IN YOUR ORCHARD
After the discussion with Bill Brush and learning about his four walls, I wanted to talk to growers about any cultural practices they have reduced. The most frequent practice mentioned was pruning. In my discussion with Steve Moeller, he said “Pruning doesn’t need to be done every year. It’s a labor cost that can be removed.” UC Farm Advisor Roger Duncan supports this as well. In an article he wrote titled “Pruning Almond Trees Does Not Pay” Roger states “…orchards older than 10 or 15 years should not be pruned for the purpose of sustaining yields, period.” By choosing not to prune you are saving on cost of labor for pruning, but also the cost to get rid of those prunings. Pruning is still needed however, especially when establishing new orchards and removing dead wood. If neither of those applies to your operation, it may be worth considering opting out of pruning moving forward. After all the discussions with growers about what could be reduced, and what should stay the same, I kept going back to the same idea…a budget! It sounds simple just make a budget, but it can be incredibly daunting once you sit down to do it. There are people who can help though, and the first one to start with is your PCA. When I worked as a PCA I created budgets with various growers, and it led to better communication between us and no surprises. Tom Evans, a PCA for Wilbur-Ellis said, “I like creating season-long budgets with growers because it lays out a plan and keeps everyone on the same page. Having a budget makes it easier to handle pricing changes and product shortages.” A budget with your PCA will also give you a game plan throughout the year of when certain pesticide or fertilizer applications are needed. It also takes away any surprises because you will know what an application is going to cost and the reason for the application. It also allows your PCA to be able to forecast the material needed in advance, which is vital in today’s changing markets. After establishing a budget with your PCA, you can start adding in other costs such as water, electricity, bees, and labor. Most growers have a record of all these items from previous years, so they can have an idea of what they will spend in the current year. Budgets are never exact though they serve as close estimates. You never know when you will have a mite flare
up or an equipment breakdown, but a budget gives you the best guide of where your money is going. No one truly knows when or if the cost of goods and services are going to level off. The only thing you can do as a grower is adapt. Luckily, that is what you are best at doing: adapting to new regulations; adapting to new pests; adapting to the weather. You will just add this to the extensive list of things a farmer has to go through. The best thing that comes from adaptation is knowledge, and that knowledge will stay with you. It will help you take advantage when times are good, and how to maintain when times are tough. From the “Four Walls” of what is needed, to where you can reduce cost, or how you can plan where your money is going by building a budget, we will all learn along the way. The more growers communicate and share ideas the better we all are. An African proverb says “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” Please feel free to reach out to me with other ways in which you manage your operation through these tough times. I would like to share it with other growers who may need help or are just trying to learn something new.
Trent Voss Regional Manager Blue Diamond Growers
Justin Elam Regional Manager Blue Diamond Growers
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ALMOND FACTS
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