Santa Rosa, Calif., (July 10, 2017) – My father Warren started growing apples in Sonoma County in 1964 when he and my mother Gail purchased their first 35 acre ranch near the town of Graton. The ranch had 15 acres of apples and 15 acres of winegrapes. My parents concentrated their efforts on growing apples in the 60’s and 70’s, leasing and buying orchards to increase their acreage.
Sonoma County apples, especially the Gravenstein, have been a staple here since 1883 when Luther Burbank advised Nathaniel Griffith to plant Gravenstein apples on his 78 acre ranch on Laguna Road in Sebastopol. With that, the commercial apple industry was born. At the beginning of World War II in 1940, Sebastopol had its high point of 13,875 acres of apples with 9,750 acres planted in Gravenstein. By 1950, the apple acreage was in decline with 10,874 planted acres, 7,465 of which were Gravensteins. In 1980, the acreage fell to 7,747 with Gravensteins accounting for 3,234 acres. Fast forward to 2015 and there were only 2,229 acres left of Sonoma County apples with 704 in Gravensteins.
Many people believe that the winegrapes pushed out the apples in Sonoma County. In reality, apples became a worldwide commodity in the early 80’s with at least 14 countries that produce more than a million tons per year. With that, the price per ton became so low that growing apples became economically unviable. Many growers resorted to subdividing their ranches, selling off small pieces, and many started the conversion process to winegrapes.
Our father chose the latter. He removed acres of his own orchards and leased many acres of neighboring farmers’ land that he converted to winegrapes. But all along, he kept the best of our orchards in the ground and producing, always with a focus on Gravensteins. Through the late 80’s and 90’s, the winegrape income subsidized our apple income. In 2003, my brother Joe and I decided to start the organic certification process for our apple orchards.
Today, we farm approximately 180 acres of certified organic apples, of which 100 acres are Gravensteins. We also planted Sonoma County’s two newest Gravenstein orchards in 2013 and 2015.
The Gravenstein has become part of Sonoma County’s identity even with only 700 acres left in production. As diversified ag has become a hot topic in Sonoma County, it is becoming increasingly important to support the Gravenstein apple.
In August of every year, Sonoma County Farm Trails puts on the Gravenstein Apple Fair at Ragle Ranch Park in Sebastopol. Fifteen thousand people will come to Sebastopol to support Sonoma County agriculture. Many businesses and agricultural groups including Sonoma County Farm Bureau will have a presence at the fair. I encourage anyone interested to attend the Apple Fair and enjoy the Gravenstein.
If you can’t, then ask your local grocer to carry fresh Gravenstein apples from Sonoma County. Also look for apple juice and apple sauce that is branded Gravenstein, I guarantee it came from Sonoma County.
Sacramento, Calif., (July 6, 2017) – A ridge of high pressure sat over the western United States, which resulted in another hot and dry week across the State. The only rain for the week was along the northern coast, where Eureka reported four hundredths of an inch for the week. A broken band of snow approximately 40 miles wide between Lake Tahoe and Sequoia National Forest still existed above 9,000 feet. Snow depths in this band were two to four feet at most. The peaks of Mt. Whitney, Mt. Lassen, and Mt. Shasta remained snow-capped.
Temperature highs were in the 50s to 80s along the coast, 70s to 90s in the mountains, 80s to 100s in the valley, and 90s to 110s in the desert. The temperature lows were in the 30s to 50s in the mountains, 50s to 60s along the coast and the valley, and 60s to 80s in the desert.
Alfalfa fields were making excellent progress and being irrigated. Corn and sorghum planting for silage were almost complete, but still being cultivated and irrigated. The corn silage crop was in various stages, from newly planted to already producing tassels, and the earliest planted corn was developing ears. Cotton continued to be irrigated, cultivated, and was growing well. Black-eyed beans continued to be irrigated and cultivated.
Peach, nectarine, apricot, and plum harvests continued. Fruit orchards and vineyards were irrigated. Some apple orchards used overhead cooling systems to mitigate the impact of the heat. Late Navel orange harvest was complete for the season. Valencia orange harvest continued. With high temperatures, regreening in citrus has become more common, and packers were color sorting to compensate. Ruby Red grapefruit were harvested.
Walnut, almond, and pistachio orchards were irrigated. Mechanical and chemical weed control continued in nut orchards. Pistachios were fertilized. In some locations walnut growers applied sunburn preventive materials.
