Articles
Recent articles from our magazines
Succession Starts Long Before the Signature
Leadership, not legal documents, is what determines whether a farm survives to the next generation California growers spend years planning capital investments, planting decisions, water strategy and market…
Incubator Farm Helps Ag-Tech Gain a Foothold
By the numbers 24 acresThe site features innovation barns where companies can refine machinery with high-end fabrication equipment, office spaces and 24 acres of dedicated commercial fields where…
Can California Agriculture Afford Groundwater Replacement?
As California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act reshapes agricultural water use, growers are looking beyond simply replacing lost groundwater Historically, the conversation around California water has centered on scarcity,…
Beyond SGMA: Can Collaboration Secure California Agriculture’s Water Future?
Keeping California’s farms productive will require more than new water supplies. It will require unprecedented collaboration. Geoff Vanden Heuvel has played a leading role in bringing stakeholders together…
Acadian Plant Health Builds Direct Sales Presence in California
Acadian Plant Health has expanded its direct market presence in California, appointing Michael Lombardi and Eric (Rick) Ebbinghausen as Territory Sales Representatives.
Thousands of Acres, One Week: Scaling Field Coverage in August
By the numbers 45 yearsI’ve spent 45 years in the field, and in my experience, the fundamentals don’t change with scale. a thousand acresIf you’ve got a thousand…
Commentary: Market Fortitude Key Transition Strategies for an Evolving Specialty Crop Economy
By the numbers fourth consecutive yearThe almond industry faces its fourth consecutive year of acreage reduction as well. five- to 10-year establishment periodIt is expensive to remove a…
Turning Farm Data into Better Decisions
By the numbers 500 acresCan another 500 acres be added without hiring more people? 20 years ago“20 years ago, most farm decisions were made with experience, paper records…
AI Is Moving Fast. What Is Your Next Move?
How large-scale growers can begin putting AI and automation to work without overhauling the entire operation Large-scale agriculture has always rewarded people who see change coming and move…
BIOTROP Appoints Andre Cerignoni as General Manager of North America, strengthening BioWorks and BIOTROP’s unique market strategies Under One Platform
Trio of Cerignoni, Chris Rose, and Matheus Gueratto to lead ambitious push toward $260M+ in North America by 2034 USA — August 2026 — BIOTROP, the microbiological solutions division of BioFirst Group, today announced…
Recovery Starts Before Harvest Ends
Well, the dog days are upon us. So far in the middle of the San Joaquin Valley, our 100-degree days have been broken up every couple days by temperatures in the mid-90s. I did…
Late Harvest, Rising NOW Pressure: What I’m Watching in August
I‘ve been walking almond and pistachio orchards for 45 years, since I was a teenager driving my father’s spray rigs through cotton fields. I hold both a PCA and a CCA license, and that…
Almond Day Panel Examines Factors Affecting Grower Returns: What impacts your check at harvest?
Influences on grower returns, including quality, market conditions and regulations, were dissected by industry panelists at West Coast Nut’s Almond Day. Panelists had no silver bullet to ease the loss of grower income for…
The Next Generation of Ag Drones
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), commonly called agricultural drones, have been used experimentally in agriculture for more than 30 years, but cost held back widespread adoption. GPS guidance, lithium-ion batteries and high-resolution cameras manufactured around…
Retiring Researcher Leaves Profound Legacy on Oregon Hazelnut Industry
In 1988, when Jay Pscheidt arrived at Oregon State University, Eastern Filbert Blight (EFB) was spreading largely unchecked in Oregon hazelnut orchards, and Pscheidt immediately was tasked with helping growers control the disease. One…
Biostimulant World Congress Set for Sacramento
Tree nut growers who want to know more about biostimulant products and using them in orchards as part of their nutrition management plans will have the chance to learn more about their uses and…
A Northern Perspective: Protect This Year’s Crop and Next Year’s Yield
August usually means the start of almond harvest, but shakers started early this year. Key August practices in almonds include limiting water stress through harvest and reducing shaker damage, while delivering a clean, high-quality…
Water Leaders Focus on Long-Term Certainty for Agriculture
Collaboration and long-term planning are key to securing agriculture’s future For California tree nut growers, planting a new orchard is a long-term commitment measured by decades. But as groundwater regulations tighten and water supplies…
Dairy manure as a fertilizer can save money but has unique nutrient management challenges
Why buy fertilizer when you have it fresh and homegrown? Ordering imported synthetic fertilizer yields sticker shock for a lot of farmers lately. In recent years, the global fertilizer market has been volatile due…
New Management Options for Hairy Fleabane and Horseweed in Nut Orchards
Hairy fleabane and horseweed (marestail) are two problematic broadleaf weeds commonly found in California orchards and belong to the Conyza genus. Both species typically emerge during the fall and winter and bolt in the…
