administered by California's Water Resources Control Board, growers must comply with stricter policies regulating nitrogen use. As irrigators learn from the training, better control of irrigation can certainly make a difference.
Deanna van Klaveren, chief operating officer and co-owner of Generation Growers in Stanislaus County, said the most valuable aspect of the training was learning on-site and completing an audit on her own systems. “It is so much more impactful to have trainings like this on-site where our staff can learn and then go out into the nursery and actually put it into practice while the presenters/experts are there,” van Klaveren said.
Pitton and Spinelli described the partnership between UC Cooperative Extension and CDFA as “symbiotic” given the technical and educational capacity of UCCE advisors who conduct research and extension.
“It's a great example of how the two institutions can collaborate successfully. Californians are the ones who win because they get a service for free,” added Spinelli. “And it's rewarding for us to see so much interest in what we, as advisors, do.”
If you are a nursery or greenhouse operator and would like to request the Irrigation Best Management Practices training, please contact the UCCE advisor assigned to the region that corresponds with your nursery location below.
Northern California
- Jessie Godfrey, UCCE environmental horticulture and water resources management advisor, jmgodfrey@ucanr.edu
Central Coast (Santa Cruz County to Ventura County)
- Emma Volk, UCCE production horticulture advisor, evolk@ucanr.edu
San Joaquin Valley
- Chris Shogren, UCCE environmental horticulture advisor, cjshogren@ucanr.edu
Southern California
- Grant Johnson, UCCE urban agriculture technology advisor, gejohnson@ucanr.edu
Spanish Trainings Only
- Gerry Spinelli, UCCE production horticulture advisor, gspinelli@ucanr.edu
UCCE offers water measurement training Sept. 13 in Salinas
California water-rights holders are required by state law to measure and report the water they divert from surface streams. For people who wish to take the water measurements themselves, the University of California Cooperative Extension is offering in-person training to receive certification on Sept. 13 in Salinas.
At the workshop, participants can expect to
- clarify reporting requirements for ranches.
- understand what meters are appropriate for different situations.
- learn how to determine measurement equipment accuracy.
- develop an understanding of measurement weirs.
- learn how to calculate and report volume from flow data.
The training is scheduled for 1 to 5 p.m. on Sept. 13 in the UC Cooperative Extension Conference Room at 1432 Abbott Street in Salinas.
“We are limiting the number participants for the water measurement training to 30 people per session,” said Larry Forero, emeritus UC Cooperative Extension livestock and natural resources advisor. “If you need this training, please register soon.”
Pre-registration is required and the fee is $30. To register, visit https://surveys.ucanr.edu/survey.cfm?surveynumber=43495. If you have questions, email Forero at lcforero@ucanr.edu or Sara Jaimes at sbjaimes@ucanr.edu, or call (530) 224-4900.
Could empty lots be growing food, economic opportunity?
UCCE scientists study feasibility of specialty crops for small urban growers
The vacant lots around your neighborhood could be growing fruits and vegetables and making local produce more accessible – while reducing energy needed to transport and distribute the food. Could turning those empty lots into small farms also become opportunities for economic development?
To answer this question, a team of researchers from University of California Cooperative Extension in San Diego County are investigating the economic feasibility of growing high-value specialty crops in urban settings like vacant lots. The project – led by Eric Middleton, UCCE integrated pest management advisor for San Diego, Orange and Los Angeles counties – is currently in progress at The Flower Fields in Carlsbad, a seasonal attraction for locals and tourists.
Tucked away in the back of the field is the Small-Scale Urban Ag Demonstration Site where Middleton and his team established a small farm on approximately 17,000 square feet, starting fall 2023. Funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture, the farm is designed to evaluate containerized production both outdoors and under high tunnels.
Growers don't necessarily need land, just space
High tunnels, also referred to as hoop houses, are semi-permanent structures that act similarly to greenhouses in providing a controlled environment. For the experiment, Middleton will compare cost, effort and durability of two types of high tunnels: one made of steel and the other out of PVC pipes.
“We want to give interested growers information on as many options as we can,” said Middleton, who explained that the project is motivated by the challenges of urban settings, including limited space and lack of arable land.
In the trial, they are growing turmeric, ginger and blueberries. The high-value crops were selected because of their potential to earn a profit. Data evaluating plant variety, soil mix, fertilizer, growth performance, yield and pest and disease pressures will be collected and reported when the project concludes in 2026.
As the crops develop in containers – blueberries in pots and turmeric and ginger in grow bags – Middleton pointed out the mobility aspect of the study, noting that growers don't necessarily need land, just space.
Whether it's a backyard or a rooftop, containerized production means easier transport, especially since vacant land doesn't always remain vacant forever and urban lots may often need soil remediation. Growing in containers solves the anticipated problem of having to relocate.
Where to set up shop in San Diego County
Jan Gonzales, project coordinator and community education supervisor for UCCE San Diego County, is leading the effort to identify available urban land in San Diego County as well as the policies and procedures for growers to access these spaces.
Gonzales is collaborating with community members who are working on similar projects to identify space for prospective growers.
“This has been done before for different objectives and for specific areas in the region, but the information was either project-specific and not publicly available, or not easy to find,” Gonzales said.
Having spoken with people associated with previous or ongoing agricultural land mapping projects, Gonzales has agreed to coordinate and facilitate an advisory work group to discuss areas of potential collaboration and develop project efficiencies. She anticipates holding the first group meeting before the end of the summer.
A production guide to help community members re-create the project
The ideal audience for a study like this is anyone who wants to grow specialty crops, according to Lindsey Pedroncelli, interim director of UC South Coast Research and Extension Center in Irvine, who worked on the project alongside Middleton when she was a staff research associate with UCCE San Diego.
“If you're a new grower or a grower who wants to diversify your crop production, what we're learning here can be applied to you,” said Pedroncelli.
Pedroncelli has been instrumental in bringing the experiment to life and documenting its step-by-step workflow thus far. The production guide, which is being created as the study unfolds, will include instructions detailing how to replicate the experiment from the ground up. Currently, it contains information on how to design your farm, the materials to buy, building structures, irrigation setup and crop management.
The most intriguing open question, whether the operation is profitable, is the driving force behind the production guide and will certainly be addressed, Pedroncelli said.
Book a tour and visit the farm
When visiting the farm, you'll encounter three varieties of blueberries: Star, Snowchaser and Misty. Snowchaser has been a top producer since it was planted in January, but the variety is known to be an early season producer.
Using only one variety of each, the turmeric and ginger were planted in late March-early April. With some unanticipated cold weather in San Diego County, both crops struggled when transitioning out of dormancy, leading to very slow progress, which the team is still navigating today.
Visually, Middleton and his team have noticed differences between the crops growing under the high tunnels versus those grown outdoors, although the data has not been analyzed to confirm or explain notable differences.
Attempting to demonstrate how to profitably grow high-value crops in urban settings using limited space and resources, Pedroncelli said she hopes this study will also encourage people to grow culturally significant crops for their communities.
To tour the Small-Scale Urban Ag Demonstration Site at The Flower Fields in Carlsbad, email Eric Middleton at egmiddleton@ucanr.edu with "Urban Agriculture Demonstration Site Tour" in the subject line.
To learn more about the project and its progress, visit https://ucanr.edu/sites/socalIPM/Small_Scale_Urban_Agriculture_Project_/.
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