In Tulare County certified producers were picking tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, and peppers for sale at the local Farmers’ Markets. Italian squash, eggplant, and cucumbers continued to be harvested. Blueberry and strawberry harvests slowed down and were expected to come to a close with hot weather. Sweet corn harvest began with a few roadside stands opening and sales at the local Farmers’ markets. Carrot harvest had slowed down. In Fresno County, carrots harvest was reaching its end. Pepper harvest was completed with good yields. Dehydrated onion left to dry. Fresh onions harvest was half completed. Roughly one-third of the onion harvest had been completed. Onion seed drying out. In Monterey County, celery harvest began and was picking up. In Imperial County, spring melons and sweet corn were harvested. Some growers reported exceptional yields. Many farmers were finished with melon harvest and were plowing fields. In Colusa, Sacramento, Solano, and Yolo Counties, tomato crops were progressing, even though the recent heat wave slowed crop development.
Non-irrigated grasses and forbs continued to dry out as the dry days of summer continued. Rangeland was reported to be in good to very poor condition depending on elevation, aspect and soil moisture. Foothill watering holes were drying up. Cattle continued to be moved to higher elevation range. Milk production was impacted by the high heat. Livestock deaths increased due to the extended elevated temperatures. Sheep grazed on retired pasture and dormant alfalfa. Bees were active in melon and vegetable fields.
Santa Rosa, Calif., (July 5, 2017) – Lee Walker, 86, is a sixth generation apple farmer in Graton whose 50 acre apple farm epitomizes the term family business. Walker manages the farm alongside his son Lee Walker III, but around the property you will always find a handful of family members putting in their best effort on top of their day jobs to help the family business succeed.
The Walker family has been farming in Graton, CA for over 100 years and this year they are being honored as Sonoma County Farm Bureau’s Farm Family of the Year. From left to right: Henry Gowan and Sue Walker; John and Cindy Walker; Lee Walker (center); Michelle, TJ, Blaine and Austin Beckman; Goldie Hilkey; Kyler Walker and Shannon O’Leary; Barbara and Lee Walker III (not pictured Clay Walker and Jordan Gregonis). Photo by Rachel LaFranchi.
The family’s history and passion for Sonoma County agriculture has led them to be named as Sonoma County Farm Bureau’s Farm Family of the Year. The family will be honored July 13th at Love of the Land alongside Farm Bureau’s two other award recipients. Jackson Family Wines will be receiving the Luther Burbank Conservation Award for their sustainability efforts in Sonoma County and beyond while Earl and Dot Holtz will be inducted into the Farm Bureau Hall of Fame for their commitment to the local dairy industry. Walker’s family originally settled in Sonoma County in 1856, and Walker said the family owned land from Sebastopol to Santa Rosa which they paid 50 cents an acre for.
Arthur Upp purchased the family’s 30 acres on Upp Road in Graton in 1910. This orchard has been passed down through generations and the house that Upp built is still where Walker lives, often coming to life with family events.
Walker was raised in the Vine Hill area of Sebastopol, but spent most of his time on the family’s apple farm. “I always loved this place,” Walker said. He remembers Upp farming the land with horses until he bought the family’s first tractor in 1935. Walker married Shirley in 1952. They moved to the ranch that year living there with their three children until Shirley passed away. Walker recalls only three years since 1952 that he didn’t live on the ranch – two years where he served in the Army after he was drafted and one year playing professional baseball.
In 1960, Walker and his family changed the way they sold apples. Instead of selling to processors, they started selling directly from their farm. Walker remembers their business starting in the shade of a large tree and the family wiping down apples with towels.
Two years later, Walker bought machinery to polish the apples. This was followed by building a packing house and Walker says the business just progressed from there. In 1968, they started selling directly to local stores. Walker said as his three children (John, Sue and Lee III) grew up they became more active in the operation.
“We came to the point where we were a grower and shipper of apples – particularly Gravensteins,” said Walker. “At the time there were 34 other packers in the area, now there’s only a couple.”
The family’s apple business is located on their 30 acre Upp Road property, and they lease an additional 20 acres of orchards in Sebastopol. Walker watched as the land around his farm was planted with grapes and most of his neighbors started to make more money than he was, but Walker said he was raised growing apples and didn’t know anything else.