Adding Aerial Intelligence to Pest Monitoring
Practical Ways PCAs and Consultants Are Using Drone Imagery and Predictive Tools to Prioritize Scouting and Refine Recommendations Pest scouting has always been limited by time and the size of the operations we manage.…
Leaf Sap Analysis for Nutrient Management Efficiency Comparing Nutritional Assessment Methods
It’s no secret that growers and advisors increasingly require tools that can identify nutritional and fertility problems before visible symptoms appear. No one has time for yield drag in today’s agriculture. Modern crop varieties…
Why the Best Crop Consultants Never Stop Learning
Every season starts the same way: with a plan. Every season, somewhere between bloom and harvest, the plan meets reality. A pest shows up in a block where it’s never been a problem. A…
Understanding Why Bioinsecticides Don’t Perform Like Synthetics
Understanding Insecticide Performance Characteristics Is Critical to Making Biological Insecticides Work in Modern Pest Management Systems Understanding Biopesticide Performance: Why Biological Insecticides Require a Different Management Mindset Since the 1940s, insect pest management has…
A letter from the Publisher: The Weight of Your Signature
There’s a moment every crop consultant knows. The field has been walked, the pressure has been weighed, the grower is waiting, and it all comes down to your name on a recommendation. That signature…
California Agriculture at a Crossroads: Building a Farm Enterprise Under Pressure
By the numbers more than 400 commoditiesThe state’s farmers and ranchers produce more than 400 commodities, from milk, almonds and grapes to lettuce, strawberries, tomatoes and livestock. $61.2…
California Tree Nuts Enter a New Chapter of Opportunity and a Fight Worth Winning
There was plenty of optimism in the room at this year’s Western Tree Nut Association Annual Meeting last month, and for good reason. After several challenging years, California’s tree nut industry is beginning to…
VineView Celebrates 25 Years as Trusted Partner to California Winegrowers
St. Helena, CA — July 1, 2026 — VineView marks its silver anniversary as the partner of choice for California’s wine grape growers. For 25 years, the company has worked alongside viticulturists and vineyard…
Can Institutional Markets Scale for California Growers?
California’s ‘farm to corrections’ program now reaches 29 prisons and moves about a million pounds of local produce a quarter — but can it scale to the volume larger growers need?
Global Conflict Sends Fertilizer Shockwaves Through California Agriculture
Escalating Middle East tensions and disruptions at the Strait of Hormuz are pushing fertilizer prices higher and tightening supply, forcing California growers to rethink procurement and sharpen nutrient management.
PAGA Pressure Mounts on California Agriculture
PAGA claims have become one of the most expensive legal threats facing California agriculture, where even clerical payroll errors can multiply into six-figure penalties across an entire seasonal workforce.
Oregon Hazelnut Farmer Claims National Woman in Ag Award
They described her as fierce and independent, a farmer who thinks outside the box. They said her journey to agriculture didn’t follow the traditional path, that she does things her own way. In the…
Industry Outlook, Orchard Challenges Discussed At Tri-County Walnut Day
Tri-County Walnut Day, an annual event hosted by Tulare County UCCE, was held on a foggy February day but still attracted local walnut growers and crop advisors who braved the drive to hear timely…
Limitations of Soil Applied Biologicals for Lettuce Fusarium Wilt Management
Lettuce Fusarium Wilt Fusarium wilt has become one of the most challenging diseases for California lettuce growers. Once established, the fungal pathogen that causes this disease, Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lactucae, persists in production…
Market Diversification Key to California Walnut Industry Stability
Trade dynamics are in constant motion and often shift with the political tides. At the same time, competition from other growing regions is intensifying and consumers are aging out of many traditional geographic markets…
AgroPlantae, Inc. to Acquire Kemin Industries’ Portfolio of Crop Technologies Products
Provider of organic and conventional fertilizers will take ownership of global ingredient manufacturer’s botanical-based biopesticides and solutions for plant nutrition and soil health FRESNO, California (April 16, 2026) – AgroPlantae, which serves the plant…
ILRP Expert Panel Evaluating Considering Programmatic Changes
Potential changes to the Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program (ILRP), as well as on-farm fertilizer use, could be on the way. In the fall of last year, the State Water Resources Control Board, or State…
Digital Eyes in the Orchard: The Future of NOW Monitoring
Mating disruption is a widely used tool in nut orchards to reduce navel orangeworm (NOW) populations by releasing pheromones that confuse male moths and interfere with mating. To monitor NOW activity, growers traditionally rely…
Treehouse Almonds Backs Biochar Venture to Build Better Soils
Treehouse Almonds and Sitos Group's new Delano facility will turn 26,000 tons of almond shells into customizable biochar — with a 35% vineyard yield boost from a 10-year Monterey Pacific trial behind it.
