Almond PMA Update-Kern County

January 2001

The Almond PMA project will continue to be located in the Vetsch Farms orchard, east of McFarland on Pond Road, Kern County. This is the third consecutive year the project has been in this location.

While comparison of conventional versus a reduced input program continues, a program of no dormant spray has been added (no oil and no organophosphate). To implement this treatment, each plot has been divided into reduced input and reduced input with no dormant spray, or conventional and conventional with no dormant spray. Evaluation of a program with no dormant sprays will be done. We feel this adds an exciting new dimension to the project.

Dormant spur samples have been gathered and are being examined for presence San Jose Scale. Mummy evaluation will take place this month. The grower practice for mummy removal is to shake the trees. After shaking, mummies remaining on the trees will be counted, and if needed, additional removal by poling will take place in the reduced input blocks. Evaluation of female mites, that overwinter in the soil, and emerge in the spring, has begun and will continue until the end of February.

The trapping for San Jose Scale, Peach Twig Borer and Navel Orangeworm will begin in the middle of March and will be expanded to include the no dormant spray portion of each block.

Dormant sprays were applied on January 23, 2001. The reduced input blocks were sprayed with six gallons of oil in 200 gallons of water per acre. The conventional blocks were sprayed with six gallons of oil and five pints of Diazinon®, in 200 gallons of water per acre.