Food brings everyone to the table. And this year, our virtual Ag Day celebration will bring everyone together to recognize the importance of American agriculture.
The program will include both live and pre-recorded segments with remarks from government leaders on the agriculture industry’s economic growth opportunities and how the future will be shaped by lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A representative from the collegiate Ag Day student program will share their experiences and participants will get to hear the winning Ag Day essay as well as view the winning Ag Day video essay. 2021’s Outstanding Young Farmers will also be recognized during the event.
“Hosting a virtual Ag Day event has led to some creative ways to celebrate American ag,” said Jenny Pickett, President. “The program will include informal thank you videos to farmers from individuals and companies in the industry so even though we can’t gather in person, it will still have a personal feel and energy to it.”
National Ag Day is organized by the Agriculture Council of America (ACA). ACA is a not-for-profit organization composed of leaders in the agricultural, food and fiber community, dedicating its efforts to increasing the public’s awareness of agriculture’s role in modern society.
Find more information on Ag Day and helpful tools for spreading the word about the importance of American agriculture at www.agday.org.
A recent poll of the Soil Health Academy’s (SHA) 2019 and 2020 school graduates indicates a majority are realizing resource and profitability improvements as they transition from chemically dependent conventional farming practices to soil health-improving regenerative practices.
The poll of more than 130 graduates reveals those improvements are even more pronounced among producers who have been implementing regenerative practices for more than a year.
For example, 56 percent of respondents who attended an SHA on-farm school in 2020 reported a decrease in the use of synthetic fertilizers, while more than three-quarters (76 percent) of graduates attending an SHA school in 2019 reported a decrease in use. Nearly a third of all SHA graduates indicated their synthetic fertilizer use decreased by more than 30 percent.
Similarly, 53 percent of 2020 graduates reported a decrease in the use of pesticides and herbicides, while 70 percent of 2019 graduates reported a decrease. A quarter (25 percent) of all graduates indicated their synthetic fertilizer use decreased by more than 30 percent.
Two thirds (66 percent) of 2020 graduates realized improvements in their soils’ water infiltration while 76 percent of 2019 graduates reported improvements. For graduates grazing livestock, 63 percent of 2020 graduates reported biomass increases, while 90 percent of 2019 graduates reported increases.
Input decreases, coupled with increases in cropping diversity, enterprise stacking, and direct-to-consumer marketing activities translated into increased per-acre net profits for 37 percent of 2020 graduates, while 60 percent of 2019 graduates reported increased profits. Of all SHA graduates, 15 percent indicated their net-acre profits had increased by more than 10 percent.
“The survey confirms that many producers experience financial and resource improvements early in their respective regenerative farming and ranching journeys, but those benefits increase the longer producers apply soil health-improving principles in their operations,” Brandt said. “The survey also reaffirms that education, understanding and technical support activities—like those provided by SHA—are key in improving positive regenerative farming outcomes.”
Each year, a special group of young women are selected to represent the state’s dairy farm families who contribute to making California number one for milk production in the U.S. These Dairy Princess ambassadors and alternates are selected during events at Districts throughout the state, where they showcase speaking skills, knowledge of dairy and desire to represent the industry during the one-year term. The 2021 contests kick off in April and will run through June.
California Dairy Princesses serve as industry advocates in their home district and throughout California, supporting the reputation of milk and dairy products through appearances at various events. Dairy Princesses and alternates participate in a mandatory orientation/training where they receive professional development coaching.
The California Dairy Princess Program has been in effect since 1958. Currently eight districts hold local contests, which cover 48 counties in the state of California. The California Dairy Princess contest is supported by California dairy producers through the California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB). Information and application forms can be accessed at https://www.californiadairypressroom.com/ca-dairy-princesses. Additional questions can be directed to Tiffany Nielsen, California Dairy Princess Director, at dairyprincess@cmab.net.
California is the nation’s leading milk producer. It also produces more butter, ice cream and nonfat dry milk than any other state. The state is the second-largest producer of cheese and yogurt. Real California dairy products can be identified by the Real California Milk seal, which certifies that the products are made exclusively with milk produced on California dairy farms by California dairy farm families.
About Real California Milk/the California Milk Advisory Board
The California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB), an instrumentality of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, is funded by the state’s dairy families and is one of the largest agricultural marketing boards in the United States. With a mission to increase demand for products made with Real California Milk, the CMAB is celebrating 50 years of promoting California’s sustainable dairy products in the state, across the U.S. and around the world through advertising, public relations, research, and retail and foodservice promotional programs. For more information and to connect with the CMAB, visit RealCaliforniaMilk.com, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest.
