Late for harvest

摘要

Prolonged bloom or high humidity, whatever the culprit, some almond growers got hammered by this year's late harvest. In nearly a quarter-century as a University of California farm adviser at the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley, Mario Viveroshas never seen the almond harvest as late as it was this year. It's kind of ironic when you think about it, Viveros says of a harvest that extended into late October. "Here we are trying to harvest earlier and earlier," he says, "and this is the latestharvest I've ever seen. I've never -- ever -- harvested a test plot of almonds in October." Viveros is working on techniques to harvest earlier because an earlier harvest holds key advantages for growers. First, it means the crop doesn't stay on the treeas long to mature, so there is generally less damage from navel orangeworm. In addition, an earlier harvest generally dries more quickly on the ground, so there is less exposure to ant damage. "Besides delaying when a grower can go on vacation," says Viveros with a chuckle, "a later harvest generally means higher reject levels."