Ag Alert. February 22, 2023

Ag Alert is the newspaper of the California Farm Bureau Federation, reaching Farm Bureau agricultural and collegiate members. Agricultural members are owners and decision-makers on California farms and ranches. The California Farm Bureau Federation is a non-governmental, non-profit, voluntary membership organization whose purpose is to protect and promote agricultural interests throughout the state of California and to find solutions to the problems of the farm, the farm home and the rural community. Farm Bureau is California's largest farm organization, comprised of 53 county Farm Bureaus. Farm Bureau strives to protect and improve the ability of farmers and ranchers engaged in production agriculture to provide a reliable supply of food and fiber through responsible stewardship of California's resources.

Sour grapes Crush report reveals light winegrape crop

Sinking water Farmers race to recharge aquifers

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www.cfbf.com • www.agalert.com FEBRUARY 22, 2023

Trees & Vines ® Dairy & Livestock ®

special reports

By Lisa McEwen Farmers love to talk about the weather, and those attending the World Ag Expo in Tulare last week were no different. A Canadian cold front forced growers, exhibitors and students alike to bundle up against windy conditions, but it didn’t freeze their enthusiasm for the largest ag- riculture equipment show in the world. Framed by a backdrop of the snow-laden Sierra Nevada, the sprawling show on 2.6 million square feet attracted tens of thou- sands of people from across the globe. Citrus farmers Marlin and Michelle Hiett made the drive from Kingsburg after running wind machines for frost protec- tion the night before. They attended the annual prayer breakfast, then made their way through the grounds. “Depending on the weather, sometimes farmers don’t want to come out,” Marlin Hiett said. “It’s the right time of year to work the soil. But we love to come here to meet friends, support Immanuel School’s food booth and look at all the equipment. It’s definitely more technology-oriented now, yet farming is still working the soil and growing crops. That hasn’t changed.” Guests watched autonomous trac- tors make loops around expanded ex- hibition space, test new software ap- plications for their farming operations, climb in tractor cabs and gawk at elec- tric vehicles. Other highlights included the oppor- tunity to watch a live ultrasound demon- stration on a cow, take a “ride and drive,” attend numerous seminars or take a seat on one of several agricultural tours hap- pening throughout the county. John Garza, who owns a trucking busi- ness in Fowler, arrived to scout out new products. “I’m seeing what’s out here and looking at what’s new for trailers and trucks,” he said. “I just want to be aware of what’s available.” At its inception in 1968, the event was See EXPO, Page 9 Farm crowd turns out for World Ag Expo despite cold

Farmers address House panel at Ag Expo House Speaker Kevin McCarthy fields questions at the World Ag Expo in Tulare. The farm show also hosted a House Agriculture Committee session, which gathered testimony and ideas for the 2023 Farm Bill. McCarthy promised “to empower our agricultural producers who feed the world.”

By Christine Souza The nation’s 2023 Farm Bill took center stage at the World Ag Expo in Tulare last week, as farmers engaged with members of the House Agriculture Committee and Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Bakersfield. McCarthy’s appearance at the largest farm show in the world marked the first time a House Speaker attended the event. He joined Committee Chairman Glenn

“GT” Thompson, R-Pennsylvania, and six other California representatives. The listen- ing session focused on the omnibus legis- lation that contains an array of agricultural and food programs, including for nutrition, crop assistance and conservation. California farmers and farm associ- ations, including the California Farm Bureau, highlighted challenges facing America’s largest agricultural economy,

including supply-chain disruptions, labor shortages, inflation and rising input costs. “For the farmer, those challenges have resulted in economic disruption, tighter margins and even permanently closed farms,” said California Farm Bureau President Jamie Johansson, who farms ol- ives and citrus fruit in Oroville. “There is still much that can be done to help ensure

See BILL, Page 16

n e w s p a p e r

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‘Waters of the U.S.’ rule unworkable for family farms

By Zippy Duvall Last month, the American Farm Bureau Federationfiledanewlawsuitchallengingthe

