California rains hammer early cherry varieties
California rains hammer early cherry varieties
Things were looking promising for the early cherry crop in the San Joaquin Valley right up until the start of the harvest in late April. Then the rains came.
It had been a notoriously wet winter, and the pattern was not letting up with the arrival of spring. But rarely has the valley seen rainfall of any real significance so late in the season. So with each storm system that passed through, there was an optimism, if not the expectation, that it would be the last.
But Mother Nature dashed those hopes with a vengeance.
On Thursday, May 28, a major storm system passed through the valley, bringing heavy rainfall in many areas and even hail in some spots.
One week later, another storm dumped record amounts of rainfall over much of the valley - more than three inches in some areas. Another lighter storm was right on its heels, and as of Monday, May 9, there remained the possibility of more rain in the forecast.
Brooks cherries, the earliest significant variety, were devastated. The Tulare variety, which is a little later, fared somewhat better, although damage was still being assessed.
Even some of the early Bings were affected, although the majority of the California Bing crop was still immature enough that the late April and early May storms were not expected to cause much damage.
Young green cherries can tolerate rain fairly well, but as the cherries gain sugar just before harvest, they become susceptible to splitting if they are rained on and do not dry out quickly.
Maurice (Mo) Cameron of Trinity Fruit Sales Co. in Fresno, CA, which sells cherries packed by Warmerdam Packing in Hanford, CA, told The Produce News May 6 that the Brooks cherries had been "expensive enough to pick" after the rainfall of a week earlier because so much of the fruit was split. But the second big storm a week later essentially brought the Brooks harvest to an end, he said.
The Tulare variety is not as susceptible to rain damage, Mr. Cameron explained. Unlike Brooks and most other cherry varieties, which have broad shoulders, which allow rainwater to accumulate around the cap stem, the Tulare has what he described as "ski slope shoulders.
But "We've never experienced rain this late in the Tulare harvest. We're kind of on new ground here, he said. "We've got helicopters out today flying low over the trees to blow off whatever water may be clinging to the cherries to minimize the number of splits, he said. "It's an expensive venture.
Mr. Cameron, who was at the Warmerdam packinghouse when he spoke to The Produce News, said that a load of Tulare cherries had just come in from the field. Overall, they looked quite clean, he said. "They're definitely packable. But there are some cracks in here. We can sort it out during the packing process, "but this is the first time I have ever seen cracked Tulares.
Some Sequoia cherries, a proprietary Warmerdam variety, had also just come in from the field. "There is a percentage of defects in them, but nothing that would preclude us from getting a decent pack out of them, he said. "Maybe we will lose 10 to 15 percent on this variety.
Gary Kunkel, Tulare County Agricultural Commissioner, told The Produce News May 6 that the first of the two major storms "caught the Brooks guys right at the very start of their harvest. Most of the Brooks that were spared by the first storm were finished off by the second one.
"One of our inspectors is a Brooks cherry grower, Mr. Kunkel said. He was one day into his harvest and then "lost 40 percent of the crop the first day it rained. After the second storm, "now he thinks the loss is enough it won't justify picking at all.
Mr. Kunkel said that Brooks growers in Tulare were estimating losses of anywhere from 15 percent to 100 percent of whatever was still on the tree from the first storm, with the average loss running around 70-75 percent, he said. Those numbers will change "because we got some damage we haven't even accounted for. Losses could be in the range of $5 million, he said.
Don Borges, an agricultural inspection supervisor with the Tulare County agricultural commissioner's office, said that the Tulare variety seems to be faring a little better. Tulares are "a harder cherry, so they didn't suffer near the damage that the other types did, he said. Tulares come off a little later than Brooks and "have a thicker skin, so they are more resistant to absorbing moisture, he explained. "There is some damage on some of them, but not as severe as the Brooks and the other early varieties.
Tulare County has a little over 1,600 acres of early cherry varieties, consisting of about 45 percent Brooks, 45 percent Tulares and 10 percent other varieties, he said.
Fresno and Kern counties each have around 2,000 acres of cherries, with Brooks and Tulare again being the major varieties.
Bob Vandergon of the Fresno County agricultural commissioner's office said May 6, "What we are seeing with the recent rains is that a fair portion of the cherries have started to split. The first of the two major storms was "a little more spotty, with very heavy rainfall in certain areas but less in others, he said. It also caused some hail damage in certain areas, notably the Parlier and Raisin City area. The extent of the damage to stone fruit was still being evaluated. "We don't have a full picture yet, he said.
In Kern County, rainfall from the first storm was lighter than in the counties to the north, but some growers saw losses on their Brooks variety as high as 50 percent, according to Jack Marks of the Kern County Agricultural Commissioners Office. But "it rained yesterday and this morning again, he said May 6, and damage from that storm had yet to be evaluated.
