Much-needed rain may have prevented growers from getting in their orchards recently, but it didn’t seem to effect attendance at workshops hosted by the Almond Board of California (ABC) earlier this month.
Nearly 100 growers attended the California Almond Sustainability Program (CASP) “In The Orchard” workshops held in Ceres, Chowchilla and Chico. These workshops featured the latest information on maintaining and promoting honey bee health during bloom and throughout the year. They also included a rundown of the tools available to growers who enroll their almond acreage in CASP and offered information about the benefits of planting cover crops in and/or around the orchard.
Billy Synk, director of Pollination Programs at Project Apis m. discusses benefits of cover crops for honey bees.
“CASP workshops are the perfect place to get timely updates on issues that affect almond growers, addressing practices in the orchard and broader-vision sustainability initiatives,” said Jenny Nicolau, senior manager, Industry Relations and Communications at ABC. “Learning from industry experts and peers is critical to ensuring self-improvement, which helps lead our industry forward.”
At the Ceres and Chowchilla workshops, Bob Curtis, retired director of Agricultural Affairs and current consultant to ABC, highlighted key information from the recently updated “Honey Bee Best Management Practices for California Almonds,” also known as the “Honey Bee BMPs.” Visit Almonds.com/BeeBMPs to download the latest version of Honey Bee BMPs, as well as supporting quick guides that list best practices for growers and applicators.
Curtis noted that prior to bloom growers, beekeepers and PCAs should create agreements or contracts that include a pesticide plan outlining which pest control materials may be used throughout the season. Beekeepers should also register their hives through the “Bee Where” Program (BeeWhereCalifornia.com), an improved registration and reporting system that keeps pollination stakeholders better connected.
“Good communication is key to protecting and promoting bee health,” said Curtis, who directed growers to the communication chain for beekeepers/bee brokers, almond growers, PCAs, applicators and county agricultural commissioners featured in the Honey Bee BMPs.
Protecting honey bee health through responsible pesticide application is as important as making sure pollinators have access to adequate food sources, such as those offered by certain cover crops. Billy Synk, director of Pollination Programs at Project Apis m., highlighted the “4 Ps” that can negatively affect bee health: pests, pathogens, pesticides and poor nutrition.
“If honey bee nutrition is more adequate and more diverse, it mitigates the effects of other factors affecting bees,” Synk said, noting that cover crops such as a mustard or clover mix can be a good food source for orchard pollinators.
In addition to offering bees another food source, Synk said that cover crops can offer other orchard benefits, such as increased organic matter, water infiltration improvement and reduced soil erosion.
Growers in attendance also received an overview of CASP, ABC’s online sustainability program. Among the pollination-related tools that CASP offers growers are nitrogen and irrigation calculators, which help in meeting orchards’ nutrient and water needs. With growers submitting their own information through CASP, information that is confidential to the grower, the California almond community also benefits by using that general data to demonstrate the industry’s progress to buyers, regulators and consumers, while also helping growers find ways to improve efficiency in and around the orchard.
“Coming here today re-motivated me to get my blocks enrolled in CASP and provided direction on how to go about doing it,” said grower Lane Parker, who attended the CASP workshop in Ceres.
Not enrolled in CASP? Visit SustainableAlmondGrowing.org to create your free account today