In 2015, EPA replaced a decades-old, ter- ribly flawed WOTUS rule with a new one that was even worse. The 2015 WOTUS rule was an enormous federal land grab that would prohibit many commonplace, beneficial farming activities. AFBF and an industry coalition, along with many state and county governments, challenged that rule in court—and we won. Courts blocked the 2015 rule in 28 states. Our litigation wins against the 2015 rule helped persuade the EPA, under a new administration, to replace it with a more clear, workable WOTUS rule in 2020. But activists challenged the 2020 rule in court. So AFBF again led a litigation effort, this time defending the reasonable rule for which we had advocated. Our legal efforts helped keep the rule in place for almost three years and, impor- tantly, provided support for a similar rule in the future. But the legal battle was cut short after another change in administration. This brings us to the present: another administration, another WOTUS rule and another round of litigation. It is not where we wanted to be but where we need to be under the circumstances. In our system of checks and balances, the courts are an indispensable check on unlawful agency actions. Litigation is slow, cumbersome, expensive and often uncertain. But it’s a tool we can use and a weapon we must guard against as we work for laws that pro- tect the ability to farm. We will continue to be present in ev- ery forum where issues vital to farmers and ranchers are decided, including the courts. That is because farmers—and all landowners—deserve better. (Zippy Duvall is president of the American Farm Bureau Federation. This article was adapted from two recent commentaries on the WOTUS rule in his column, The Zipline.)

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s latest “waters of the United States” rule. We were joined by more than a dozen other organizations representing agri- culture, infrastruc- ture, manufacturing and housing.

Zippy Duvall

Even though farmers and ranchers share the goal of protecting our nation’s water- ways, they deserve better than this rule, which requires a team of lawyers and con- sultants just to identify “navigable waters” on their land. The EPA’s new WOTUS rule is a giant step in the wrong direction. Instead of making federal regulations more clear, it reinstates confusing standards that have already caused decades of uncertainty. Most im- portantly, the rule gives the government sweeping authority over private lands. We worked with the EPA’s staff and leaders while they were drafting the rule, hoping our input would make these reg- ulations clear and fair. But we came away deeply disappointed in the outcome. Of course, we would much rather sort out differences by working together to find solutions. Farm Bureau leaders and grass- roots members came to the table, joining EPA roundtable hearings. I had conver- sations directly with EPA Administrator Michael Regan. Despite some helpful clarifications coming from those discus- sions, the new rule remains unworkable for America’s farm families. Most importantly, EPA has doubled down on the old “significant nexus” test,

The American Farm Bureau Federation says the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s new rule creates confusion about “navigable waters” and burdens farmers and private property owners.

which is every bit as vague as it sounds. It is not a useful standard for identifying “navigable waters.” The Clean Water Act gives the govern- ment authority to regulate navigable wa- ters—but the new rule reaches beyond. The EPA doubled down by expanding the significant nexus test, which comes down to a subjective determination of whether the federal government can regulate large areas of farmland miles from the nearest “navigable” water. Farmers across the country are taking proactive steps to protect water on and around our farms. The 2020 Navigable Waters Protection Rule clarified what lands and waters were regulated and what was not. The definitions were easy to under- stand and allowed farmers, ranchers and other landowners to determine if they needed a federal permit to improve their land. But the new rule takes us backward. Its overreach could subject farming

activities such as moving dirt, plowing or building fences to require a federal permit. That means more paperwork, more delays and more lawyers. Instead of being treated as partners in protecting our nation’s water supply, the government wants to dictate what we can and can’t do on our farms. On farms across America, we’ve in- creased practices that reduce soil erosion and keep nutrients in our fields. We’ve in- creased the use of cover crops and placed more than 140 million acres of land into voluntary conservation programs. We’ve installed buffer strips to filter water coming off our fields and installed protective zones and terraces—all to protect water quality for our families and yours. We don’t set out for the courthouse. But sometimes we have to go there. Several WOTUS cases over the past several years show how litigation is an essential part of advancing Farm Bureau’s mission and farmers’ mission to fill America’s pantries.

VOL. 50, NO. 8

February 22, 2023

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2 Ag Alert February 22, 2023

Grape Crush Report reveals decade’s lightest wine crop

The average price of Napa County caber- net sauvignon grapes hit a new record of $8,947 per ton. Despite the low yields, grower reve- nue for North Coast vineyards in Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino and Lake counties reach $1.39 billion, the region’s sixth-high- est total on record. Napa County led the pack, bringing in more than $860 million, an increase in revenue of nearly 20% com- pared to the prior year. Lake County produced 21,214 tons of cabernet sauvignon, a historic figure for

the county, while still seeing higher pric- es than the prior year. Mendocino County increased its tonnage by 30%, while seeing slightly lower pricing. Experts attributed the increased production in those counties to new vineyards coming online. On the Central Coast, the overall ton- nage was down by 130,000 tons, with prices trending upwards for bulk wine, especially cabernet sauvignon from Paso Robles. Meanwhile, winegrape production in