Almond Board of California —Insect pest management in almond and pistachio orchards largely focuses on reducing damage from navel orangeworm (NOW). Yet, after navel orangeworm, large bugs such as leaffooted bugs (LFBs) and stinkbugs are considered to be among the most damaging insects.
Leaffooted bug species of particular concern in the past have included Leptoglossus clypealis, Leptoglossus occidentalis, and Leptoglossus zonatus. Leptoglossus clypealis is occasionally noted to be numerous: In 2013, L. clypealis was a particularly abundant LFB in orchards; however, since that time, L. clypealis seems to be less common than another LFB, L. zonatus.
Recognizing and understanding the differences between these two LFB is key to effective management.
L. clypealis is shown on the left and L. zonatus on the right. Photo courtesy of Dr. Joyce.
L. zonatus is a larger LFB than L. clypealis and has longer mouthparts that allow it to feed on developing fruits longer into the growing season. Prior to 2013, L. zonatusdid not appear regularly in almonds in California, and it was not noted in University of California Integrated Pest Management manuals as being a pest of almonds – while this species was present in California, perhaps it was not particularly numerous. Since 2013, L. zonatus has frequently been observed in almonds during the growing season and at harvest, and now seems to occur more regularly in orchards than L. clypealis. It may be that the larger LFB L. zonatus is displacing L. clypealis.
From 2014-2016, researchers identified LFB collections in almond and pistachio orchards from Chico to Bakersfield as consisting of two species: L. clypealis and L. zonatus. A 2017 study by Dr. Andrea Joyce, an entomologist at the University of California, Merced, investigated population genetics of these two species and found that L. clypealiscollections have high genetic diversity and many genetic types (haplotypes). This suggests that these L. clypealiscollections from the Central Valley are within this insect’s native range. However, the insect collections of the other species, L. zonatus, consisted of two genetically divergent types, or strains. One L. zonatus strain was widespread, and occurred through the Central Valley from Chico to Bakersfield, and the second genetic type occurred in the central and southern San Joaquin Valley. Work to geographically map out where the two genetic types of L. zonatus occur is ongoing.
The presence of two strains of L. zonatus is important for insect pest management. It is highly likely that each insect strain is susceptible to different parasitoids, predators and pathogens. Two insect strains can also vary in their response to insecticides, as well as their attraction to pheromone lures.
Currently, pheromone attractants are being developed for this LFB. It is vital to determine if the same pheromone blend will equally attract the two strains of L. zonatus. Dr. Joyce and colleagues will continue research on the two strains of L. zonatus this year, comparing their biological parameters, examining whether the two strains are cross attracted in lab bioassays, and if they cross mate in the field. The hope is that any pheromones and attractants developed for L. zonatus can be used to manage both strains of this species. A monitoring tool such as a pheromone trap for these insects would be particularly useful in a grower’s IPM toolbox.
Growers can support researchers in determining the distribution of the two strains by collecting any LFBs they identify or notifying Dr. Joyce when large numbers of LFBs are observed. Growers may email Dr. Andrea Joyce if they sight LFBs or have questions about this pest at ajoyce2@ucmerced.edu.
Note: Additional Almond Board-funded research is being conducted by Dr. Jocelyn Millar to identify pheromones and related attractants for the two major LFB pests in California nut crops. These tools could potentially be utilized for monitoring or control of these species.
If your sprayer can deliver good spray coverage at hull split, with a little work it can deliver good bloom spray coverage faster and cheaper. How is this possible? With no leaves in the canopy, air movement is less restricted at bloom than hull split. Also, there is less surface area to cover at bloom than hull split so volume needed to cover the susceptible tissue per acre (Gallons per acre, GPA) are less at bloom than hull split.
How could this work? Assuming your hull split spray set up is for 100 GPA (or more) and 2 miles per hour (MPH), at bloom you can increase ground speed, GPA and reduce power to the sprayer (less tractor engine or sprayer engine RPMs). All this means less time and diesel burned per acre and more acres per tank with no change in pest control. The exact settings should be worked out on the farm, but here are some general guidelines to use before bloom starts. [I am assuming that anyone trying this has a good knowledge of sprayer calibration. For the sake of space in the newsletter, I will not go into all the calibration details. Check the Almond Production Manual for details or call me at 530.218.2359. We do need an airblast sprayer extension publication.]
-Increase speed and reduce RPMs. Reduce engine RPMs by 15-20% from full speed and shift up a gear or two so that tractor and sprayer speed is somewhere around 3-3.5 MPH. For a PTO sprayer delivering 540 PTO RPMs with engine RPM at 2200, the target is somewhere around 1800 RPM for the tractor engine. This is quickly checked with a GPS unit or a quick pass down a row in the orchard counting trees (2 MPH=176 ft/min, etc.).
