THIS WEEK’S FRUIT

Seascape Strawberries Lucero Organic Farm, Lodi, CA Developed at UC Davis, Seascape are firm fleshed and sweet but slightly acidic. These are great for eating on their own or for baking Washington Navel Oranges Etheridge Farms, Dinuba, CA Imported from Bahia Brazil in the 1870s, the Washington Navel is a favorite. Washingtons are seedless, easy to peel, with deep colored rich flesh, and are moderately juicy. Pixie Tangerines Churchill Orchards, Ojai, CA Pixie tangerines are a late season variety that begin ripening in March and April. They are moderately juicy and a little tart with a pale orange flesh. These are great eaten out of hand or try them in salads. Hayward Kiwi Brandt Farm, Reedly, CA Originally known as the Chinese gooseberry due to its Chinese origins. Hayward Wright, a New Zealand nurseryman propagated his plants by grafting. They eventually became the preferred cultivar of growers due to their sweet flavor and thin skin Hass Avocado Rincon Farm, Ventura, CA Creamy in texture, nutty in flavor, with a small to medium seed. The Haas avocado’s skin is easy to peel and darkens from green to purplish-black as it ripens. You can tell it is ripe by the color of the skin (dark) and if it yields to pressure.

A Note From Farmer Al

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Earwig invasion! Last Tuesday, the Tree Team leader, Antonio, came to me with handfuls of nectarines and peaches–fruit about the size of a quarter–that they had thinned to show me that the annual earwig invasion had begun. Each fruit had fresh cavities carved into them with holes varying in size from about 1/16″ to 1/2″ in diameter and about 1/4″ deep. Such fruit is unusable if left on the tree to mature, so Antonio was training his crew to carefully inspect each branch to remove (thin-out) the earwig damage and leave the unscathed fruit.

young fruit next to a quarter for scale with dime sized chunks missing

Young fruit damaged by earwigs.

Now my job is to figure out how to stop the damage in its tracks. I called Gregg Young, our PCA (Pest Control Advisor and Agronomist) and he told me about a new product called “Seduce” (gotta love the names the AG industry comes up with for their magic bullet materials). “Seduce” is spinocad, a naturally occuring soil bacteria which science has discovered only in recent years. It’s a biological control agent that kills earwigs but is totally harmless to humans. Formulated into granules, and sold in 50lb bags, the crews walk through the orchard spreading about 2-3 tablespoons of these granules around the base of each and every tree. Apparently the earwigs would rather stay on the ground snacking on spinocad than climb high up in a tree to munch on the fruit (thank goodness). So, the invasion is thwarted by modern soil science!

I feel like I can breathe a sigh of relief as this new strategy is put into place and executed, but will remain vigilant for more earwig outbreaks as the tree team works through thinning each block of trees.

Oh, and did I mention mildew? It’s yet another specter which haunts us at this time of year, but more about that next time. Until then….

Anxiously,