Federal Milk Marketing in CA May Increase Prices

Federal Milk Marketing Order to Help CA Dairies

By Melissa Moe, Associate Editor

California is getting closer to being included in the federal milk marketing order. The state has been operating on its own state order for decades. Up until the past few years, most producers have been content in operating under a state system. However, recently California has been failing to keep up with prices that are being paid for milk in other parts of the country.

Rob Vandenheuval is the Manager of the Milk Producers Council, with offices in Ontario (CA), Bakersfield and Turlock. The Milk Producers Council is a nonprofit that represents the California dairy industry.

“We’ve made a lot of progress, and we’re looking forward to, hopefully, an announcement out of the USDA sometime early this year. The next step would be the first draft of what that order would look like and the opportunity for the industry to then comment on it,” Vandenheuval said.

Producers believe that inclusion in to the federal order is going to result in California producers getting a milk price that’s more in line with the prices that are paid all over the country. This level playing field will help producers compete in the national market.

“We’re competing. We’re not on an island. We are part of the U.S. National Domestic Dairy Industry, and we compete with dairy farmers in Arizona and Washington and Wisconsin and Florida and New York. So, we need to update our regulations that oversee our milk pricing to keep them in line with what’s going on in the rest of the country. Rather than try to mimic what the federal order’s doing, it seems prudent to actually join the federal order system,” Vandenheuval said.

However, inclusion into the Federal Milk Marketing order may still be a long way off. California’s inclusion may be many producers’ saving grace, but it may not come soon enough to save producers that are struggling to stay in business today.

“We’re not going to get on that level playing field we talked about with federal order until sometime in the 2018. There’s a lengthy process and a vote, and then, even once it’s implemented, once it’s approved, it has to be implemented here in California, so that is more than a year away before that all gets shaken out,” Vandenheuval said.

The end of 2016 saw milk prices in an upswing, and many producers are hopeful that the rise in prices may be enough to keep them in business for the time being.

“Feed costs have been modest, and so with some additional strength in the milk prices, I think we could at least see a 2017 that is profitable as opposed to what 2015 and 2016 represented,” Vandenheuval said.

2021-05-12T11:17:10-07:00January 25th, 2017|

Recharging Aquifers Using Floodwaters

 

Floodwaters Could Recharge Aquifer

By Brian German, Associate Broadcaster

Last October, the Almond Board of California announced new partnerships with Sustainable Conservation, Land IQ and UC Davis researchers to look at ways floodwaters could recharge Central Valley groundwater aquifers. Daniel Mountjoy is the Director of Resource Stewardship for Sustainable Conservation, an organization helping to solve some of the challenges facing our land, air and, most importantly, water.

Mountjoy explained the idea behind the partnership: “The concept is, ‘Can we capture the available peak flows when they’re available from surface supply and recharge the groundwater so that it’s available during dry years when surface flows are under stress from environmental needs and other demands for it?’ ”

The thought is to use surface irrigation water during times of availability in order to flood almond orchards to recharge the aquifers.  This would not only help growers during times of drought, but also benefit those with limited access to surface irrigation.  Mountjoy has found some success in their research.  The initial focus will be on sandy soils, where the infiltration is really fast.

The concept behind the effort has already shown a level of success on a smaller scale.  “In 2011, Don Cameron at Terranova Farms in Western Fresno County captured 3,000 acre feet of water on 1,000 acres of sandy farm land. He infiltrated on pistachios, grapes and alfalfa fields in some fallow land during winter, as well as well into June and July on some of those crops,” Mountjoy said.

Partnerships like these are needed as California begins to fall under the full implementation of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act.  “What we’re doing with the Almond Board right now is looking for sites in the Sacramento Valley, because there’s more likelihood that we’re going to have water supply there to test the concept. Both UC Davis and Sustainable Conservation are out working with growers,” Mountjoy said.

UC Davis will be working on the crop health aspect, while Sustainable Conservation will be looking into how much water can be put on different crops and what types of management compatibility there is with the crop.  Once a significant amount of data is collected, the next step in the process will be looking towards how to further incentivize the method for growers.  “Any time you recharge an aquifer, it becomes everyone’s aquifer. There’s still not a system in place to credit landowners for the benefit they are providing to their neighbors and to other irrigation pumpers,” Mountjoy said.

