Sac Valley Orchards

Becky Wheeler-Dykes, UCCE Glenn, Tehama and Colusa Counties The 2025 almond bloom began with reports of devastating honeybee colony loss, the likes of which the industry hasn’t seen in decades. In many cases, growers and/or beekeepers scrambled to find hives to pollinate almond orchards. Project Apis m., an organization focused on supporting honeybee health and reliable pollinator ...

Jaime Ott, UC Extension Tehama, Shasta, Glenn, and Butte Counties This work was partially funded by the Stockton East Water District Crown rot and root rot caused by Phytophthora species are diseases of great concern for almond growers. Many people believe that irrigating with surface water puts your trees at risk of Phytophthora, and that irrigating with groundwater ...

Jaime Ott, UCCE Tehama, Shasta, Glenn, and Butte Counties Though our weather outlook for the next couple of months is leaning toward warmer weather than usual, a cold snap during bloom and leaf-out could cause significant bacterial blast damage. Make a plan now in case of bad weather. The Bottom Line: Bacterial blast can be a problem when cold, ...

Renaud Travadon, Florent Trouillas, Alejandro Hernandez1 Department of Plant Pathology, University of California, Davis CA 95616 Kearney Agriculture Research & Extension Center, Parlier, CA 93648 Background In June 2024, a new foliar disease of almond, Red Leaf Blotch (RLB), was detected in Merced County. By the end of summer 2024, RLB presence was confirmed in six counties in the Northern ...

Franz Niederholzer, UCCE Farm Advisor, Colusa and Sutter/Yuba Counties Bad bloom weather – extreme heat, cold, or extended wet weather – can drastically reduce or eliminate commercial prune crops in the Sacramento Valley. Such bloom weather is a major economic stress to growers and costs California packers market share internationally, further impacting prune economics in this state.  What’s ...