“It’s been a real challenge,” said Walker, “a tremendous challenge over the years. For a while we didn’t get much money, and that’s when all the apples were converted to grapes.” Walker said the family’s biggest hurdle was eight years ago after they’d been losing money for many years. The family decided to give it one more chance, giving their all to sell their apples to local stores and markets.
Walker described the family as being heavily involved in the business even though the rest of the family has their own jobs during the day. He said that although he and his son both work full time on the farm, they couldn’t do it without additional help. His son John recently weed-eated the orchards, his daughter Sue takes care of the shipping and Lee III’s wife Barbara does the bookkeeping. The grandkids, great-grand kids and other family members can be found helping in the packing shed during harvest, and it’s all hands on deck for the annual Gravenstein Apple Fair weekend.
Although the family is often working long hours and two jobs, their passion for what they do is evident.
“If I even breathe the word sell, I’ll have a revolt,” Walker said.
He describes the ranch as “truly a family operation” and believes that the business means more because the whole family is involved.
Walker said Shirley was a main cog in the family business and kept it together before she passed away six years ago. He credits much of their success over the years to her. Walker has a photo album his wife made with polaroid photos of their customers she took over more than 20 years. Some of the customers have been visiting the orchard for upwards of 35 years.
“You’d be surprised by how many people come out here and say, ‘This is a for real apple farm!’ But that’s our main draw. We’re very proud of our product – it’s very good, very fresh.
We talk about the apples to customers, some of them are the third generation to visit the farm.”
Today, the family grows nearly 600 tons of apples a year, all of which are dry farmed. They cultivate more than 25 varieties of apples, although nearly half are Gravensteins. In addition to selling apples directly to customers on their Upp Road farm, apples can be found locally at Andy’s Produce, G&G Supermarket, Imwalle Gardens or the Santa Rosa Farmers’ Market.
For Walker, the future of the business doesn’t seem bright, and it’s not because of the product.
“It’s really sad,” said Walker, “we have the product and it’s in high demand. Farming is fun, but it has been taken away from the small farmer. I may be wrong though, maybe the small farmer can survive, but you have to be really small where you have an outside job and farm on the weekend.” Walker cites labor and regulations as the two largest obstacles in the way of small farmers. Labor is hard to find and there’s not enough people to help the family pick apples during harvest. In fact, this year, the family didn’t even finish pruning.
Walker feels regulations are particularly burdensome to the small farmer who doesn’t have the resources to comply with regulations. Walker cites having to develop heat safety plans as an example of regulations that don’t make sense for smaller farmers. He said while they’re okay when they stand alone, it’s hard to devote resources to developing plans for a minimal work force. He said in the 70 years he’s been farming without them, everyone has been happy and has never had problems ending his comments by saying today is just a different world. Walker said the family is very enthusiastic about what they do and they intend to keep farming as long as they can keep the business afloat. He said being honored as the Farm Family of the Year was very nice, and it is especially important to him that the entire family was being recognized.
“We like apples,” said Walker. “I don’t want to leave. We’ve made a lot of friends in the industry through the years, and that sort of thing is hard to walk away from. We still don’t do as well as the grape people, but we do this because we love it.”
Walker Apples is located at 10955 Upp Rd, Graton, CA 95444 and open seven days a week from August through December.
Washington, D. C., (June 28, 2017) – A modernized North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) must build upon market gains for U.S. agriculture and settle remaining challenges for our nation’s farmers and ranchers in our neighboring markets, Don Shawcroft, Colorado Farm Bureau president, stated in a hearing before the U.S. Trade Representative today.
“NAFTA has been overwhelmingly beneficial for the vast majority of farmers and ranchers across the U.S. for decades,” said Shawcroft in testimony on behalf of the American Farm Bureau Federation. U.S. agricultural exports to Canada and Mexico have quadrupled, from $8.9 billion in 1993 to $38.1 billion in 2016. Although the benefits from NAFTA are clear and many, there are reasons to reform and update the agreement, Shawcroft said.
NAFTA renegotiations present a prime opportunity to address challenges fruit and vegetable farmers have faced with Mexico, as well as a chance for dairy, row crop and wheat farmers to settle issues with Canada.
“A modernized NAFTA should at best eliminate, at worst reduce, barriers to trade that keep our farmers and ranchers from having a level playing field with our neighbors,” Shawcroft said.
