From The Director
Organic strawberries, almonds continue to grow
Organic strawberry growers in California declared total sales of $17.3 million on over 1200 acres statewide in 2003, ranking fourth among all of the state's organic fresh commodities, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture's (CDFA) Organic Program. This was the most highly productive year on record for this growing industry segment, which now represents approximately 3% of industry value. More than 160 organic strawberry growers are registered with the California Organic Program.
UC SAREP, as a technical representative to the California Organic Program's Advisory Board and with the support of the department's "Buy California" campaign, sponsored two short courses for California organic strawberry producers in February 2003 (Salinas) and January 2004 (Ventura). Over 150 growers, nursery operators, advisors, and other agricultural professionals attended the short courses, where UC, USDA, and industry researchers and specialists reviewed the science-based information available to guide organic strawberry production practices. Growers interested in organic strawberry production will be encouraged to hear that a growing body of research exists and that researchers are making progress in documenting and searching for solutions to production problems. Some highlights from the short courses include:
Rotational sequences with cover crops and vegetable crops, especially broccoli and related plants, build organic matter, reduce weeds, and reduce soil borne disease and are essential to organic strawberry production.
Although compost remains the most important source of organic matter for production, inoculated compost and root inoculants did not increase organic strawberry yield, although some promising research on bacterial inoculants has been reported and research continues on this topic.
An organic strawberry crop typically uses approximately 100 lbs. of nitrogen/acre, but supplemental nitrogen fertilization from organic sources is commonly used due to the unpredictability of soil nitrogen mineralization from other organic sources. There is a critical need to make more efficient use of nitrogen sources for organic production.
Three UC cultivars, Aromas, Pacific, and Seascape, were the highest yielding cultivars in tests in organic systems. Additional non-UC cultivars also have performed well in organic production.
Weed control remains the major pest control expense for organic strawberry growers. Corn gluten meal and ozone treatments did not provide adequate weed or disease control. Black, brown, and dark green plastic mulches give the highest weed control and marketable fruit in production tests. Research continues on methods of pre-plant reduction of weeds for organic
Alfalfa trap crops on field edges accumulated 5-10 times the number of lygus bugs (a key cosmetic pest on the Central Coast) when compared with control strawberry rows. Trap crop management with tractor-mounted vacuums reduces lygus bug populations in the trap crop by 75-85% on a weekly basis. Research continues on the assessment of trap crop management and reduction of damage in organic strawberries.
New York research has found that gray mold is less of a problem in organic production systems than in conventional. The mold can be reduced by using clean planting material, growing berries away from coastal fog, removing diseased leaves and fruit, and using lower density plantings.
Price premiums available for fruit, especially early in the season, are an important factor in calculating profitability. A cost-of- production study calculated that at median organic production levels, profitable organic production can begin at a average price of $8.00-$8.50 per 12-pound tray. Organic production is not profitable at prices below this level.
Economic performance depends on numerous factors, including variety, climate, and price and demand; however, all participants agreed that organic strawberry production requires increased management skill and organizational ability, especially in the early stages of conversion to these practices.
Many practical research questions remain concerning controlling and reducing costs of production, more efficient use of resources, and future markets. With funding from CDFA, UC SAREP is now editing the short course notebook materials and assembling the Organic Strawberry Production Manual, expected to be published by UC in 2005.
Almonds
Organic almond growers in California declared total sales of approximately $7 million on nearly 3,600 acres statewide in 2003, ranking ninth among all organic fresh commodities, according to CDFA's Organic Program. Organic almonds, a segment that now represents approximately 1% of this growing commodity segment, also had a highly productive year, with more than 100 organic almond growers registered with the state's organic program.
In response to the growing organic almond market, UC SAREP, UC Cooperative Extension Madera County, California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF) and New Era Farm Service sponsored the first day-long workshop for the state's organic almond producers at the Madera County Conference Center in June. Over 80 growers, advisors, and other agricultural professionals attended the workshop, where UC researchers and industry representatives presented current science-based and regulatory information available for organic almond production. Speakers at the workshop included SAREP director Sean L. Swezey (Overview of Organics in California); Jake Lewin, CCOF marketing director, and Jessica Hamburger, CCOF program director (Organic Market Expansion and Opportunity); Karen Klonsky, UC Davis agricultural and resource economics Cooperative Extension specialist (Costs and Returns from Organic Almond Production); Ray Green, CDFA Organic Program manager (Regulation, Certification and Allowable Materials); Roland Meyer, UC Davis Cooperative Extension soil specialist (Fertility Management in Organic Almonds); and Kent Daane, UC Berkeley/Kearney Ag Center Cooperative Extension entomologist (Insect Management in Organic Almonds). Madera County farm advisor and program organizer Brent Holtz gave an overview of production methods, orchard establishment issues, weed control, and disease management practices. An afternoon field trip to CCOF-certified Sherman Thomas Ranch where Mike Braga discussed organic production practices with the participants, rounded out the highly informative productive workshop.
Excellent questions and discussion characterized the workshop from start to finish; it is clear a large body of research-based information exists that can greatly assist organic almond producers. It is anticipated that the workshop materials will be assembled and published in a UC SAREP-sponsored organic almond production manual in the near future.-Sean L. Swezey, director, University of California Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program
