Nut crops

Cover crops don’t use much extra water, video explains

Many farmers have been wary of planting cover crops, despite the proven benefits, because they worry the additional vegetation in their fields and orchards would suck up precious water. But a new video explains recent research showing that’s not true: California fields planted with cover crops over the winter have about the same level of soil moisture.

Ferguson honored for service to Horticultural Society

Louise Ferguson has been recognized by the American Society of Horticultural Science for her leadership and contributions. The professor of UC Cooperative Extension assumed the presidency during the COVID-19 pandemic, and she nurtured the organization through its first all-virtual annual conference, a subsequent hybrid conference and back to a fully in-person conference.

Giulia Marino: New Plant Sciences Faculty and Cooperative Extension Specialist

Expert on tree physiology in orchard systems

Giulia Marino, a crop physiologist, is the new UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) Specialist in Orchard Systems, and a faculty member in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis). She is primarily based at the UC Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Parlier, California, and has a second office in Wickson Hall at UC Davis.

Research Suggests Water Stress May Benefit Walnut Trees (with video)

Portable pressure chambers (“pressure bombs”) taken into orchards measure water pressure in tree leaves, to show how hard a tree works to pull moisture from the soil. This is used to determine when irrigation is actually needed by the trees. Ken Shackel and Bruce Lampinen note that this can benefit yields and orchard health.

Almond Orchard Recycling a Climate-Smart Strategy

Recycling trees onsite can sequester carbon, save water and increase crop yields, making it a climate-smart practice for California’s irrigated almond orchards. Professor Amelie Gaudin, Plant Sciences, UC Davis, worked with postdocs, grad students, and Cooperative Extension colleagues.

Kester, a Productive Late Bloom Almond Variety from University of California, Davis

Kester almond was developed at the University of California, Davis, Almond Breeding Program with support from the Almond Board of California. The program was developed to breed new varieties and germplasm to meet the emerging needs of the expanding California almond industry. Professor Tom Gradziel in Plant Sciences, has conducted much of the research.

Dave Ramos, UC Davis – ‘Award of Distinction’ from College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences

Dave Ramos, retired walnut specialist at UC Davis Plant Sciences and UCANR received the “Outstanding Emeritus” award from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences for his research and outreach with UC and the walnut industry. He was a faculty member in the Department of Pomology, now part of the Department of Plant Science

Louise Ferguson Named President-Elect of the American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS)

Louise Ferguson, faculty member in Plant Sciences, UC Davis, and Cooperative Extension pomology specialist for California, is the new President-elect of the American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS), a professional academic society. This appointment will be followed by a year as ASHS President and a year as Chairman of the ASHS Board of Directors.