IN YOUR ORCHARD
A Grower’s Pre-Planting Checklist • Calculate your breakeven cost per pound using realistic cost and yield assumptions. • Confirm water supply, quality and rights before moving deeper into planning. • Match rootstock to soil conditions, site limitations and long-term orchard goals. • Ask your handler how the variety fits current and future market needs. • Talk with neighboring growers who have experience with similar soils, water and varieties. • Include your PCA, nursery representative, handler and trusted advisors early. • Review independent field data and regional trial information where available. • Keep the orchard design practical for harvest timing, equipment and labor efficiency. • Complete needed soil preparation and amendments before planting. The Bottom Line
Choosing an almond rootstock and variety combination is a business plan, a risk-management strategy and a long-term commitment to a specific site. The most successful planting decisions begin before the nursery order is placed, with honest conversations about what the orchard must produce, what the market will reward and what the grower can afford. For growers considering a new planting, Ribiero’s advice is a practical place to start. Know your breakeven cost per pound. From there, every other decision on water, soil, rootstock, variety, marketability and orchard design should help answer one question. Can this orchard make money through the full price cycle? Article Contributed by the Almond Board of California
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ALMOND FACTS
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