Farm Bureau priorities for a modernized NAFTA include:
Updated, science-based sanitary and phytosanitary rules;
Improved dispute settlement procedures for fresh fruits, vegetables and horticultural products;
Eliminated or reduced Canadian tariff barriers to dairy, poultry eggs and wine, as well as the recently implemented barriers to ultra-filtered milk;
Addressing the misuse of geographical indicators; and
Developing a consistent, science-based approach to biotechnology.
“A modernized NAFTA will not only help expand market opportunities for U.S. farmers and ranchers in the near term,” said Shawcroft. “It would also set a foundation for future trade agreements by establishing market-driven and science-based terms of trade and dispute resolution that will directly benefit the U.S. food and agriculture industry.”
With the early season rains and floods, many growers have wondered what kind of impact that might have had on rodent populations on the farm, and want to know how to manage them moving forward. Check out California Ag Network’s video interview with Wildlife Specialist Roger Baldwin from UC Davis to find the answers.
Sacramento, Calif., (June 26, 2017) – Another hot and dry week occurred across the State. Rainfall was limited to Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday, which brought very light isolated showers to parts of the Sierras, dropping less than a tenth of an inch of rain; and again on Sunday, which had some light showers across the far northern part of the State as a Pacific moisture surge entered southern Oregon. These areas along the northern tier received about a tenth of an inch of rain, with an isolated quarter of an inch in places.
Temperatures accelerated snowmelt in the mountains, with the snowline retreating to over 9,000 feet in elevation. Above this altitude, extensive snowfields in a band about 30 to 40 miles wide still existed between Tahoe and Sequoia National Forest. Snowdepths in these areas were two to four feet, approaching five feet in areas. Mt. Whitney and Mt. Shasta remained snow-covered at their peaks.
Temperature highs were in the 60s to 70s along the coast, 70s to 90s in the mountains, 100s to 110s in the valley, and 100s to 120s in the desert. The temperature lows were in the 40s to 60s in the mountains, 50s to 60s along the coast, 60s to 70s in the valley, and 70s to 90s in the desert.
Alfalfa fields were making excellent progress. Corn and sorghum for silage continued being planted, cultivated, and irrigated. The corn silage crop was in various stages, from newly planted to already producing tassels. Cotton continued to be irrigated, cultivated, and was growing well.
Peaches, nectarines, apricots, and plums continued to be harvested. Grapevines continued to have leaves removed to allow for improved air circulation and light around the developing bunches to improve color. Late Navel orange harvest was completed. Valencia orange harvest continued. Regreening has become more common due to the higher temperatures. Ruby Red grapefruit were harvested.
Walnut, almond, and pistachio orchards were irrigated. Mechanical and chemical weed control continued in nut orchards. In Sutter and Yuba Counties, walnut growers applied sunburn preventive materials.
In Tulare County certified producers were picking tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, and peppers for sale at the local Farmers’ Markets. Italian squash, eggplant, and cucumbers continued to be harvested. Blueberry and strawberry harvests slowed down and were expected to come to a close with this week’s hot weather. Sweet corn harvest began with a few roadside stands opening and sales at the local Farmers’ markets. Carrot harvest had slowed down. Extreme hot weather had sunburned some tomatoes. In Fresno County, carrots continued to be irrigated. Weeding of lettuce seed fields continued. Roughly one-third of the onion harvest had been completed. Onion seed was drying out. In Monterey County, celery harvest began and was picking up. In Imperial County, spring melons and sweet corn were harvested. Many farmers were finished with melon harvest and were plowing fields. In Colusa, Sacramento, Solano, and Yolo Counties, tomato crops were progressing, even though the recent heat wave slowed crop development.
Hot temperatures contributed to the drying out of non-irrigated grasses and forbs. Non-irrigated rangeland was reported to be in good to very poor condition depending on elevation, aspect and soil moisture. The extended period of extreme temperatures and dry winds prompted Red Flag fire warnings across much of the state. Early fire season rangeland fires were impacting the western states, including Idaho and Oregon. California has had more acres burned this year since January 1st than the comparable period last year. Cattle continued to be moved to higher elevation range. Sheep grazed on retired pasture and dormant alfalfa. Bees were active in melon and vegetable fields.
Plum harvest is underway in the Central Valley. Watch this brief video interview with diversified grower Jimmy Simonian as he provides an outlook on this year’s crop. Read more in California Fresh Fruit Magazine.
