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Articles by Bob Beede
California: Pistachio Tasklist for 2020
I think Kevin Day best described the arrested canopy development of many young pistachio orchards by the term, “False Spring.” Craig Kallsen’s excellent and recent newsletter also provided data and observations supporting the concept that warm temperatures in early March triggered trees to initiate growth, but subsequent cold, rainy weather stalled leaf expansion.
California Pistachios: Crop Assessments, Observations From Bob Beede
Even though we received good winter chilling this year, the cool spring weather has delayed pistachio leaf out and bloom by 5 to 7 days. This spring is a great example of how, even with good chilling, pistachio plant development can be delayed by cool temperatures. The overlap between Golden Hills and Randy looked very good. Randy is a very prolific male, even when young, and provides lots of pollen for young trees just coming into bearing.
California Pistachios: Nitrogen In 2019 - Enough But Not Too Much
Pistachio growers are stepping up to the plate to be the best stewards of nitrogen usage as possible – hence, avoiding heavy nitrogen applications before fruit set. Remember that early shoot growth and fruit development is all from stored nitroge. A good nitrogen management program includes soil, plant and irrigation water N assessment. Take samples of each so you can make a better assessment as to how much synthetic N needs to be applied to the soil to meet the plant/crop requirement.
California Pistachios: Time To Start Bug Scouting
Beating tray monitoring and sweep net sampling of true bugs should be initiated. The native vegetation surrounding pistachios is still green, so the migratory plant bugs have no reason to move…yet. That will quickly change as we move into April and early May. Navel orangeworm (NOW) traps should be in place. The NOW adult pheromone lure, has proven to be very effective in catching adults, so much so that some consultants wish to dispense with the high maintenance egg traps.
California Pistachios: Sizing Up Fungicide Decisions
If it rains a quarter inch or more during bloom, it may be necessary to apply a fungicide to control Botrytis and Botryosphaeria in pistachios. Disease potential will depend on past infection levels and repeated rain events. Dr. Themis Michailides has determined that 0.2 inches of rain and temperatures at or above 55 degrees F constitutes a Botryosphaeria infection event.
California Pistachios: Where Are We With Chill?
Last year, the first frost did not occur in the southern San Joaquin Valley until December 5. This year, the first frost occurred right on schedule during the second week in November. We then had 10 days in which the night temperatures were 31 to 33 degrees F. This helped induce the early stages of dormancy, by desiccating the leaves and hardening off current season’s growth. We also have had some good rains.
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