-Check that there will be enough upward air movement at this new speed. Readjust as necessary. Put a length of PVC pipe with a 1.5-2’ long length of flagging tape tied on the end up through the tree so that the top of the pole is roughly 3-4 feet above the top of the tree. Run the sprayer down the row with the fan on, water in the tank but nozzles turned off. Check how much the flagging tape moves as the sprayer goes by the tree? (I use the video function on my phone to capture the flag movement as the sprayer goes by.) If the tape flutters out to 45-90o off the vertical, that is enough sprayer fan air movement to give good coverage. If the flagging kicks straight up, you can speed up more and try it again until the desired 45-90 o movement is reached.
*If you spray every-other-row (EOR) at bloom, check air movement through the tree (next section) very carefully to make sure spray gets all the way through the tree or don’t use the approach described in this article. Every-other-row spraying delivers acceptable disease control at pink bud, but ineffective on the far side of the tree from the sprayer after 40% bloom. Every row spraying gives the best possible coverage. If you do spray EOR, do it carefully.
-Figure out the flow rate you’ll use based on your new speed and the product’s recommended GPA. Use your new tractor speed and row spacing to figure out the acres per minute you’ll cover at that speed. Using the measured acres per minute and the gallons per acre you want to spray, calculate the gallons per minute (GPM) needed from the sprayer.If you are using an air shear/electrostatic sprayer (Lectroblast, Windmill, etc.) make sure the system pressure is set to that required by the manufacturer, set the flow rate on each side of the sprayer and you are ready
-Adjust your nozzles to favor upward movement at this new speed. The general rule is that roughly 70% of the sprayer output (GPM) should come out of the top half of the open nozzles. Because of faster ground speed, larger nozzles will be needed and/or swirl plates changed (45’s used instead of 25’s). Large nozzles (D8-12) are a better choice in my opinion as the obvious nozzle exit hole difference between a D6 and a D8 make it easier to use the right nozzle for the right job if you are using rollover nozzle bodies (Rears or Nelson) or 2-3 nozzles/vane (AirOFan). In the table at the bottom of the page is an example of how a set up might go for a sprayer with two nozzle options per location on the spray boom.
In the orchard, place the disc/cores on the nozzle bodies that point at the tree. You may need to skip a nozzle body or two along the spray boom to make sure the spray targets the tree. For example, the first (very top) nozzle body on many sprayers basically points straight up and the second body is inches away and slightly angled into the canopy. I usually skip the top one. Lower on the sprayer you may skip a nozzle site, turning off the nozzle body. The goal with fungicide spraying is to aim high; rainwater will recycle the fungicide down through the canopy if it’s placed up high.
-Make sure your actual flow rate matches your desired flow rate. Ground truth the sprayer output by filling it to overflowing with clean water, running it for a set amount of time (a minute or two minutes) and then refilling it with a hose attached to a flowmeter or buckets marked with gallons/quarts/pints. Calculate gallons per minute sprayed to use in the following equation to check your actual sprayer output and determine how much material to put in the spray tank:
-Double-check your coverage in the canopy. A final step in the calibration process is to check coverage with water sensitive paper either placed on poles or attached to the canopy.
If you are interested in this bloom sprayer set up concept and want some help with the setup, please give me a call 530.218.2359.— By Franz Niederholzer, UCCE Advisor, Colusa and Sutter/Yuba Counties
Example of nozzle selection and position on a standard airblast sprayer (Rears, AirOFan, Nelson, etc)
Thanks to support from the Henry Mayo Newhall Foundation, California Farmland Trust (CFT) is embarking on a conservation fundraising campaign to protect Fiorini Ranch.
Located in Merced County, the 60-acre almond operation is owned and operated by a multi-generational farming family, the Fiorini’s. Currently operated by a third-generation family member, Randy Fiorini, the fourth and fifth generation family members are now engaged, and becoming more involved, continuing the family’s legacy. The Fiorini family reached out to the California Farmland Trust to ensure the land and their legacy will remain in agriculture, forever.
The California Farmland Trust has partnered with farmers for over 16 years to protect farmland from being subdivided and developed into homes and shopping centers, while contributing to agriculture’s unique role in climate benefits. “Working with the Fiorini family to ensure this land will provide food, open space and climate benefits is essential,” said Charlotte Mitchell, CFT Executive Director. The Fiorini family has adopted and embraced sustainable farming practices that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve the biodiversity of beneficial insects, and further reduce soil erosion.