By Caleb Hampton California winegrape growers last year harvested the smallest crop of any year within the past decade, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Preliminary Grape Crush Report, an annual benchmark for the winegrape and bulk wine sector. The overall 2022 winegrape crush of 3.35 million tons was the lightest since 2011, the Feb. 10 report said. Because of weather and other factors, wine sector experts had forecast a light harvest. However, the crush “was even lighter than anticipated, further empha- sizing the impact of drought conditions, a severe frost, and ongoing vineyard remov- als particularly in the Central Valley,” Greg Livengood, president of Ciatti Company, said in a statement released by the global wine and grape brokerage. The sector’s third consecutive “short” year, or small harvest, is not altogether bad news for winegrape growers or bulk wine sellers. With demand for wine stagnat- ing over the past couple years, the small- er-than-average yields have kept inventory low and prices high. “It’s probably good that we didn’t have that large of a crop because I think that would have affected the supply and de- mand balance,” said Glenn Proctor, own- er and vintner of Puccioni Vineyards and partner at Ciatti Company. “We’ve kind of backed into a balanced situation.” In 2022, California winegrape prices were on average their highest on record. However, leaders in the sector pointed out that the strong pricing has not translated into a windfall for vineyards. “The challenge, if you’re a grower,” Proctor said, “is you get paid in dollars per ton. If my tonnage is down, that means my gross is potentially less.” Meanwhile, the materials, labor and other input costs for winegrape production increased for many growers, narrowing their margins. “It’s been difficult to pass along some of the costs that they’re seeing,” Proctor said. “I think it makes the overall mar- ket opportunity potentially smaller and more competitive.” Beyond the market dynamics, the 150- page grape crush report revealed notable trends in California’s winegrape sector. For the first time, cabernet sauvignon surpassed chardonnay in total tonnage, making up 15.4% of all the grapes harvest- ed, with chardonnay trailing at 14.4%. Red wine varieties made up the largest share of all grapes crushed, coming in at 1.89 million tons, down 7.2% from 2021. White wine varieties totaled 1.46 million tons, down 8.6% from 2021. Across all varieties, the average price was $910.80 per ton, up 5.7% from 2021. Red wine varieties went for an average of $1,150.58, up 7.2%, while white varieties fetched $682.07, up 1%. All of those figures are record highs. Napa County, or District 4 in the report,

had the highest pricing at $6,847.19 per ton, an increase of 12.2% from 2021. Prices for winegrapes from District 3, Sonoma and Marin counties, were also up, selling for an average of $2,858.39 per ton. Statewide, cabernet sauvignon pricing rose by 13.8% to $1,892.40, while chardon- nay prices went up by 3.9% to $1,014.63.

See CRUSH, Page 8

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February 22, 2023 Ag Alert 3

Farmers race to sink water into ground after storms By Lisa McEwen

the better. It’s like putting money in the piggy bank,” Stuller said. The metered water is reported through irrigation districts to their corresponding GSA, and growers receive credit for add- ing water to the groundwater profile. For the East Kaweah GSA, which includes the Tulare basin, the credits are valid for five years, and future surface water alloca- tions will not be affected. In addition to temporary basins, grow- ers are also letting water run through nat- ural waterways that traverse their ranch- es, such as creeks or ditches, or running it through their existing irrigation infrastruc- ture. Some growers are using already open ground while others are removing trees to build permanent structures. Citrus grower David Atkinson of Atkinson Acres in Exeter made the de- cision to remove 75 Gold Nugget man- darin trees—with the crop still on—to build a permanent half-acre pond for recharge. He initially wanted to build it in the fall but backed out. Motivated by uncontrolled season water priced at $38 an acre-foot, he pulled the trigger on the project. He said he wished he had done it sooner. “I could have been sinking water for two weeks now,” he said. “But this is an opportunity to put water in the ground, and I’m going to do as much as possible for as long as possible. We’re not doing this for this summer; we are doing this

