Growing the Valley

Phoebe got the chance to interview former orchard systems advisor Dani Lightle on band canker. There’s a lot we don’t know about infections, but she shares what we know about survival, disease latency, and ages of infection. She also runs through some past and ongoing research. Mention of a trade name is not an endorsement or recommendation. Thank you to the Almond Board of California and the Cali...

Fruit removal is a serious issue in table olive production, namely because the fruit are harvested before they are ripe. ACC, an ethylene precursor, has the potential to improve fruit removal (please note that the commercial product is not registered in olives yet and cannot legally be used). Becky Wheeler-Dykes, an advisor in Glenn, Colusa, and Tehama Counties, has been examining its efficacy in...

Anyone who has an irrigation system knows that it needs to be maintained for peak performance. Anyone who has an irrigation system also knows that almost everything seems to be more important in the moment than flushing those lines or checking pressures. A distribution uniformity test is a good way to assess the health of your irrigation system, but it isn’t always easy to figure out if the cost o...

In 2026 the Sacramento Valley prune industry is experiencing high fruit sets, high GDH 30 , and a high cost of fruit thinning because of very diesel prices . Jaime Ott (UCCE Tehama), Domena Agyeman (UCCE Butte), and Franz Niederholzer (UCCE Colusa) break down prune grower crop management considerations given this tricky set of circumstances. Upcoming Orchard Meetings: The Almond Board of Californi...

The 3rd Generation RAVT recently wrapped up, and Luke, Phoebe, and Roger sit down one final time to discuss the findings. While the overall results are discussed, they also discuss each of the strengths and weaknesses of the 13 remaining varieties. It’s a long episode, check out the transcript if you are interested in something specific to get the timestamp. Episode transcript The views, thoughts,...

Giulia Marino and Pat J Brown (both UC Davis) have been examining another potential influence on polyphenol deposition in pistachio: whether the pollen source impacts deposition rates. In this episode, Giulia shares her results, as well as some other unexpected findings from pistachio xenia (the effect of the pollen source on the fruit). Episode transcript Thank you to the Almond, Pistachio, Prune...

Dr. Or Sperling (ARO-Volcani) and Zac Ellis (OFI) discuss the exciting 2025 results from their proactive irrigation scheduling application in California almond orchards. You can ask questions and provide feedback to the researchers at: Or Sperling: orsp@agri.gov.il  or +972 52 6278189  Zac Ellis: Zac.ellis@ofi.com (559) 303-0599 Maciej Zwieniecki: mzwienie@ucdavis.edu Come to an upcoming...

Drs. Or Sperling (ARO-Volcani) and Maciej Zwieniecki (UC Davis) discuss their groundbreaking research on almond irrigation. That research has culminated in an exciting irrigation scheduling application . We also get an overview of almond production in Israel. The UC Davis Carbohydrate Observatory is also referenced. Have feedback or questions for the researchers? Or Sperling: orsp@agri.gov.il &nbs...

Polyphenol deposition in pistachio kernels, also known as internal kernel discoloration, is a harmless phenotype of pistachios, where dark coloration appears on the internal surface of the pistachio cotyledons (the two halves of the kernel). It started showing up widely in the late 2010s/early 2020s, and researchers Georgia Drakakaki, Phoebe Gordon, and Minmin Wang have been investigating it from...

Our concerns about how climate change will affect agriculture don’t just extend to crop performance; pest species will also be affected. In this week’s episode, Lynn Sosnoskie returns to talk about implications for weed management. Episode transcript Thank you to the Almond, Pistachio, Prune, and Walnut Boards of California for their kind donations. Thank you to Muriel Gordon for the music. The vi...

Almond production creates a lot of byproduct. While there are some alternative uses for almond hulls and shells, like livestock feed and bedding, there is still not enough demand to utilize all the biomass created every year. Some growers have been accepting almond hulls and shells from processors to help them get rid of these stockpiles, and using them as mulch in orchards. Ellie Andrews examined...

Today on the podcast we’ll be discussing Red Leaf Blotch a new invasive disease in California almond production. I want to offer my sincere apologies to listeners and to the Trouillas Lab for not getting this episode out promptly for maximum usefulness in the 2026 season. Although we are still in the red leaf blotch susceptibility window at the time of podcast airing – there’s not currently any ra...