In the coming months, CFT will be pursuing a grant that will provide some of the funding needed to purchase the development right and protect the land with an agricultural conservation easement. CFT is required to source matching funds when pursuing grant funding, which is where the Henry Mayo Newhall Foundation (Foundation) support is focused. In late 2020, the Foundation provided CFT with nearly half of the matching funds needed to meet this requirement. Funds from the Foundation will be leveraged by CFT to raise the remaining $85,000.
“The support from the Henry Mayo Newhall Foundation really made this project achievable,” shared Mitchell. “It’s difficult to obtain the match requirement needed for a grant and the Henry Mayo Newhall Foundation provided funding that will essentially double every other donation we receive for the project, helping us achieve the match requirement.”
The first step will be launching a campaign that leverages the Foundation’s $80,000 donation to raise the remaining $85,000 needed to obtain the match required. CFT will simultaneously pursue a grant for the remaining seventy-five percent needed to fund the easement. Once secured, the easement will ensure the farmland will never be subdivided and will no longer be subject to development pressures from nearby communities for housing or commercial development.
“Our family has farmed this land sustainably, and productively for over 100 years. It is threatened by the potential of urban development and our family wishes to preserve the ability to continue to contribute to our nations healthy food needs,” shared Randy Fiorini.
The California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance, California Association of Winegrape Growers, LIVE, Long Island Sustainable Winegrowing, Oregon Wine, New York Wines, Washington State Wine, Washington Winegrowers and Wine Institute are co-hosting the 2nd U.S. Sustainable Winegrowing Summit on April 19-21, an all-virtual event.
Growers, vintners, association leaders, trade, and other industry professionals from around the globe will gather virtually to hear about the U.S.’s ever-increasing interest in sustainable winegrowing, get up close and personal with sustainable winegrowers in the field, and learn how they are adapting practices in the face of climate change. Attendees will gain insight into bringing this movement to their own wine regions, vineyards and wineries and learn how to distill these practices into unique messaging that resonates with consumers and trade while credibly communicating the U.S. wine industry’s commitment to a global audience.
The Summit will begin on April 19th (11:30 am–1:00 pm PST) with the “Explore U.S. Sustainable Wine Tasting & Seminar,” a unique opportunity to taste sustainably grown and produced wines from California, Oregon, New York and Washington featuring Evan Goldstein, MS (moderator) and vintners from the four partner states. (To taste along, a wine kit must be purchased in advance.)
On April 20th (10:00 am–12:00 pm PST), Food & Wine’s Executive Wine Editor Ray Isle will give a keynote address on sustainable winegrowing trends and observations on sustainable winegrowing, followed by a workshop on messaging sustainability to consumers and trade. In the afternoon (1:00–2:00 pm PST), participants will go on a virtual four-state sustainable vineyard and winery tour – no sunscreen or hat needed!
On the final day, April 21st (10:00 am–12:00 pm PST), the first session will be a panel focused on grower perspectives on climate change resiliency, moderated by San Francisco Chronicle’s Wine Critic, Esther Mobley. The second session will be a conversation between Julia Coney (Wine Journalist and Founder of Black Wine Professionals) and Elaine Chukan Brown (American Specialist for JancisRobinson.com and Co-Founder of Diversity in Wine Leadership Forum) about diversity, equity and inclusion, the social pillar of sustainability.
The 2021 Summit sponsors include American Vineyard Magazine, Certified Sustainable Protected Harvest, Napa Green and Master the World. Tasting sponsors are Ampelos Cellars, Bedell Cellars, Chateau Ste. Michelle, Hartford Family Winery, Stoller Family Estate and Wente Vineyards. Sponsorship opportunities are still available; for more information, contact info@sustainablewinegrowing.org.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced amendments to the federal marketing order regulating the handling of walnuts grown in California. These amendments authorize the California Walnut Board to provide credit for market promotion expenses paid by handlers against their annual assessments due under the program.
The amendments were approved in a referendum conducted Nov. 30 through Dec. 11, 2020. They were favored by 80.57% of the growers voting, representing 82.81% of the total volume of walnuts. To gain approval, the amendments needed support of at least two-thirds of the growers voting in the referendum or at least two-thirds of the volume of walnuts grown by those voting in the referendum. A final rule amending the marketing order will be published in the Federal Register.
USDA’s process for considering this change included an administrative hearing conducted April 20-21, 2020.
The board locally administers the marketing order that maintains minimum grade and size regulations for walnuts grown in California. The marketing order also authorizes promotion, and research and development projects. More information about the marketing order is available on the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) 984 California Walnut webpage, the AMS Marketing Orders and Agreements webpage, or by contacting the Marketing Order and Agreement Division at (202) 720-2491.