Three Forces Reshaping California Specialty Crops
California specialty crops generate $61.2B in cash receipts and $23.8B in exports — and three structural forces in 2026 are reshaping who pulls ahead and who falls behind.
AI Tools Making a Difference in Orchard Management
How California's growers are deploying vision systems, autonomous vehicles, and aerial AI to boost yields, cut costs, and improve sustainability — from Bloomfield Robotics to Ceres Imaging.
Chilean Hazelnut Growers Expected to Harvest 200,000 Metric Tons by 2030
Chilean growers are expected to harvest more than 200,000 metric tons of hazelnuts annually by 2030, far outpacing Oregon’s expected production and firmly establishing the country as the second-largest hazelnut producer, behind only Turkey.…
Cotton Seed Bug: An Emerging New Threat for California Cotton Growers
Cotton seed bug, or CSB, (Oxycarenus hyalinipennis, Hemiptera: Oxycarenidae), is a small seed-feeding bug that poses a significant invasive threat to cotton and other malvaceous crops, such as okra. It is generally regarded as…
Unlocking the Potential of Neem in Crop Protection and Soil Health
Neem (Azadirachta indica) is a drought-resistant tropical tree in the Meliaceae family, native to the Indian subcontinent and parts of Southeast Asia. This multipurpose species has been used for millennia in Indian Ayurvedic medicine,…
The California Walnut Board and Commission is Launching ‘Be Merry. Feel Good.’ Holiday Campaign
Seasonal effort supports ongoing efforts to strengthen walnut relevance year round FOLSOM, Calif., Nov. 25, 2025 – The California Walnut Board and Commission is launching its “Be Merry. Feel Good.” holiday campaign in the US…
Resilient Pistachio Orchards Start with Healthy Soils
What does “healthy soil” actually mean in a pistachio orchard, and how can growers measure it in a way that drives decisions, not just lab reports? In a recent two-part MyAgLife radio segment with…
Precision Agriculture: It’s the Future that’s Here
The USDA’s Economic Research Service recently released its 2024 agricultural production summaries, highlighting that California agriculture reached a total value of $61.2 billion, maintaining its position as the nation’s leader. This is encouraging news…
Natural Bridge to Higher Plant Metabolism: Unlocking the Power of Biostimulants
Biostimulants are a natural “hack” to bridge the gap between average and better crops. While a growing segment of our industry promotes natural products to balance economic and environmental goals, probably the best reason…
Biological Nitrogen Fixation: Can Bacteria Help Fertilize Our Crops?
In 1905, German scientist Fritz Haber successfully synthesized ammonia from atmospheric nitrogen gas, an inert form of nitrogen resistant to chemical and biological reactions. Shortly thereafter, BASF chemist Carl Bosch built upon Haber’s work…
Hass Avocado Crop Water Consumption Affected by Various Environmental and Plant Factors
In California, avocado (Persea americana Mill.) is primarily grown in southern and central parts of the state along the coast where 88% (USDA-NASS 2023) of the avocados are grown in the United States. These…
The Ag Tech Revolution in 2025: Tools and Trends for Crop Consultants
As we kick off 2025, it’s clear agriculture technology is not just a buzzword; it’s the lifeblood of modern farming. Every year, we at Progressive Crop Consultant witness an influx of innovations designed to…
Pistachio Market Update and Three-Year Outlook
As the fastest-expanding tree nut industry in California, the pistachio industry has experienced a significant transformation over the past decade. Driven by steadily expanding pistachio-bearing acreage, the U.S. has become the largest producer, exporter…
No articles match those filters.