Project Description
Irrigation & Sustainable Agriculture
Featured stories about irrigation and sustainable agriculture appear in this issue.
Study compares biodynamic and organic soils
With the lack of published research on biodynamic viticulture, Dr. John Reganold was eager to participate in a side-by-side comparison of organic and biodynamic viticulture
Survey of tree fruit and grape acreage begins
The National Agricultural Statistics Service is surveying more than 4,000 tree fruit and grape growers in Washington State to compile a new inventory of acreage
International Cameo apple group is formed
Cameo Partners International is a new group formed recently to coordinate the promotion and development of the Cameo apple around the world. Kevin Precht of
Help on the Web for brown rot
Fruit rot of mature dried plum fruit caused by the brown rot fungus. A new, interactive Web site developed by the University of California to
Determining latent brown rot infection
Growers can now use a simple freezing technique to determine if they have latent brown rot infections in their orchards. The University of California’s Dr.
New York growers and EurepGAP
Many New York apple growers are now complying with a European food safety initiative required by some European retailers. Though the program involves extensive record
Going organic in the Northeast is tough
Singer Farms of Appleton, New York, produces organic apples, a difficult feat to accomplish in the Northeast because of disease and pest pressures. “It’s next
Honeycrisp proves buyers will pay more
Honeycrisp has changed the apple business. It’s possibly the only variety that can sell for $50 a box, noted John Rice, sales manager of Rice
Rice and fruit go back two centuries
Rice Fruit Company was founded in Biglerville, Pennsylvania, in 1913 by Arthur Rice, though its origins go back much further. Daniel Rice was the first
Wal-Mart wants regional fruit
Rice Fruit Company received a record 1.5 millon bushels of apples for packing this season. Rice Fruit Company of Gardners, Pennsylvania, will pack a record
Finding profit in diversity
President prunes do well on the sandy soils of Singer Farms in Appleton, New York. Photos by Melissa Hansen Jim Bittner has more options than most
Grower replants peaches after virus eradication
Mark Rice demonstrates a device for thinning peaches that was adapted from an old cherry harvester. He’s still trying to improve on it. Photo by Geraldine
Mid-Atlantic peach industry under pressure
The Mid-Atlantic tree fruit industry is shrinking under pressure from housing developments, as city commuters build luxury homes in rural areas. “We’ve lost a lot
Sustainable grape programs thrive in Northwest
With the recent unveiling of Washington State’s newest sustainable viticulture program, Vinewise, Pacific Northwest wine grape growers now have access to three regional programs dealing
Jim Koempel, Apple Citizen
Jim Koempel, an orchardist at Cashmere, Washington, has been named Apple Citizen of the Year by the Washington Apple Blossom Festival. The Apple Citizen of
Myth and reality
Do the preparations added when farming biodynamically really make a difference? A Washington State University study comparing biodynamic and organic viticulture found no significant differences
Technology & Good Fruit
With support from individuals and agricultural commodity groups, particularly tree fruit and grapes, the Washington State legislature approved funding in March 2006 to Washington State
Orchard workers committed to learning
Eighteen orchard workers from Wenatchee, Washington, and surrounding areas were honored this spring for the commitment they made to furthering their education. They were graduates
Pear meeting to feature consumer panel
Pear growers will have an opportunity to hear from a panel of consumers during the Pear Bureau Northwest’s annual meeting in Portland, Oregon, on June
Tree Top has new fresh-sliced apple plant
The fruit processor Tree Top, Inc., has opened a new facility for processing fresh-sliced apples at its main location in Selah, Washington, and has closed
It’s a bug-eat-bug world
Female Mormon cricket Why do Mormon crickets move en masse? Partly because banding together shields them from predatory birds and mammals, but another reason is
Organic demand exceeds supply
Demand for organic tree fruits is outstripping supply, says Roger Wechsler, president of the organic produce marketer CF Fresh of Sedro-Woolley, Washington. The company recently
Northwest wants nonfumigation cherry protocol 2
Pacific Northwest cherry growers are hoping to be able to ship cherries to New Zealand without fumigation in the future. They shipped a small volume
Watch woodpiles for shothole borers
Healthy cherry trees will try to bleed out the intruding pest, creating shothole “pigtails.” Photos by Dr. Michael Bush, WSU Extension Shothole borer infestations are
Focus on soil shows in the wine
A two-hour seminar on soil biology was a revelation to Chris Figgins, who promptly began transitioning his vineyards to a more biologically oriented viticulture system.
Are secondary pests pesticide-induced?
When broad-spectrum pesticides are used for management of primary pests, such as codling moth, secondary or minor pests can become problematic because natural controls are
Winery buildings can be sustainable
Sustainable practices don’t end in the vineyard. Winery facilities can also be sustainable when they are built to be ecologically sound, economically viable, operationally efficient,
Applying sustainability nationwide
It’s hard enough to develop, coordinate, and execute sustainable programs for wine-grape-producing regions even statewide, but Australia is implementing environmental stewardship on a national basis—and