Sacramento, Calif., (June 21, 2017) – Tree fruit growers can receive premiums for delivering certain extra-early varieties of peaches, but peach farmers may net roughly $800 more per acre from late-harvest processing peaches than extra-early harvest varieties, according to new cost studies released by the UC ANR Agricultural Issues Center and UC Cooperative Extension.
To help farmers make decisions on which peach varieties to plant, UC researchers present sample costs to produce extra-early harvested cling and freestone peaches and late harvested cling and freestone peaches for processing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valley in these studies.
Although processors pay more for extra-early harvested peach varieties than late-harvest peaches, the researchers found that yields are higher for late-harvest varieties while costs for hand thinning the fruit are lower.
“Peaches harvested early in the season have less time to grow compared to peaches that get to hang on the tree another month or more,” explained Roger Duncan, UC Cooperative Extension advisor in Stanislaus County, who coauthored the studies. “Therefore, more fruit has to be removed so the remaining fruit can size. That means it costs you more to produce less.”
The analyses are based upon hypothetical well-managed farming operations using practices common to the region. The costs, materials and practices shown in these studies will not apply to all farms. Growers, UC ANR Cooperative Extension farm advisors and other agricultural associates provided input and reviewed the methods and findings of the study.
Both studies assume a 100-acre farmer-owned operation with 40 acres of cling peaches. The remaining acreage for both hypothetical farms is planted in other mature tree crops. The estimated economic life of the extra-early harvested cling peach orchard and the late harvested cling peach orchard is 18 years.
Some of the major differences between the two studies are return price, yield and fruit thinning cost. The extra-early harvested varieties have a price of $545 per ton, a yield of 17 tons per acre, and a thinning cost of $1,445 per acre. The late harvested varieties have a price of $490 per ton, a yield of 20 tons per acre, and a thinning cost of $1,177 per acre.
Asked if a small farm could save on fruit thinning expenses by doing it themselves, Duncan replied, “I guess it would be possible for a small family operation to do the thinning themselves, but not likely. It can take 20 to 40 minutes to thin a single tree. If there are 151 trees per acre, you can see that it would take one skilled person over a week to thin one acre.”
The authors describe the assumptions used to identify current costs for production material inputs, cash and non-cash overhead. Ranging analysis tables show net profits over a range of prices and yields. Other tables show the monthly cash costs, the costs and returns per acre, hourly equipment costs, the whole farm annual equipment, investment and business overhead costs and the operations with equipment and materials.
Free copies of “Sample Costs to Produce Processing Peaches, Cling and Freestone Extra-early Harvested Varieties, in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valley – 2017” and “Sample Costs to Establish and Produce Processing Peaches, Cling and Freestone Late Harvested Varieties, in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valley – 2017” are available on the UC Davis Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics website at https://coststudies.ucdavis.edu. Sample cost-of-production studies for many other commodities are also available.
The cost study program is funded by the UC Agricultural Issues Center and UC Cooperative Extension, both part of the UC Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and the UC Davis Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics.
For additional information or an explanation of the calculations used in the studies, contact Jeremy Murdock at the Agricultural Issues Center, at (530) 752-4651, Janine Hasey, UC Cooperative Extension advisor for Sutter/Yuba counties, at (530) 822-7515, or Duncan at (209) 525-6800.
Sacramento, Calif., (June 20, 2017) – A departing upper-level trough early in the week left cooler air across parts of the State with a few lingering showers on Monday. Rainfall was mostly limited to Monday across the far northeastern corner of the State near Alturas, which received just over half an inch of rain on Monday. A few isolated sprinkles moistened parts of the central and northern Sierras on Monday, as well. This quickly gave way to a building mid-level ridge over the southwestern United States, which brought dry air and hot conditions to much of the State.
Temperatures rose dramatically last week, with very hot temperatures across nearly all parts of the State except perhaps the coastal northern areas. Very warm temperatures helped accelerate snowmelt in the mountains. Both Mt. Whitney in the south and Mt. Shasta in the north were still snowcapped on their peaks, with Mt. Shasta expected to remain so for some time. Snowcover elsewhere is now limited to a band about 40 miles wide between Tahoe and the Sequoia National Forest, at elevations above 8,000 feet. There was still eight feet of snowcover at these locations, with the area just north of Yosemite still estimated at six feet of snowcover.
Temperature highs were in the 50s to 60s along the coast, 60s to 80s in the mountains, 90s to 100s in the valley, and 90s to 110s in the desert. The temperature lows were in the 40s to 50s in the mountains, 50s to 60s along the coast, 50s to 70s in the valley, and 60s to 80s in the desert.