There are over one million acres of almonds stretching roughly 500 miles from Red Bluff to the south end of the San Joaquin Valley. Nearly two-thirds of that land is considered moderately good or better in its ability to percolate water into the underlying aquifers.  “We have to prove the viability that you can actually do this on farm land across extensive acres, because that’s really the cheapest solution, rather than buying land, dedicating it to recharge basins and managing it that way without production of crops,” Mountjoy said.

2017-01-24T15:09:38-08:00January 24th, 2017|

Uniqueness of California Wheat Industry

California Wheat Growers Farm Every Class of Wheat

By Brian German, Associate Broadcaster

Wheat is a primary crop for many producers, along with being a valuable rotational crop that helps manage disease and improve the condition of the soil. Wheat production is an important aspect of the economics of farming in California.  Nick Matteis is the Executive Director for the California Association of Wheat Growers.  Having finished planting last month, California wheat growers are pleased with the amount of rainfall already coming to California.

“Soil moisture is key for having a good start on the wheat-growing season. … It’s the best start you could ask for as far as growing season goes,” Matteis said.

The average wheat production in California is 1.1 million tons annually and is most often used within the state for both human and animal consumption. Nearly a quarter of that total is exported. Between 2010 and 2014, an average of 47 percent of the common wheat planted in California was used for silage, forage, green chop or hay.    California wheat also has some characteristics that sets it apart other states.

“We have both irrigated and non-irrigated acreage in this state which is sort of unique compared to most other wheat-growing regions in the country. Most of it’s rain-fed; what we call dryland farming,” Matteis said.

The irrigated wheat acreage in the state also provides “the highest yields in the country, like tons per acre versus bushels, which is how most of the other wheat producing states would measure it,” Matteis said. This quality also contributes to the production of high protein wheat.

California growers planted close to 470,000 acres of wheat in 2015, with a farm value of nearly $125 million for grain produced.  It appears that 2016 saw an increase in plantings. “Right now, I think the guesstimate is somewhere between 500,000 and 600,000 acres are planted in wheat,” Matteis said.

The two main types of wheat grown in California are hard red winter wheat and durum wheat, but growers also produce multiple other varieties.  “We grow every class of wheat, which we’re one of the only states that actually does that. You’re talking Hard Red Winter, Hard Red Spring, Hard White, Soft White. We have the Desert Durum which is really popular for the pasta makers in the world,” Matteis said.

The hard red varieties are classified as winter wheat because of the timing of when it enters the market.  Winter wheat is grown throughout the state, with the majority of production coming from areas located in the San Joaquin Valley, where Fresno, Kern, Kings and Tulare counties dominate production.

Desert Durum is a registered certification mark owned by the Arizona Grain Research and Promotion Council and the California Wheat Commission.  Durum is the hardest of all the wheat varieties, with a high protein content and white bran. Its most often used to make pasta, couscous and some types of Mediterranean breads.

A significant portion of the state’s common wheat is used for milling into general purpose or bread flour.  California also happens to have the largest milling capacity in the U.S., due to having the most mills in one state.

2017-01-22T19:11:41-08:00January 22nd, 2017|

Water Board Plan Would Devastate Farmers

Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan Could Devastate Farmers

 

By Brian German, Associate Broadcaster

The State Water Resources Control Board held a public hearing recently to listen to input from the public on its Bay-Delta Water Quality Control Plan that would devastate famers around Modesto and Turlock.  Casey Hashimoto is the General Manager of the Turlock Irrigation District.  He was on hand to voice his doubts about the water board’s proposal.

Casey Hashimoto

Casey Hashimoto

“I just wanted to least give them a flavor of some of the big concerns that would impact TID in our region,” Hashimoto said.

The proposal calls for at least a 40 percent increase of unimpaired flows on the Tuolumne, Merced and Stanislaus rivers each year from February through June.  Hashimoto noted that one analysis indicates that if the proposed plan were in place during both the 2014 and 2015 irrigation seasons, Turlock farmers would have received zero water.  At the meeting, Hashimoto voiced some of the major concerns regarding the proposal.

“We’re an electric utility, so obviously the hydropower impacts us. … I only picked like three that are kind of high profile that really impact our area. Certainly, hydropower, greenhouse gas issues – there’s a whole number of things that we can go on and on about,” Hashimoto said.

