Blue Diamond Almonds Bloom Report for February 12, 2014

Weather

Fog covered much of the region on Wednesday. As the skies cleared in the afternoon, bee activity was reported at 5 to 7 hours depending on area reporting.

Bud Development

In the north, observers are reporting very deliberate progress in the pace of bud development in many of the region’s orchards. Some have noted that Nonpareil plantings appear to be catching up with their associated California pollenizer and are exhibiting very good overlap between varieties. Many plantings at the start of their bloom are exhibiting a scattering of open flowers along the tops of the trees. As in the central region, some growers have noted that petals are falling from the early-blooming Sonora, even though it has not yet reached its peak bloom.  Whether this is a result of the past week’s storms or any other factor remains unknown. However, as a signal of the bloom’s strength, some have reported a very strong aroma emanating from the orchards as the number of open flowers increases.

The bloom in the central region continues to progress at a relatively slow pace. Observers have noted that while they expected the bloom to move rapidly through the various stages of development, the pace in the past few days has been much more relaxed. The progression of the bloom has been quite diverse, with a wide variation in the degree of bud development, even from one tree to the next in some plantings.

Observers have noted that the advanced examples of the early-blooming Sonora are already beginning to shed petals from the trees even before reaching peak bloom in any individual tree.

Many plantings of the Aldrich, Price and Fritz varieties along the Highway 99 corridor are now showing a scattered bloom along the tops of the trees and are leading the Nonpareil into the bloom. The late-blooming Butte is now moving into the early pink tip stage and is followed by the Padre. While a significant proportion of the Padre is well into the green tip stage, a large number of orchards in the central areas of the region are also entirely in the dormant stage. 

Bud development continues in the southern region in the San Joaquin Valley, providing an increasing amount of open flowers for the bees to forage upon each day. The early blooming Sonora is now well into its bloom and leads the way for all orchards in the region. Observers have noted a small degree of petal loss and the emergence of leaves on the most advanced plantings. The Nonpareil and California type varieties are at nearly equal stages.  Considering the other Nonpareil pollenizers, the Monterey is running just ahead of the Carmel, which is now presenting a measurable proportion of its flowers for pollination. Meanwhile, the late-blooming Butte and Padre continue their evolution into the pink tip stage.

Disease Control

Observers reported a large number aircraft flying over the region’s orchards as growers step up their disease control efforts. Some have been waiting for their orchards to dry enough to support ground equipment. Weed sprayers, mowers and brush shredders could be found moving through the orchards in plantings that have dried enough to allow access with machinery.

President Obama to Visit Region

Growers continue to monitor the water situation around the state. Legislation has been introduced and the President will be visiting the region on Friday. However, best hopes hinge on more storm systems in the coming weeks to provide additional rain for the orchards and snowpack for the state’s reservoirs. Those with water available from private wells are continuing to provide water for orchards that did not receive adequate rainfall.  Growers are also watching weather forecasts as they work to time disease control treatments that may be needed in the event of additional rain. However, should fog continue to cover the region for an extended period of time, growers will be faced with increasing disease pressure even without additional rainfall.

 

Area:	North
Date:	2/12/14	Posted On:	2/13/14
Weather Data:
Temperature —>	High –>	64	Low–>	48
Wind Speed —>	Average –>	2 to 10	Peak Gust –>
Rain —>	Inches –>	None	When –>
Clouds —>	PC/BKN		Fog –>	Dense < 10
Bee Activity –>	5 to 6 Hours Fair to Good Activity
BLOOM STAGES
Percentages	Dormant	Green Tip	Pink Bud	Popcorn	Bloom	Petal Fall	Jacket	Nutlet	Total
Sonora			35	43	22				100
Nonpareil	5	19	45	24	7				100
California		15	38	36	11				100
Carmel	14	38	33	13	2				100
Peerless		5	39	40	16				100
Monterey	5	16	39	30	10				100
Butte	62	30	8						100
Padre	82	13	5						100

Area:	Central
Date:	2/12/14	Posted On:	2/13/14
Weather Data:
Temperature —>	High –>	64	Low –>	43
Wind Speed —>	Average –>	0 to 5	Peak Gust –>
Rain —>	Inches –>	None	When –>
Clouds —>	PC Hazy Sun		Fog –>	Dense, Patchy <11 am
Bee Activity –>	6 Hours Strong Activity
BLOOM STAGES
Percentages	Dormant	Green Tip	Pink Bud	Popcorn	Bloom	Petal Fall	Jacket	Nutlet	Total
Sonora		2	36	35	27				100
Nonpareil	1	35	58	6					100
California		25	58	12	5				100
Carmel	12	33	50	5					100
Monterey	10	65	25						100
Butte	25	63	12						100
Padre	50	50							100

Area:	South
Date:	2/12/14	Posted On:	2/13/14
Weather Data:
Temperature —>	High –>	70	Low –>	43
Wind Speed —>	Average –>	0 to 5	Peak Gust –>
Rain —>	Inches –>	None	When –>
Clouds —>	Hazy Sun		Fog –>	Patchy < 10 am on East side
Bee Activity –>	6 to 7 Hours Very Good Activity
BLOOM STAGES
Percentages	Dormant	Green Tip	Pink Bud	Popcorn	Bloom	Petal Fall	Jacket	Nutlet	Total
Sonora		15	47	18	20				100
Nonpareil		42	40	10	8				100
California		25	55	11	9				100
Carmel	4	60	29	6	1				100
Monterey	1	59	29	9	2				100
Butte	20	69	11						100
Padre	56	42	2						100