Almonds Continued from Page 8
after this year’s harvest, Duncan said. They are in Chico, Salida and Chowchilla. Based on cumulative results from the older trials, he said one of the take-home messages was Nonpareil remains the king with both kernel quality and yields. From 2016-2023, Nonpareil topped all varieties with an average total of 20,636 pounds across the three sites. Vicky Boyd is a reporter in Modesto. She can be reached at agalert@cfbf.com.
single variety could prove troublesome, as it increases the overall risk of pest and disease problems due to the lack of ge- netic diversity. “We’re bringing in a lot of genetic di- versity and making it available to people and private programs so we have more options,” Gradziel said. Tom Burchell, owner of Burchell Nursery in Oakdale, has five entries in the trial and said the resulting performance data is critical for growers. “I like to see them compared to all of the other varieties, and I like that it’s an unbi- ased rating system from the university,” he said. “It’s not me saying plant Shasta. If it’s proven itself out here and Roger Duncan and the almond board get behind the va- riety, it’s a third party saying it.” Wes Asai, a pest control adviser and crop consultant from Turlock, attended the Modesto trial to view the three commer- cial self-fertilize varieties—Independence, Shasta and Yorizane—in one location, al- lowing him to compare them more easily. “I just wanted to see them in a single set- ting, how they look side by side,” he said. “I’ve seen all of these varieties alone. Yorizane has shown a lot of promise, but it’s still a little bit new, so growers are still figuring it out.” Nursery producer John Duarte, whose family is hosting the trial at their Dewitt Ranch east of Modesto, said they volun- teered because it gives them first-hand expe- rience with new and pending releases. The family also grows almonds and winegrapes. “It’s just a huge value to us,” said Duarte, president of Duarte Nursery in Hughson. “I have my shadow on this place almost daily. We get familiar with the new varieties and get to know them more than anyone else.” The trial consists of four replicates of 15 trees of each variety or selection planted down the rows. The remainder of the 64- acre block is Yorizane grafted onto Bright’s Hybrid 5 rootstock, a combination that ex- cites Duarte. “Yorizane in the yield trials is not a big tree,” Duarte said. “But at higher density, you’re getting the sunlight capture up. Put it on a high-efficiency rootstock, and we can look at what we’re wanting with or- chard returns.” A self-fertile almond from retired U.S. Department of Agriculture breeder Craig Ledbetter’s program, Yorizane is the first va- riety released from the UC regional variety trials. Those who have evaluated the variety say it has excellent kernel quality and high yield potential with few insect or disease problems. Although Yorizane is a smaller tree, it has shown to be one of the most effi- cient at converting sunlight into almonds. Duarte said the variety also has a unique butterfly-shaped hull that allows it to hang on the tree and dry down to 6% kernel moisture. This would allow for off-ground harvesting, which could reduce equip- ment passes and dust. At that moisture level, the kernels wouldn’t require further drying before hulling, either. UC’s third-generation variety trials are just wrapping up after 11 years in the ground and are expected to be removed
At the almond variety field day in Modesto, Duarte Nursery promotes self- fertile Yorizane tall trees, which are grafted a bit higher than other trees to allow for off-ground harvesting equipment.
June 18, 2025 Ag Alert 9
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