Growers in the San Joaquin Valley are hurriedly building temporary ground- water sinking basins to take advantage of inexpensive, uncontrolled seasonal water. And they are racing to replenish underground water supplies that could carry them through drier years ahead. In Tulare County, farm manager Zack Stuller’s phone started ringing nonstop in late December, after a series of intense storms fueled by atmospheric rivers wal- loped California, dumping snow in the mountains and rain in the lowlands. Clients of Stuller’s farm management and land development business took note of conditions in the San Joaquin River and Kaweah River watersheds and anticipated an opportunity to conduct on-farm recharge—if they had a place to put it. “Everyone is scrambling,” Stuller said as he surveyed a recent project in Exeter. “We weren’t prepared for this much wa- ter, and we can’t build them fast enough.” In the past month, Stuller’s crews have built 20 temporary basins, which tend to be simple and inexpensive—think of a backhoe to build berms and pipe or hoses to siphon water from an irrigation district turnout. Depending on the con- nection, the water slowly dribbles out or is transported through pipes to spread as evenly as possible throughout the field. Since the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation declared uncontrolled season water in

Zack Stuller is working with farmers in Tulare County to help them take advantage of inexpensive seasonal water to recharge farm aquifers and build up credits under California’s groundwater law.

late December, farmers who are Friant Division water users figured out ways to sink water rather than let it go downstream until Feb. 10, when the release ended. The Friant Division of the Central Valley Project delivers water to more than 1 million acres of irrigable farm- land on the east side of the southern San Joaquin Valley, from Chowchilla to the Tehachapi Mountains. Water travels via the Friant-Kern Canal, which the Friant Water Authority maintains and operates,

with San Joaquin River water stored at Millerton Lake. The water serves more than 30 irrigation districts and cities, and 15,000 family farms. Due to California’s 2014 Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, “every- one is coming up with ideas of how to get water in the ground,” said Stuller, who sits on the boards of two area Groundwater Sustainability Agencies, or GSAs, that oversee the health of groundwater basins. “The more we can distribute locally,

See RECHARGE, Page 23

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4 Ag Alert February 22, 2023

Governor’s executive order seeks to replenish reservoirs

Gov. Gavin Newsom added some flex- ibility to California’s water system last week, in signing an executive order that suspends environmental laws to allow state water officials to hold more water in reservoirs. The order comes after the governor received criticism from farm groups and others for allowing uncaptured water from atmospheric storms to flow into the ocean. The governor’s Feb. 13 executive or- der comes during a drier than average February and follows one of the wettest three-week January periods on record, with storms yielding a snowpack at 205% of average on Feb. 1. Anticipating a return to unseasonably dry conditions during the remaining weeks of the state’s wet season, the gov- ernor’s office said he signed the order to protect the water supplies from impacts of climate-driven extremes in weather. This year follows dry conditions expe- rienced in 2021, which led to the driest January to March period in more than 100 years in 2022. Between October 2021 and September 2022, statewide precipitation was 76% of average, and reservoir storage was at 69% of average. Newsom’s executive order authoriz- es the California State Water Resources

Control Board to “consider modifying” state requirements that dictate how much water in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta is allowed to flow into the San Francisco Bay. The order means it is likely that the state water board will allow more water to be stored behind reservoirs such as in Lake Shasta and Lake Oroville, the state’s largest reservoirs. In addition, more water may be pumped into San Luis Reservoir, which is jointly used by the State Water Project and the federal Central Valley Project. Soon after the order was announced, the California Department of Water Resources and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation jointly petitioned the state water board to relax the delta flow rules “to ensure the availabil- ity of an adequate water supply while also ensuring protection of critical species and the environment.” The executive order also aims to help expand the state’s capacity to capture storm runoff in wet years by facilitating groundwater recharge projects. The or- der said, “Capturing and storing storm and snowpack runoff underground to re- charge aquifers is an important strategy to help regions stabilize water supplies in the face of hydrologic extremes.” The order added that the state has streamlined permitting to enable ground- water recharge that augments natural

The San Luis Reservoir, shown here at 56% of capacity on Jan. 25 after the storm surge, reached 73% of capacity on Feb. 16. The governor’s executive order could enable more water storage.

aquifer recharge, while protecting the environment and other water users.” Additionally, the order directed agencies to review and provide recommendations on the state’s drought response actions by the end of April, including the possibility of terminating some emergency provisions that are no longer needed, once there is greater clarity about the hydrologic con- ditions this year. It includes provisions to protect water reserves to account for rain and snowfall absorbed by thirstier soils, vegetation and the atmosphere. The frequency of hydrologic extremes

experienced in California demonstrates the need to continually adapt to promote resiliency in a changing climate, the gover- nor’s office said. Leveraging the more than $8.6 bil- lion committed by the governor and the Legislature in the last two budget cycles to build water resilience, the state said it is taking action to prepare for the impacts of climate-driven extremes in weather on the state’s water supplies. In the 2023-24 state budget, Newsom is proposing an addition- al $202 million for flood protection and $125 million for drought-related actions.

