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Tours

  •  Tours are scheduled for Monday, April 24.
  •  Please note that choosing to participate in a tour will limit your availability to participate in Monday meetings.
  •  Bus transportation, lunch, and snacks will be provided.

Tour #1: Wildfire: Building Regional Resilience

8:30 AM-4:00 PM
Tour Hosts:
Rebecca Ozeran, Livestock and Natural Resources Advisor, CE Fresno
Alison Deak, Fire Advisor, CE Mariposa

This tour will highlight UC ANR’s research and extension in strengthening the region’s wildfire resilience.  Tour stops will include the San Joaquin Experimental Range where you will hear presentations on rangeland management, fire, and climate change from UC ANR academics and NSF’s National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON) scientists Jessica Bolis and Sokaina Alkhafaji.  UC Master Gardeners and partner organizations will also present on Fire Safe Gardening.  Additional stops at USDA Forest service wildlife areas will showcase UC ANR’s work on prescribed burning. 

The San Joaquin Experimental Range (SJER) was established in 1934 and was California's first range research station. It was originally conceived as a cooperative interdisciplinary research center to identify cost-effect methods of commercial livestock production in the annual grass-oak pine woodlands, while maintaining the integrity of the ecosystem. Education is a secondary objective at SJER, serving as an outdoor laboratory for numerous class visits and field trips each year. Classes from California State University at Fresno (Fresno State) and Fresno City College include field trips to SJER as part of their course content. UC ANR has been involved in research and educational activities regarding livestock, natural resources, and wildlife at SJER for decades. This collaboration has been facilitated by a three-way agreement between SJER, UCANR, and Fresno State. Fresno State manages the cattle herd and certain facilities; UCANR leads and reviews research activities; and SJER oversees all major decisions on the property.

Tour #2: Viticulture and Kearney Research and Extension Center 

9:00 AM-3:30 PM

Tour Hosts:
Joy Hollingsworth, Table Grape Advisor, CE Tulare and Kings
Karl T. Lund, PhD, Viticulture Advisor, CE Madera, Merced, and Mariposa
George Zhuang, Viticulture Advisor, CE Fresno

This tour will begin with breakfast and a tour at The Wine Group winery and vineyard in Fresno with presentations by UCCE academics on wine grape production, water use monitoring, use of CropManage (a free UCCE developed online decision support tool), vineyard mechanization, internships and more.

The next stop will be at Cardoza Ranch where UCCE client, Steve Cardoza, and Cooperative Extension academics will talk about collaborations on organic raisin production and organic management of pests.  Finally, the group will head to Kearney Agricultural Research Extension Center (KARE) for lunch and an afternoon tour of the facility where you will learn about, groundwater recharge, rootstock evaluation, and much more.

Since its official dedication in 1965 KARE has achieved international acclaim for leadership in the development of new fruit, nut, and grape varieties, innovative cultural and irrigation practices, pest and disease management techniques, and postharvest biology. In addition, KARE plays a leadership role in maintaining the quality of California's rural environment, with programs in air and water quality, and mosquito management.

Tour #3: Botanical Garden and Lindcove Research Extension Center 

8:00 AM-2:00 PM
Tour Hosts:
Doug Amaral, Asst. Farm Advisor, CE Kings
Mae Culumber, Nut Crops Advisor, CE Fresno
Elizabeth Fichtner, Orchard Systems Advisory, CE Tulare

The tour will commence at Bravo Lake Botanical Garden, one of Tulare County’s prime sites for appreciating the diversity of horticultural crops, ornamental and edible, produced in the southern San Joaquin Valley. You will hear from Manuel Jiminez, UCCE small farms advisor emeritus and founder of the botanical garden and see a rose pruning demonstration by Tulare County’s Master Gardener Coordinator, Aliya Bayless.

The next stop is Lindcove Research & Extension Center (LREC) where you'll visit research plots to learn about programs led by UC ANR advisors and specialists to facilitate the productivity, sustainability and protection of permanent crops including citrus, walnut, and olive, in a dynamic landscape of pests, diseases, water availability and quality, and changes in climate and regulation. You will enjoy a box lunch at LREC as we discuss the impacts of LREC-based programs on our economy, environment, and community.

Lindcove Research and Extension Center supports research, education and outreach programs focused primarily on the citrus crop, but also has projects on avocado, olive and walnuts. We support research projects by University of California academics as well as local and regional partners that address critical needs in horticulture, pests and diseases and breeding of new varieties.

Tour #4: Small Farms in Fresno County

9:00 AM-2:00 PM
Tour Hosts:
Ruth Dahlquist-Willard, Small Farms Advisor, CE Fresno
Michael Yang, Hmong Agricultural Assistant, CE Fresno

Join us to learn more about small-scale farms in Fresno County and the unique crops they produce. April is strawberry season in Fresno, and we will visit one of the local Southeast Asian strawberry farm and roadside stand operations. We will sample flavorful varieties grown for direct marketing rather than shipping, as well as learning about challenges these farmers have faced and overcome including COVID-19, droughts, and flooding.  The tour will include stops at several farms producing a diversity of vegetable, herb, and fruit crops on small acreages that have been implementing climate smart agriculture and conservation practices such as compost, cover crops, hedgerows, and windbreaks. We will also discuss challenges with the availability of water for irrigation and how small farms can contribute to regional groundwater management in a context of periodic drought, declining water tables, and increasing regulation of groundwater use.

The Small Farms and Specialty Crops program in Fresno County assists small-scale and diversified family farms in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley to thrive economically through technical assistance, extension support, applied research, and policy engagement. Farmers supported by this program include those selling to direct markets such as farmers markets and roadside stands, immigrant and refugee farmers, historically underserved farmers, and growers of specialty crops on small acreages such as Asian specialty vegetables and herbs, jujubes, persimmons, moringa, blueberries, strawberries, and blackberries.