Berry research at Hansen Agricultural REC helps growers increase yields

Abstract

News from the RECs At Hansen Agricultural REC, better blackberries and a soil disinfestation alternative Hazel White A t 27 acres, Hansen Agricultural Research and Extension Center (HAREC), in Ventura County, is small. It is exposed to the Santa Ana winds and has heavy clay loam soil infested with one of the highest levels of Verticillium wilt fungus recorded anywhere in the state. And yet it’s proving a major resource for Central Coast growers interested in producing a very profitable blackberry crop or in managing soil pests in strawberries without fumigation. HAREC has developed a growing program for a firm, sweet, large blackberry to produce a good yield during a high-prices sales window in late summer and fall. UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) Farm Advisor Oleg Daugovish, in charge of berry research, is also contributing to the in- ternational knowledge bank on anaerobic soil disinfestation (ASD), an alternative to chemical fu- migation that uses waste carbon products, such as rice bran. Growers of high-value organic strawber- ries in the Central Coast region have taken up ASD enthusiastically. Prime-Ark 45 blackberry In fall 2011, a new, publicly available primocane blackberry variety, Prime-Ark 45, from the Uni- versity of Arkansas fruit breeding program was planted at HAREC. “It looked good, tasted good, and yielded well,” Daugovish recalls. Since then he has established how to manipulate the timing of the harvest, working with UCCE researchers with blackberry trials under way in other parts of the coast: Mark Bolda, UCCE Director and Farm Advisor in Santa Cruz County, and Mark Gaskell, UC Small Farms Program Advisor in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties (Gaskell and Daugovish 2016). “Our results are consistent and add up to the same story,” says Daugovish. “This is a high-quality crop, easy to manage, and fruiting can be optimized for the lucrative window in late summer.” Oleg Daugovish Timing the California blackberry harvest for late summer, when berries from other sources are scarce, helps growers maximize returns. 104 CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURE • VOLUME 70 , NUMBER 3