The reason behind the specifics in the proposal is to provide “reasonable protection of fish and wildlife beneficial uses in the Watershed and its three eastside salmon-bearing tributaries” located in the Lower San Joaquin River.  However, the Water Board’s own research shows the average increase of Chinook salmon is a little more than one thousand fish each year. Because of this negligible increase, Hashimoto believes the proposal is neither reasonable nor beneficial.  It’s also important to note that most salmon, as much as 98 percent in some years, are being eaten by non-native species such as bass before they exit the Tuolumne River.

Hashimoto noted the types of commodities that will be negatively impacted if the Water Board’s plan comes into effect. “The biggest percentage wise of our 145,ooo irrigated acres is almonds right now, so it’s about a third of the acreage, but we also have a lot of forage crops … so we have corn, oats, alfalfa – that makes up a lot of big percentage of our acreage,” he said.

As a 30-year veteran of the District, Hashimoto was appointed to his current position in 2011 by the TID Board of Directors. Before becoming a part of the Turlock Irrigation District, Hashimoto was involved in a family farming operation along with other ag-related businesses, so he knows that family farms play a big role in Turlock agriculture.  “We have approximately 5,000 family farms in the district. And we’re not big corporate farms. We’re like less than 30 acres,” Hashimoto said.

2017-03-16T20:45:24-07:00January 20th, 2017|

2016 California Winegrape Crop

DiBuduo: 2016 Winegrape Crop Up

 By Brian German, Associate Broadcaster

Allied Grape Growers is a California winegrape marketing cooperative that was formed in 1951 and now represents nearly 600 growers throughout the state.  Nat DiBuduo is the President and CEO of the cooperative.  His family has a long history in agriculture in the San Joaquin Valley and were the first ones to grow varietal winegrapes in the area.  He noted that 2016 was a pretty good year for grapes.

Nat DiBuduo

Nat DiBuduo

“We had probably about 3.8 to 3.9 million tons crushed in the state overall. … We had good demand and good pricing in many parts of the state. The San Joaquin Valley probably was challenged more than it should have been, pricing-wise,” DiBuduo said.

Allied is based in Fresno and has established relationships with multiple buyers that allow them to market their members’ winegrapes to more than 100 outlets every year.  Collectively, members of the cooperative currently farm close to 30,000 acres, made up of more than 40 major varietals.  “We were down in many varieties. Thompson seedless for raisins and/or concentrate, production was down. Ruby reds were down, but some of the other varietals were average to slightly under average,” DiBuduo said.

DiBuduo has been with Allied Grape Growers for nearly 17 years. Under his leadership, the cooperative has expanded more than 20 percent. When asked about the most important aspects to consider when evaluating how the grape industry did overall in a given year, DiBuduo said that, “we have to have quality and production and price. It’s a combination of all three – and you’ve got to watch your production costs.”

One of the major concerns for growers this year across all industries was the continually increasing cost of labor.  “Everyone’s looking at more mechanization, and it’s not fair because we’re putting farm laborers out of work, and we’re depending on the farm labor force and we need them. We need to treat them right, and we need to take care of them,” DiBuduo said.

The new policies and pay rates were advertised as benefitting the farm workers.  In practice, however, the reality is that employees will end up making less money in the long run, DiBuduo said.  “They want to put in the extra hours, and the farm workers are not going to be able to. It’s going to hurt the farm workers,” he explained.

Historically, during harvest and other busy times during the year, farm workers would have the opportunity to work up to 60 hours in a week.  Legislators introduced a bill that was passed, limiting farm workers to 40 hours a week.  “I’ve always said the biggest pest we’ve got this year has been the legislators and regulators out of Sacramento. … We can control the pests in the field, but we haven’t been able to control Sacramento,” DiBuduo said.

2017-01-17T15:44:59-08:00January 17th, 2017|

Farm Advisor Culumber is in Awe

Catherine Culumber is Impressed by Big Production

By Patrick Cavanaugh, Farm News Director

Catherine Culumber is a UC Cooperative Extension Orchard Crops Farm Advisor in Fresno County. She has been on the job since June 30, and we wanted to catch up with her since she’s gotten her feet on the ground.

catherine_culumber

Catherine Culumber, UC Cooperative Extension Farm Advisor, Fresno County.

She came to the position with a Masters in Plant Science and a PhD in Soil Science.