Like many fruiting orchard crops, olives benefit from boron fertilization. Elizabeth Fichtner (UCCE Tulare County) goes over how olives benefit from fertilization, as well as how to manage boron in olive orchards. Episode transcript You can sign up for the Rice Production Workshop here . Find out more about upcoming meetings in the San Joaquin Valley (scroll to the bottom) and the Sacramento Valle...

The pistachio hull is critical for protecting the kernel. Insect pests can’t get through it until it begins to break down. However, it is known that hull integrity can change across years - some years hulls stay intact until harvest, and in other years it begins to break down earlier. Shuxiao Zhang, who used to be a student at UC Davis and is now working as a postdoctoral scholar at Stanford, and...

Leslie Holland, Assistant Professor at University of Wisconsin, Madison, shares the results of some of her work examining fungicides to suppress Botryosphaeria infections in almond pruning wounds as a Ph. D. student at UC Davis. Leslie shares what works, as well as the key tip to dealing with fungal infections in orchard crops: preventing the infection from occurring in the first place. Podcast tr...

Phoebe sits down with Elizabeth Fichtner to discuss the biology of pistachio bloom, how it impacts orchard design, and why picking the correct male pollinator is so important. She also goes over the research on artificial pollination of pistachio and why it may only be useful in very specific circumstances. In this episode, Elizabeth mentions that dust can cause parthenocarpy in pistachios; we pos...

One concern about growing cover crops is that they might compete with the orchard for water. This is an additional concern if you let cover crops continue to grow after bloom. Kosana Suvocarev (UC Davis) has been looking into this and has found some surprising results. Podcast transcript Find out more about upcoming meetings in the San Joaquin Valley (scroll to the bottom) and the Sacramento Valle...

Phoebe and Sam Sandovol Solis discuss the water outlook for 2026. They also discuss some things that everyone can do to maximize water infiltration. If you are interested in finding out more about groundwater recharge , you should check to see if your orchard block has favorable soil textures and is in a good location for it here . More information on applications for recharge can be found here ....

Self-fertile Nonpareil has the potential to be a gamechanger for California almond growers. Both Sierra Gold Nursery ( FruitionOne™ ) and Burchell Nursery ( Nonpareil SC+ ) announced in late 2024 their partnerships with biotech companies to develop a self-fertile Nonpareil. Both nurseries plan to begin delivering these trees to growers in 2027. However, many questions remain. In this episode Reid...

Self-fertile Nonpareil has the potential to be a gamechanger for California almond growers. Both Sierra Gold Nursery ( FruitionOne™ ) and Burchell Nursery ( Nonpareil SC+ ) announced in late 2024 their partnerships with biotech companies to develop a self-fertile Nonpareil. Both nurseries plan to begin delivering these trees to growers in 2027. However, many questions remain. In this episode Tom B...

Dr. Themis Michailides (UC Davis Plant Pathologist at the Kearney Ag Center) provides a critical update on his lab’s research on the biology and management of walnut mold. An article that is episode was based can be found at: sacvalleyorchards.com Mention of a pesticide does not constitute a pesticide recommendation. Always follow the pesticide label. Find out more at ipm.ucanr.edu The views, thou...

Facing tightening SGMA regulations and the specter of future droughts, how should we be designing the almond orchard of the future? On the podcast, Franz Niederholzer discusses his idea of a test almond orchard at the Nickels Soil Lab with different rootstocks provided reduced irrigation treatments from planting onward. Should a grower provide full irrigation to fewer acres, or reduced irrigation...

Researchers have been conducting almond irrigation and other studies at the Nickels Soil Lab in Arbuckle, CA for over 50 years! On the podcast, Franz Niederholzer revisited research on early microirrigation, the consequences of late season drought in young almonds, and the implications of one-year of season-long drought in mature almonds. Dialing in irrigation is the greatest task for California o...

Environmental bud failure showed up in almonds in a big way in 2025. From a subtle delay of leafing in parts of Nonpareil canopies throughout the Central Valley to some orchards in the northern Sacramento Valley with only half leaf out. This disorder also called leafing failure, severely affected many growers in the northern Sacramento Valley. Dr. Tom Gradziel (UC Davis) gets into the complexities...

If you work in the almond industry, you likely know non-infectious bud failure (NBF) is bad news. However, do you understand why NBF happens, and that we’re likely to see it on future almond varieties, not just on Carmel? Tom Gradziel discusses the science behind NBF and the work UC researchers together with nurseries have done to make massive gains in addressing the problem. You can lead more abo...