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February 22, 2023 Ag Alert 5

Session focuses on new and ancient farm water systems

By Bob Johnson During the 1996 Kings River flood, Terra Nova Ranch General Manager Don Cameron had a 1-mile canal built that diverted 5,000 acre-feet of water to his fields to recharge the groundwater below. At the time, many of the neighboring farmers questioned the wisdom of flood- ing the fields. “When we started, people wanted to get rid of flood water,” Cameron said. “Now, they’re fighting over it.” He discussed his experiences and dis- coveries during a Jan. 19 keynote session on water management at the 43rd annual EcoFarm Conference. It featured several presentations on how farmers can re- think water strategies in an age of floods and droughts. It included topics such as groundwater recharge, using rice fields as flood plains for salmon and embracing ancient wa- ter-delivery systems, as some farmers are now doing. Decades after Cameron’s successful experiment with diverting floodwater to fields, the area’s farmers are working with the state of California to establish canals and pumps that will eventually be able to flood 30,000 acres during times of heavy rainfall. Cameron has flooded pistachios, al- monds, olives and grapes without dam- aging the crops. In his youth, Cameron saw wild grapes growing with their roots in the water near the banks of the Sacramento River outside Redding. He said he still remembers one flood that made him uneasy about leaving grapevines in multiple feet of water. “We put on water from February to late June,” he recalled. “Our vines turned yellow, so I got nervous and turned the water off. Ten days later, the vines turned green again.” While Cameron sees fields as infra- structure to recharge the underground aquifer, Jacob Katz views the edges of Sacramento Valley rice fields as nurseries for fast-growing baby salmon. “A 2008 study showed that salmon on the flood plain grew five times as fast as those in the river,” said Katz, lead scientist at the conservation group California Trout. He said rice fields are more nutrient rich than the river for baby salmon be- cause slow-flowing water allows the mi- cro-organisms salmon eat to reproduce and grow. “We think the fish belong in the riv- er, and the river belongs in the banks,” Katz said. Noting that the Sacramento Valley used to be a wetland, he said efforts are now un- derway to determine how to use rice fields to replicate those conditions. “It’s about welcoming the spirit of the wild back into our farms,” he said. Researchers have already succeeded

in raising baby salmon in rice fields in the causeway between Davis and Sacramento and releasing them into the Sacramento River when they are large and strong enough to survive the journey. “One of the great conservation suc- cess stories was the change of hundreds of thousands of acres of agriculture to mimic the lost wetlands for the water birds,” Katz said. “Can we do the same thing for fish?” Erica Gies, another speaker at the EcoFarm Conference, traveled the world for National Geographic, docu- menting water solutions. She described those solutions in her book “Water Always Wins: Thriving in an Age of Drought and Deluge.” She said water wants to slow down and spread out in ways that support the environment. Gies endorsed water storage projects that can also help maintain wetlands and the natural environment. “Our control-driven infrastructure is brittle,” Gies said. “I’ve met native people who see water as a relative or friend. “Putting ourselves first isn’t working because it ignores water’s agency,” she added. “We have drained 87% of the world’s wetlands. In California, it is 90%. We need to ask what water wants.” Gies noted that more than half of Peru lives on coastal plains that get less water than California. “The government requires water util- ities to invest in natural systems that store water and let it move to the coast,” she said. One of those investments is in peat wetlands, which slow down and store water in higher elevations. Peat occupies 3% of Earth’s surface and holds 10% of its water. Another of Peru’s water utility in- vestments is in amuna, an ancient wa- ter system employed by farmers in the Andes. It routes water to infiltration systems that slowly move it to springs at lower elevations. “If we plant the water, we can har- vest the water,” Gies said she was told in Peru. In Kenya, she said, a population boom led to deforestation at higher elevations, resulting in disastrous con- sequences for the water supply. “This leads to less water with more sed- iment,” Gies said. “You have bigger floods in the wet season and more scarcity in the dry one.” Gies found people worldwide who strategically let water move slowly on or near their farms. “The people I met were implement- ing solutions in their own community or land,” she said. “It’s empowering.” (Bob Johnson is a reporter in Monterey County. He may be contacted at bjohn11135@gmail.com.)

A SPECIAL GROWERS’ REPORT OF AG ALERT ® CALIFORNIA Trees & Vines ®

University of California experts say mowing cover crops or vegetation on vineyard floors a few days ahead of a frost reduces shading and allows the ground to absorb more radiant heat from the sun.

