Growers dodge bullet with recent rains in May
By Vicky Boyd For much of the week before the May 17-19 rain forecast, Linden cherry producer Ken Vogel anxiously watched weather reports and weather radar because he planned […]
Dairy food chain becomes nightmare in mere days
By Craig W. Anderson Lodi dairyman Hank Van Exel reminisced about the beginning of 2020: “It started out to be the best year ever with a 100 cwt of […]
COVID-19 presents challenges to growers
By Vicky Boyd David Strecker, who grows row crops in the Delta, made his first alfalfa cutting in mid-April and was letting it dry for a week before baling. […]
Challenges for cherry growers as harvest nears
By Craig W. Anderson 2019 was not, by any measure, a good or even a decent year for the San Joaquin County cherry crop. Due to drought-busting rains, it […]
2020 AgFest becomes virtual show and auction
By Craig W. Anderson The 2020 AgFest seemed doomed by the COVID-19 chaos that ensured the demise of many events around the state. But organizers have found a way […]
Pandemic is trouble for livestock and milk producers
By Vicky Boyd Grocery shelves and refrigerated cases are filling once again as panic buying has subsided and consumers settle into COVID-19 shelter-in-place rules. But the supply chain disruption caused […]
SJ County closes landfills temporarily due to Coronavirus
On March 21, the San Joaquin Public Works Department temporarily shut down public access to the self-haul operations at Lovelace Road Transfer Station and North County Recycling Center and Landfill […]
Prop. 13 rejected but property tax battle not over
By Vicky Boyd Confused by its title, California voters rejected Proposition 13, a March ballot measure that would have allowed the state to issue $15 billion in new school bonds. […]
Supply chain strong thanks to farmers
ALTHOUGH THE CORONAVIRUS pandemic has brought many everyday activities to a screeching halt and prompted a statewide shelter in place, the show must go on for agriculture. The U.S. Department […]
Not a March Miracle but good enough
March of 2020 may not have hit the March Miracle level as far as rain was concerned but it was good enough to elicit optimism and enthusiasm from growers and […]