Authorized by the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, marketing orders are industry-driven programs that help producers and handlers achieve marketing success by leveraging their own funds to design and execute programs that they would not be able to do individually. AMS provides oversight to 29 fruit, vegetable, and specialty crop marketing orders and agreements, which helps ensure fiscal accountability and program integrity.
The National Dairy FARM Program (FARM) has published its 2020 Year in Review. Serving as the annual summary of the achievements and program developments of the FARM Program, the Year in Review showcases successes and challenges during a year of change and uncertainty.
“As the industry shifted with the pandemic, we adapted the program to fit farmer’s and program participant’s needs,” says Emily Yeiser Stepp, vice president for the FARM Program at the National Milk Producers Federation, which administers FARM. “We were still able to provide value, develop helpful resources and provide assurances of on-farm social responsibility for the dairy supply chain despite the rollercoaster of 2020.”
The Year in Review details the resources and tools developed across all program areas to help farmers become more fully engaged with the program. It also shows how aspects of FARM were brought into a virtual environment. Events like the annual Evaluator Conference, monthly Evaluator Engagement Hours and the program’s Quick Convosseries gave FARM staff the ability to connect with stakeholders online as 2020 presented unrivaled challenges.
The Review also summarizes changes made to the FARM Program Areas in 2020. FARM Animal Care Version 4 went into effect on January 1 with updates supporting closer farmer-veterinarian relationships, requiring continuing education for all employees and adding a new standard for pain management when disbudding animals. FARM also launched Version 2 of the Environmental Stewardship program which includes updated crop emissions factors, a breakdown of greenhouse gas emissions by gas type, a metric on the use of nutrient management plans, and the ability to capture the benefits of solid-liquid separation, and solar and wind energy. Additionally, Version 1 of the Workforce Development evaluation became available and focuses on human resources and safety best practices. It provides assurances to the supply chain and helps farmers identify what will be most useful to implement within their operation and track improvement over time.
Download the 2020 Year in Review here. For a printed copy, please contact dairyfarm@nmpf.org
The National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), based in Arlington, VA, develops and carries out policies that advance dairy producers and the cooperatives they own. NMPF’s member cooperatives produce the majority of U.S. milk, making NMPF the voice of dairy producers on Capitol Hill and with government agencies.
Created by the National Milk Producers Federation in partnership with Dairy Management Inc, the National Dairy FARM (Farmers Assuring Responsible Management) works with all U.S. dairy farmers, co-ops and processors, to demonstrate to dairy customers and consumers that the dairy industry is taking the very best care of cows and the environment, producing safe, wholesome milk and adhering to the highest standards of workforce development.
The California Walnut Board (CWB) will be conducting its biennial election of walnut growers and handlers statewide to serve as members and alternates for the next two-year term beginning on September 1, 2021 and ending on August 31, 2023. Walnut growers are eligible to petition the California Walnut Board to have the name of their candidate included on the 2021 nomination ballot.
The California Walnut Board is the official body that administers the Federal Marketing Order for walnuts. The CWB encourages eligible candidates to consider serving as Board members or alternates. “The diversity of our growing and evolving membership brings valuable perspective to industry. The CWB in partnership with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) welcomes participation of women, minorities and people with disabilities,” said Michelle McNeil Connelly, Executive Director of the California Walnut Board.
Petitions are open for two members and alternates from each of the two districts in California, divided along the southern boundaries of San Mateo, Alameda, San Joaquin, Calaveras and Alpine counties and one member and alternate at-large to represent the entire state of California.
It takes 10 or more walnut growers who marketed an aggregate of 500 tons or more of walnuts in the 2019/20 marketing year to petition for a grower’s name to be placed on the nomination ballot. Separate petitions are required for member and alternate positions. Petition forms will be mailed to all walnut growers in late February and are to be filed and received by the California Walnut Board no later than April 1, 2021.
In mid-April, ballots will be mailed to all growers. Growers will nominate two members and alternates to represent their district as well as one member and alternate for the statewide position. The Secretary of Agriculture will select the nominees receiving the most votes in each district and at-large for representatives on the California Walnut Board.
Petition forms are available at the California Walnut Board office at 101 Parkshore Drive, Suite 250, Folsom, CA 95630, telephone (916) 932-7070.
A recent poll of the Soil Health Academy’s (SHA) 2019 and 2020 school graduates indicates a majority are realizing resource and profitability improvements as they transition from chemically dependent conventional farming practices to soil health-improving regenerative practices.