Growers ponder ways to curb vineyard frost damage By Vicky Boyd

“But it doesn’t matter when it’s so cold. You can’t do anything about it,” Fry said. There are two types of cold snaps: advection and radiation. Advection freezes occur when a cold air mass comes in and replaces warm air. These are associated with strong winds, no inversions and low humidity. Fortunately, Tanner said, these typically don’t occur in the state’s winegrape regions. The more common radiation frost occurs under clear night skies and calm winds, when heat absorbed during the day is lost as radiant energy into the atmosphere. As a result, temperatures drop faster near the surface, causing a temperature inversion with a layer of warmer air atop the cold air layer. After harvest, grapevines transition to dormancy during the fall. They’re in their deep- est sleep between December and February. During this period, vines can withstand temperatures below zero without damage. As the vines break dormancy in early spring, leaves begin to emerge as part of bud break. Frost damage occurs when leaf cells, which are mostly water, freeze and burst. The further leaves are past bud break, the more sensitive they are to cold. Last year, the Lodi region experienced 90-plus degree temperatures in early April, which promoted early bud break in many vineyards, Tanner said. See FROST, Page 8

Although California’s winegrape-producing regions don’t experience many spring frosts, they can be devastating when they occur. Such was the case in April 2022 when the mercury dipped below 32 degrees after vines had leafed out in the Lodi area. If growers know ahead of time, they may take steps to help minimize the effects of cold temperatures, said Justin Tanner, University of California Cooperative Extension viticulture advisor for San Joaquin, Sacramento and Stanislaus counties. “Late spring frosts occur so infrequently that it doesn’t justify active measures like wind machines,” he said. “Focus on passive avoidance measures.” By that, Tanner means vineyard site evaluation, cultivar selection, trellis systems, delaying pruning, promoting cold air drainage and vineyard floor management. He offered his insights during the 71 st Lodi Grape Day this month. Bruce Fry, who farms with his father as part of Mohr-Fry Ranches near Lodi, said even using some of those tools did little to minimize the impact of the April 12, 2022, frost. “It was just a phenomenon that this happened,” he said. “Usually, when you have a freeze like this, you have streaks of warmer air that flow around. But there was just so much cold air from the top to the bottom layer that you couldn’t do much.” Preparing the ground during bud break may raise the temperature in a vineyard a degree or two, and irrigating the ground may warm it up another half degree, he said.

February 22, 2023 Ag Alert 7

Frost Continued from Page 7

On the night of April 12, skies cleared and earlier winds died. The dew point also declined into the 20s. Without much humidity, which acts like a heat reservoir, the dry air cooled much faster. As a result, many areas in northern San Joaquin County and southern Sacramento County saw temperatures ranging from 27.7 to 30.6 degrees Fahrenheit for 30 min- utes to more than four hours, according to Western Weather data. Depending on the leaf growth stage, variety and cold duration, those tempera- tures were enough to damage or kill leaves and shoots on some vines. The 2022 grape yields in harder hit regions also reflected the cold damage. When establishing a new orchard, Tanner said growers can take into consideration terrain or other features that create cold pockets or influence cold air flow patterns. They also can choose varieties with later bud break that have better chances of avoiding cold snaps than ones with earlier bud break. Placing trellis arms and wires higher off the ground can raise canes above the cold- est air layer closest to the ground. With established vineyards, he said growers can tweak cultural practices to try to address potential frost issues. “Sometimes with existing vineyards, we just have to manage those differently,” Tanner said.

Once leaves emerge during bud break, as shown on the left, they become sensitive to frost. At right, a Lodi-area vineyard is damaged after frost last April.

If growers have low spots in vineyards or entire vineyards that are prone to frosts, he said they may want to hold off pruning. This delays bud break and extends cold hardiness for up to 20 days. Mechanical prepruning to seven to eight nodes can be completed any time during the dormant period. But Tanner said growers can wait as late as unfold- ing of the second or third leaf on apical shoot positions—those farthest from the

trunk—to complete hand pruning with little yield impact. Vineyard floor management is another frost-management tool, he said. Firmly packed bare soils—especially when they contain moisture—intercept solar radia- tion and then release it at night, he said. On the other hand, lush cover crops shade and insulate vineyard floors, preventing the soil from absorbing daytime solar heat. In addition, the coldest layer of air settles on top of tall vegetation, which brings it closer to the cordon height. Dave Simpson, who grows winegrapes

near Lodi, said he has limited frost-man- agement options. “Really, there isn’t much we can do, and managing the vineyard floor is one thing we can do,” he said. Simpson cited previous University of California research that showed one of the worst scenarios is to have cover crops taller than 12 inches. “My goal is to leave a cover crop but keep it short enough that you’re not hurting yourself,” he said. Outside of that, Fry said he also uses crop insurance, where appropriate, as an- other risk-management tool to deal with Mother Nature. (Vicky Boyd is a reporter in Modesto. She may be contacted at vlboyd@att.net.)