“I’m so happy to be here, and it’s been great to get to know the network of people working in the University of California Cooperative Extension.  There is endless amounts of resources and wealth of knowledge that I feel really fortunate to have.”

She is working with almond, walnut and pistachio growers, with the majority of her calls from almond producers.

Culumber was surprised with the vastness of Fresno County and all the production here. “My PhD research was in orchard systems at Utah State University, and it didn’t nearly prepare me for the infinite acreage that I saw upon arriving here,” she said.

She said that she has met some very innovative growers, and they all seem to be doing the best they can for the family farm.

“I think that farmers are very adaptable, and I can see that in recent years with the decrease in water availability, most people have adapted and gone to different micro-irrigation systems to increase their water use efficiency,” Culumber said.  “The farmers are working hard to not only be sustainable, but they’re smart business people as well.”

2016-12-27T12:38:59-08:00December 27th, 2016|

Record Enrollment at UC Davis College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences

UC Davis College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences Really Rocks!

By Patrick Cavanaugh, Farm News Director

 

Helene Dillard, dean, UC Davis College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, is pleased with the big numbers of students attending the top-ranking College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Helene Dillard, dean, UC Davis College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences

Helene Dillard, dean, UC Davis College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences

“It’s really rocking,” said Dillard. “We’re doing very, very well. We have one of the largest numbers of incoming students ever in the entire university. Our College has peaked out its 7,300 undergraduates. We’ve never had that many at one time.”

Why the increased interest in studying agriculture? Dillard said, “We think what’s moving that needle is that everyone is interested in food. They are interested in agriculture.  And they are really interested in that intersection between agriculture and the environment. We have a record number of students that just cannot wait to come on board. We are really thrilled with how smart they are and how eager they are to learn.”

Among the many courses offered by the College, Dillard said Animal Science classes are probably among the most popular. “But of course, beer classes and the coffee class are really popular too. But right now, I’m seeing tremendous interest in agricultural economics and in animal science, to become veterinarians and ranchers, plus specific academic interest in poultry and sheep.”

“Again, those are all things that UC Davis does, so we’re really excited. We’re also seeing a lot of interest in plant sciences, more on that sustainable and food systems and our viticulture and enology program’s growing as well.

Recent Graduate Program Rankings for UC Davis College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences and related disciplines include:
  • 1st in agricultural sciences (Thomson Reuters ScienceWatch 2011) 
  • 2nd in agriculture and forestry (QS World University Rankings 2016)
  • 2nd in agriculture worldwide (U.S. News & World Report’s “2016 Best Global Universities”)
  • 1st in ecology and the environment (Thomson Reuters ScienceWatch 2011) 
  • 1st in food science and nutrition (Thomson Reuters ScienceWatch 2010)
  • 1st in plant science (U.S. News & World Report’s “2016 Best Global Universities”)
  • 1st in animal science (U.S. News & World Report’s “2016 Best Global Universities”)
  • 1st for veterinary science (QS World University Rankings 2016)
  • 1st among the nation’s veterinary schools (U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Graduate Schools” 2016)
  • Between 1st and 15th among 44 programs in nutritional biology (National Research Council 2010)
  • 4th in environment/ecology (U.S. News & World Report’s “2016 Best Global Universities”)
  • Between 1st and 7th in Entomology among 28 programs (National Research Council 2010)
  • Between 5th and 29th among 116 programs in plant biology (National Research Council 2010) 
  • Between 7th and 42th among 116 programs in plant pathology (National Research Council 2010)
  • 13th in environmental engineering worldwide (QS World University Rankings 2016)
  • 29th in environmental engineering worldwide (2016 Global Ranking of Academic Subjects, ShanghaiRankings)

(Source:  University of California, Davis, Graduate academic program rankings.)

UC Davis College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences

2021-05-12T11:17:11-07:00December 7th, 2016|

Livestock Economics for Western Producers

Livestock Economics: What Attributes Bring Higher Prices?

 

By Laurie Greene, Editor

 

At the 100th Annual California Cattlemen’s Association (CCA) & California CattleWomen’s (CCW) Convention last week in Sparks, Nevada, Tina Saitone, cooperative extension specialist, UC Davis Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, described her research on rangeland and livestock economics. “Primarily, my focus has been on cattle — beef cattle to date — but I’ve also started some projects recently with sheep producers and the predator interactions they have specifically with coyotes. I am examining whether or not [producers] can use nonlethal depredation methods to mitigate those losses.”

