Nuts Impact Of Dry Stressing Almonds During Water Shortages

摘要

DURING the growing season of 2008, many almond orchards were stressed for water. Some may have been stressed unintentionally, while others may have been so for lack of choice due to the limited availability of water. It was not uncommon in 2008 to seeNonpareil kernel sizes in the mid-30's where trees were severely stressed during the May/June/July period due to rationing of water. Adjacent fields with access to alternative irrigation sources or those fortunate to have good-quality wells saw kernel sizes in the mid-20's by comparison. A change from say a size 24 to a size 34 could represent a magnitude of crop reduction in the 30% to 40% range due to small and shriveled kernels.