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Crush Continued from Page 3

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the Central Valley declined for a sixth con- secutive year. In that region, “the continu- ing trend of an annual lighter crop appears to be due mostly to drought conditions and ongoing vineyard pullouts,” Johnny Leonardo, partner at Ciatti Company, said in a statement. With the release of grape crush data for 2022, those in the sector are waiting to see if the report spurs market activity. “It will be interesting to see how the market moves going forward,” Proctor said. “The belief on some fronts is that we’re going to see some renewed market activity because the crush was lighter than everybody thought. I think that’s a possibil- ity. But I also think a lot of the reason we’re seeing some of this hesitant activity on the market is because of the economy and concerns about where it is going to take us in the future.” He added, “Buyers are somewhat reluc- tant to make commitments. They don’t want to have more supply than they need.” (Caleb Hampton is an assistant editor of Ag Alert. He may be contacted at champton@cfbf.com.)

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8 Ag Alert February 22, 2023

Expo Continued from Page 1

called the California Field and Row Crop Equipment Show, then for 10 years the California Farm Equipment Show. In 1979, the words International Exposition were added to the title, and in 2001, it was christened World Ag Expo. Regardless of its name, the show has been the place to network and showcase new equipment and inventions. This year was no different, as evidenced by the expo’s announcement of its top 10 new products. Those included smart spray- ers that use visual-recognition technology to reduce off-target or excessive spraying, flying fruit-picking autonomous robots, a new mobile app for seeding efficiency and a “smart irrigation” pressure-compensating heavy wall drip line that allows growers to vary spacing between emitters, delivering water to plants, not the areas in between. The theme of this year’s World Ag Expo was “Taking Care of Ag Business,” and ex- hibitor Rod Galvan was there to do just that. He said he hoped to attract growers and dairy farmers to his first-ever World Ag Expo booth as a manager for the Fresno-based office of Emcor Services. “We are trying the show to see what we can get out of it,” he said as people streamed by. “We can cool or heat any- thing, including people, products and animals. In agriculture, energy savings is important, especially on dairies, and that’s where we come into play.” Also at the expo for the first time was Aaron Shew with Acres, a desktop and mobile land research platform. It was originally designed as an internal tool for land investment company AcreTrader and was launched for the public in October. It gathers information from government da- tabases and allows users to access 150 mil- lion parcels in the country. There, viewers can compare sales data and review crop history to soil and water data. “Our mission is transparency in ag land transactions,” Shew said while handing out free socks to those who downloaded

Crowds turn out for the World Ag Expo, bundled for the cold beneath snowy mountains in Tulare County. The event featured the latest in farm technology, includ- ing the expo’s selections of top 10 new products.

the mobile app. “Sometimes that infor- mation can be hard to see, and we are working on changing that.” Those who use the platform include farmers, investment firms, land brokers and lenders. On Wednesday, thousands of local school children made their way to the World Ag Expo for a day of touring booths and connecting with those in the agricul- tural industry. Spreading the word about events that promote agricultural education was Butte County Farm Bureau Executive Director Colleen Cecil. She gave a presenta- tion in the seminar trailer about hosting an Agribee, a define-and-spell event for fourth and fifth graders. Cecil is encouraging other schools, FFA chapters, agricultural organizations or county farm bureaus to host an Agribee. She said she would like to see enough par- ticipation that a state final could be staged in the future during World Ag Expo. “Kids are amazing sponges, and they absorb everything,” she said. The event ends up teaching entire families about ag- riculture, as parents help students mem- orize agriculture terms. “Even if just 10

schools participate,” Cecil said, “that’s two finalists from each school and 20 students who know a lot more about agriculture.” Seminars—including topics such as groundwater monitoring, export ven- ture financing, dairy feeds and a panel discussing growing hemp in California— were recorded and will be available on- line at worldagexpo.com. Plenty of children and parents could be found in a livestock demonstration pavil- ion, where the Western States Beefmasters Breeders Association demonstrated a pregnancy ultrasound. The Beefmaster is a breed of cattle favored for its temperament