“Right now, I have been concentrating on marketing characteristics of cattle,” she said. “I study those practices employed by producers, such as when they wean their cattle; how many vaccinations they have; whether they market [their cattle] as natural, grass-fed, or organic; and the impact that [these choices] have on their prices.”

Tina Saitone

Tina Saitone, cooperative extension specialist, UC Davis Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics

Interestingly, Saitone and her colleagues have mainly been using satellite video auction data. “Western Video Market Auction actually held their auction this month here in Sparks, Nevada because they can do it at different locations all the time. So, we use that data to figure out cattle characteristics and then determine the marginal impact that each of those characteristics has on price,” said Saitone.

Characteristics such breed, frame score, flesh score, and weight, are definitely controls in Saitone’s research model because those are main drivers of price. “But what we want to do is figure out — holding all those things constant —if a producer raises their cattle natural, what kind of premium does that bring them? We’re really looking for that incremental difference.”

One might expect certain factors such as natural or organic, to deserve a higher price, but there always has to be a buyer. “Right now, when prices are low relative to 2014 and early 2015, ranchers do have some opportunities to get some higher prices in what we would call niche markets. Consumers are increasingly demanding a wider range of characteristics. They want grass-fed. They want organic. They want natural, no hormones. All of these are what we would call credence attributes. If you go to the grocery store and you taste a steak, you probably don’t know if it was raised natural.”

Accordingly, the industry has third-party certification to assure consumers that when they pay a higher price for that product they are actually getting those traits. “Farmers actually have the ability to fill some of those niche markets that consumers have created with their demand and possibly get higher prices than just selling into traditional commercial channels.”

The data that Saitone has been looking at from Western Video is focused on Western states, including California. Certainly, location places Western producers at a persistent disadvantage because the majority of the processing capacity is in the central part of the country, with Nebraska being the hub. Saitone said, “When you think about cattle being raised in California having to be transported all the way to Nebraska, some 1600 or 1700 miles, not only do you have the cost associated with that transportation, but you also have shrink; you have mortality.

California Cattlemen’s Association (CCA)

California CattleWomen

UC Davis Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics

2021-05-12T11:17:11-07:00December 6th, 2016|

Postcard Campaign to Stop Additional Pesticide Regulations Near Schools

Call to Growers: Join Postcard Campaign to Stop Additional Pesticide Regulations Near Schools before Friday, Dec. 9

 

By Brian German, Associate Broadcaster

 

Proposed DPR Regulations

“The proposed California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) further restricting growers from applying crop protection products near schools is unnecessary,” noted Kelly Covello, president of the Almond Alliance of California, which advocates and lobbies for the almond industry.

“Basically, this proposed rule is going to add a layer of unnecessary regulation. It proposes restricting pesticide applications within a quarter mile of schools and daycare centers between Mondays and Fridays, 6am to 6pm,” said Covello. She noted there are already regulations in place to protect both the community and the applicator.

Likewise, Colleen Cecil, executive director, Butte County Farm Bureau, said, “We’re very confident in the regulation that currently exists and the responsibility that landowners take when it comes to spraying anywhere. There are rules in place and these rules work.”

“The environmental community has done a bang-em-up job at fear-mongering, period. They believe they can take pictures of kids next to fields and make the farmer the bad guy. Nothing can be further from the truth,” Cecil said.

“Nothing is more important than the health and safety of people,” noted Ceil. “As stewards of the land, farmers already do everything in their power to mitigate risks involved in agriculture and the application of pesticide is no exception.”  Cecil added, “The puzzling part of the proposed regulation is that DPR have stated themselves that they were ‘unable to quantify the benefits’ and that ‘any health benefits of the prohibitions are unknown.'”

 

 

Postcard campaign to stop additional pesticide regulation near schools dpr

Postcard campaign to stop additional pesticide regulation near schools

Call for Growers to Take Action

“We have joined California Farm Bureau Federation (CFBF) and other organizations that are working on this issue,” said Covello. “One of the main calls to action for grower engagement with DPR is CFBF’s postcard campaign. If you would like postcards to share with your grower network, please email staff@almondalliance.org or simply print from the Postcard PDF document and mail directly to DPR (contact information is on the last page of the PDF document).   A high volume of input will be critical.

