IN YOUR ORCHARD
Boron is essential for flower quality and nut set. The best way to check boron levels is through a hull sample at harvest since boron accumulates in the hull itself. During the growing season, keep an eye out for “rat tail” symptoms — normal shoot growth followed by a blank section and then a tuft of new growth. Boron deficiency can also represent itself on the nuts as well. Gumming excreting from the suture or early nut drop are both symptoms of boron deficiency. At harvest time, it represents itself as dried gum on the end of the kernel without any sign of a puncture strike from leaffooted plant bug/stink bug. Just be careful not to overcorrect, as boron toxicity can occur quickly in certain soil types.
A split in the hull with gumming due to boron deficiency. Photo credit: Mel Machado
Boron deficiency creates hull breakdown followed by gumming. In severe cases it may lead to gummy nuts that may become rejects. Photo credit: Mel Machado
Zinc supports shoot growth and internode spacing. Deficiencies often show up as stacked, shortened nodes — sometimes looking like a “Chia Pet” at the end of a shoot. Foliar applications are still one of the fastest ways to correct zinc deficiency, but fertigation and soil applications are also options.
Unlike boron deficiency, plant bug damage is accompanied by puncture wounds where the bug pierced the nut. This also causes gumming. Photo credit: Mel Machado
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ALMOND FACTS
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