and extreme temperature hardiness. Petting a 17-year-old sleepy show cow named Miss Piggy who was adorned with a tutu and crown was Arianna Henisey, 8, of Lancaster. “We come every year to World Ag Expo,” said her mom, Heather. “We don’t miss it.” Asked if she liked the animals or equip- ment better, Arianna screamed, “All of it!” Preparations are underway for the next World Ag Expo, set for Feb. 13-15, 2024. (Lisa McEwen is a reporter in Tulare County. She may be reached at mcewenlisamarie@gmail.com.)

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February 22, 2023 Ag Alert 9

Researchers seek to safeguard Salinas Valley lettuce A stormy winter could portend anoth- er devastating year for lettuce farmers in the Salinas Valley. They saw approxi- mately $150 million in lost gross revenue in 2022 due to the impatiens necrotic spot virus and associated diseases, according to University of California Cooperative Extension farm advisors and other researchers. for the tiny insect, the Western flower thrips, that carries impatiens necrotic spot virus, or INSV. Resources assigned Pearsons to the area last November and hired Yu-Chen Wang in October as UCCE plant pathology ad- visor for the three counties.

“We don’t know if thrips are just so per- sistent and so stable in that pupal stage that maybe they will emerge unaffected,” said Kirsten Pearsons, UCCE integrated pest management farm advisor for Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Benito counties. “There’s just so much about their biology and ecology in the Salinas Valley that we just don’t know.” The mystery of thrips, INSV and soilborne diseases—namely Pythium wilt—is why UC Agriculture and Natural

But the rains could benefit growers, as thrips in the soil—during their inter- mediate stage of development—might be drowned in the waterlogged fields. As with so many aspects of the INSV crisis, the ultimate effects of flooded fields on thrips populations remain unknown, researcher say.

“They’re stepping in at a critical mo- ment,” said Richard Smith, the region’s UCCE vegetable crop production and weed science advisor, who retired in January af- ter a 37-year career. “They’ve gotten grants funded already, and that’s just incredible. They’re hitting the ground running.” Experienced in disease diagnosis and collaboration with growers and industry partners, Wang said her pathology back- ground—paired with Pearsons’ entomolo- gy expertise—will be crucial in addressing INSV and other diseases. One priority is untangling the dynamics of INSV and Pythium wilt co-occurrence, which is the subject of ongoing research by J.P. Dundore-Arias, a plant pathologist at California State University, Monterey Bay. While the vegetables may tolerate one disease or the other, their one-two punch often deals a lethal blow. “We have so many problems now, whether it’s fusarium (wilt) or Verticillium (wilt) or Pythium or INSV,” said Mark Mason, pest control advisor for Nature’s Reward, which primarily grows lettuces on 5,000 acres across the Salinas Valley. Mason said co-infections on his crops— sometimes with three or four diagnosed diseases—make it difficult to assign mon- etary damages to a specific pathogen, but he noted he has seen fields with 100% loss. According to the Grower-Shipper Association of Central California, about 11,500 acres were deemed not harvestable in 2022, representing 12% of total state let- tuce acreage. Given the gravity and complexity of the disease, Pearsons said she has been field- ing calls from growers seeking new and better solutions, ways to improve existing tools, techniques borrowed from other crop systems and additional biological or chemical means of control. Although there are a couple of pesticides that manage the disease-carrying thrips reasonably well, growers and researchers are worried about their diminishing effi- cacy due to overuse. Plus, they only con- stitute a short-term fix. “Managing the thrips will only reduce the amount of INSV that can get trans- mitted,” Pearsons explained. “You can kill 99.9% of the thrips, but you get one thrips that has INSV that enters a field, and now you have an infected lettuce plant. All of the thrips are going to come, and they can spread it from there; pesticide slows things down, but it’s not going to eliminate it.” Finding disease-tolerant lettuce cultivars is a more sustainable approach. Trials con- ducted last year by Smith, Wang and others identified several varieties that appeared to hold up well to Pythium and INSV. While additional research could maximize their potential benefit, Wang said even the har- dier cultivars will lose their resistance over time, and a multi-layered INSV strategy with “integrated management tools” is crucial. “We realized, when this thing started See LETTUCE, Page 18

Recent rains might mean more weeds, which serve as overwintering “reservoirs”

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10 Ag Alert February 22, 2023

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