Growers can also sign and share CFBF’s petition. Farm Bureau will deliver the petitions to DPR before the comment period closes on December 9.

“This [proposed regulation] really is unnecessary,” said Covello. “There is no science. There is no injury or illness that has sparked the need for new regulations. We are really hoping we can get our growers engaged by sending in a postcard or sending in comments. Again, growers can contact the Almond Alliance by email at staff@almondalliance.org and by phone at (209) 300-7140.

“We would be happy to get you a postcard,” Covello said. “We can also email it to anyone. So please help us in this fight to stop unnecessary regulation.”

Almond Alliance of California

Butte County Farm Bureau

California Department of Pesticide Regulation

California Farm Bureau Federation

2021-05-12T11:05:43-07:00December 5th, 2016|

Modifying Rootstocks to Fight, Prevent Pierce’s Disease

Scientists Help Grapevines Double-team Pierce’s Disease

By Patrick Cavanaugh, Farm News Director

 

The glassy-winged sharpshooter is a flying insect that vectors a fatal grapevine malady known as Pierce’s Disease. Scientists are conducting volumes of research to fight this insect and reduce disease infection on vines. Moreover, scientists are studying methods to prevent the spread of Pierce’s Disease on winegrapes in California entirely.

California grapevine rootstock

California grapevine

Ken Freeze is the outreach coordinator for the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) Pierce’s Disease Glassy-winged Sharpshooter Board (PD/GWSS) as well as an account director at Brown-Miller Communications. On behalf of the PD/GWSS Board, Freeze communicates with winegrape growers who pay the Board an assessment to conduct research. Freeze explained ongoing research and how research funds are being spent.

FIGHTING PIERCE’S DISEASE

Could introducing pectin into grapevines, help prevent that bacteria, Xylella fastidiosa, from entering the vine? Freeze said, in a recent field trial, “scientists found five different genes that when placed in a rootstock, put either a molecule or a protein up into an unmodified scion that in one way basically stops the bacteria from moving around,” he said.

“For instance, one of the genes comes from the pear,” said Freeze. “I think we’re all familiar with pectin. A lot of plants produce pectin naturally; grapevines are not one of them. By modifying a rootstock with this pear gene, when the bug comes and injects the bacteria into the plant, the pectin literally gums it up and it can’t move around.”

An unmodified plant injected with bacteria by the glassy-winged sharpshooter, turns to another strategy. “When the bacteria population reaches a certain point, [the plant] releases a protein that causes the bad bacteria to stop moving around. However, in grapevines, it is too late when that signal comes; the plant is already dead. By modifying the rootstock to automatically generate that same protein when the bacteria enters the plant, the bacteria shuts down,” said Freeze.

winegrapes fight Pierce's Disease

Winegrapes

Freeze said scientists are seeing that these strategies are working quite well. “What scientists are actually doing now is stacking these genes, two by two, in the rootstock. Now each root will produce two different ways to shut down the bacteria. If for some reason in the future the bacteria figures out a way to overcome one of those ways, chances are it won’t figure out how to overcome both of them.”

PREVENTING PIERCE’S DISEASE

Dr. Andy Walker, a UC Davis professor and geneticist in the Department of Viticulture and Enology, has been working for years on rootstock that could block Pierce’s Disease from entering the vine. “He’s already released 14 different varieties to the Foundation Plant Services as well as three different rootstock that are resistant to Pierce’s Disease,” said Freeze. “The best varieties will be released to nurseries probably next year. Then from there [nurseries will] basically start growing them and taking orders from winegrowers.”

Freeze noted that other field trials are continuing. “We have field trials for a benign strain of Pierce’s Disease. It is like giving plants a smallpox vaccination, only it is the bacteria. That is on its way to commercialization. In the future, you might actually order your new vines from the nursery pre-infected with the bacteria that would normally cause [Pierce’s Disease]. But in this case, it will not cause it,” said Freeze.

CDFA Pierce’s Disease Glassy-winged Sharpshooter Board (PD/GWSS)

CDFA Pierce’s Disease Glassy-winged Sharpshooter Board (PD/GWSS) Interactive Forum

CDFA Pierce’s Disease Control Program

UC Davis Department of Viticulture and Enology

UC Davis Foundation Plant Services

2021-05-12T11:02:00-07:00December 2nd, 2016|

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