Silage corn planting was completed. Fields were being prepared and planted with summer beans, Sudan grass, and silage sorghum. Wheat harvest for grain was approaching completion. Small grains such as oats and barley were being cut and baled, or harvested for grain. Alfalfa fields were making excellent progress and being irrigated, cut, and baled. Corn planting continued and earlier planted fields were growing well, with some developing tassels. Cotton was being irrigated and growing well.
Peaches, nectarines, apricots, and plums continue to be harvested. Some orchard floors were lined with reflective plastic to improve color prior to harvest. Grapevines continued to have leaves removed to allow for improved air circulation and light around the developing bunches to improve color. Kiwi fruit were thinned. Cherry harvest was wrapping up for the season. Navel orange harvest was nearly complete. Valencia orange harvest continued. Grapefruit harvest was drawing to a close. Old citrus trees were being pulled to make way for new citrus varieties. Since bloom was complete for seedless tangerines, removal of the protective netting began.
Weed control in almond orchards was ongoing. Pistachio, walnut, and almond orchards were irrigated and fertilized. Mechanical and chemical weed control operations continued in nut orchards.
In Colusa County, row crops such as tomatoes were growing at a fast pace. In San Joaquin County, tomatoes and sweet corn were growing well. Summer vegetables were harvested and offered for sale at local Farmer’s markets. Field ground preparation and planting of crops continued. In Fresno County, tomatoes were kept fresh by continual irrigation. Red onions, carrots, and peppers were harvested. Onions for seed were irrigated. In Tulare County, summer vegetables were harvested and shipped domestically. Italian squash, peppers, and cucumbers were harvested. Eggplant and tomatoes continued to grow and mature. In Imperial County, spring melons and sweet corn were harvested. Some growers reported exceptional yields. Dehydrated onions were harvested and shipped out of the valley for processing. Large insect activity was reported in onion fields.
As the summer heat dries out the grasses and forbs, range and dryland pasture forage quality began to deteriorate. Foothill range and valley dryland pasture was in fair to very poor condition. Some cattle were moved to higher elevation range. Sheep grazed on retired pasture and dormant alfalfa. Bees were active in vegetable fields.
Visalia, Calif., (June 9, 2017) – Tulare County Agricultural Commissioner released the current status today of Major crops in the most valued county in the California Ag portfolio. They report that with wheat silage harvest almost completed most fields are being planted with summer beans, silage corn, Sudan grass, and silage sorghum. Wheat harvest for grain has begun, and the left over wheat straw is being baled. Alfalfa fields are making excellent progress; and being irrigated, cut, and baled. Corn continues being planted, and earlier planted fields are growing well, with some are developing tassels. Cotton is emerging and being irrigated and growing well.
Harvest of early season varieties of peaches, nectarines, and plums is tapering off. Mid-season stone fruit varieties are getting close to maturity. Stone fruit are being exported to Australia, Canada, Mexico, and New Zealand. White flesh nectarines and peaches are being shipped to Brazil and Taiwan. Cherries are being picked and packed for domestic markets, and exported to Mexico. Last year’s almonds and pistachios are being exported to the European Union, Israel, Japan, and the United Arab Emirates. Walnut, almond, and pistachio orchards are being irrigated. Both mechanical and chemical weed control continues in orchards. Grapevines continue to have leaves removed to allow for improved air circulation and light around the developing bunches to improve color.
Some navel oranges continue to be picked and packed for the domestic market. Valencia oranges continue to be harvested and exported to China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Grapefruit harvest is finishing up, with Star Ruby grapefruit being shipped domestically and exported to Korea and Mexico. Seedless tangerines are having the netting removed now that the bloom is over.
Summer vegetables are being planted and harvested and shipped domestically. Blueberries are being harvested, with exports to the European Union, Japan, and Taiwan. Strawberry harvest is nearing an end with increasing seasonal temperatures. Berries are still being harvested and sold at roadside stands.
Low elevation rangeland continues to dry, and cattle are being moved to higher elevations. The higher elevations are providing more grass than previous years. Fed cattle prices are at $136.00 per hundredweight.
Surface water is flowing in many of the irrigation canals. Many farmers across Tulare County are able to use surface water to irrigate crops this year instead of relying solely on pumping ground water. Wholesale nursery shipments to Canada and domestic markets continue.