He did not know how much the Tulare crop had been affected by the most recent storm. "That's what we are trying to find out now, he said, adding that generally "they seem to do a little better in the rain.
It had been a notoriously wet winter, and the pattern was not letting up with the arrival of spring. But rarely has the valley seen rainfall of any real significance so late in the season. So with each storm system that passed through, there was an optimism, if not the expectation, that it would be the last.
But Mother Nature dashed those hopes with a vengeance.
On Thursday, May 28, a major storm system passed through the valley, bringing heavy rainfall in many areas and even hail in some spots.
One week later, another storm dumped record amounts of rainfall over much of the valley - more than three inches in some areas. Another lighter storm was right on its heels, and as of Monday, May 9, there remained the possibility of more rain in the forecast.
Brooks cherries, the earliest significant variety, were devastated. The Tulare variety, which is a little later, fared somewhat better, although damage was still being assessed.
Even some of the early Bings were affected, although the majority of the California Bing crop was still immature enough that the late April and early May storms were not expected to cause much damage.
Young green cherries can tolerate rain fairly well, but as the cherries gain sugar just before harvest, they become susceptible to splitting if they are rained on and do not dry out quickly.
Maurice (Mo) Cameron of Trinity Fruit Sales Co. in Fresno, CA, which sells cherries packed by Warmerdam Packing in Hanford, CA, told The Produce News May 6 that the Brooks cherries had been "expensive enough to pick" after the rainfall of a week earlier because so much of the fruit was split. But the second big storm a week later essentially brought the Brooks harvest to an end, he said.
The Tulare variety is not as susceptible to rain damage, Mr. Cameron explained. Unlike Brooks and most other cherry varieties, which have broad shoulders, which allow rainwater to accumulate around the cap stem, the Tulare has what he described as "ski slope shoulders.
But "We've never experienced rain this late in the Tulare harvest. We're kind of on new ground here, he said. "We've got helicopters out today flying low over the trees to blow off whatever water may be clinging to the cherries to minimize the number of splits, he said. "It's an expensive venture.
Mr. Cameron, who was at the Warmerdam packinghouse when he spoke to The Produce News, said that a load of Tulare cherries had just come in from the field. Overall, they looked quite clean, he said. "They're definitely packable. But there are some cracks in here. We can sort it out during the packing process, "but this is the first time I have ever seen cracked Tulares.
Some Sequoia cherries, a proprietary Warmerdam variety, had also just come in from the field. "There is a percentage of defects in them, but nothing that would preclude us from getting a decent pack out of them, he said. "Maybe we will lose 10 to 15 percent on this variety.
Gary Kunkel, Tulare County Agricultural Commissioner, told The Produce News May 6 that the first of the two major storms "caught the Brooks guys right at the very start of their harvest. Most of the Brooks that were spared by the first storm were finished off by the second one.
"One of our inspectors is a Brooks cherry grower, Mr. Kunkel said. He was one day into his harvest and then "lost 40 percent of the crop the first day it rained. After the second storm, "now he thinks the loss is enough it won't justify picking at all.
Mr. Kunkel said that Brooks growers in Tulare were estimating losses of anywhere from 15 percent to 100 percent of whatever was still on the tree from the first storm, with the average loss running around 70-75 percent, he said. Those numbers will change "because we got some damage we haven't even accounted for. Losses could be in the range of $5 million, he said.
Don Borges, an agricultural inspection supervisor with the Tulare County agricultural commissioner's office, said that the Tulare variety seems to be faring a little better. Tulares are "a harder cherry, so they didn't suffer near the damage that the other types did, he said. Tulares come off a little later than Brooks and "have a thicker skin, so they are more resistant to absorbing moisture, he explained. "There is some damage on some of them, but not as severe as the Brooks and the other early varieties.
Tulare County has a little over 1,600 acres of early cherry varieties, consisting of about 45 percent Brooks, 45 percent Tulares and 10 percent other varieties, he said.
Fresno and Kern counties each have around 2,000 acres of cherries, with Brooks and Tulare again being the major varieties.
Bob Vandergon of the Fresno County agricultural commissioner's office said May 6, "What we are seeing with the recent rains is that a fair portion of the cherries have started to split. The first of the two major storms was "a little more spotty, with very heavy rainfall in certain areas but less in others, he said. It also caused some hail damage in certain areas, notably the Parlier and Raisin City area. The extent of the damage to stone fruit was still being evaluated. "We don't have a full picture yet, he said.
In Kern County, rainfall from the first storm was lighter than in the counties to the north, but some growers saw losses on their Brooks variety as high as 50 percent, according to Jack Marks of the Kern County Agricultural Commissioners Office. But "it rained yesterday and this morning again, he said May 6, and damage from that storm had yet to be evaluated.
He did not know how much the Tulare crop had been affected by the most recent storm. "That's what we are trying to find out now, he said, adding that generally "they seem to do a little better in the rain.
