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Hazelnut Growers of Oregon
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Hazelnut Growers of Oregon News and Events
Annual HGO Member Dinner
We are preparing for our Annual Member Dinner next month so save the date, June 28th at the Salem Conference Center. We are expecting a great turn out. Lots of exciting news to share and we will hear from Tim Aman on his first 3 months as your new Field Rep.
Invitations will be mailed out, soon.
Have new trees?
1. Watch for leaf-tiers and leaf-rollers in 1st year planted hazelnut orchards. The moth lays eggs near the growing tips, particularly the apical “main-shout” at the top of the tree and can cause damage to the new growth as it is emerging now and will stunt the height of the tree until a new bud emerges and pushes out new growth. There are different insecticides effective on an orchard if the numbers are present. Webbing forms on the new shout and the larva feeds on the new growth.
2. Fertilize your new orchards with a “controlled release” nitrogen fertilizer balanced with “P”+”K” and “Mg” if possible. Watch out for conventional fertilizer as they can salt-out and burn the new trees roots and damage new growth.
3. If you haven’t mulched around your new plantings, please do so as it reduces drought stress under the trees in the summer months. Even if you water your orchards, it is a real benefit in between waterings and it also promotes good bacteria and fungi around the tree as it breaks down over time. It helps to control volunteer weeds from coming up around the base of the trees. Use a composted mulch, as it will release “nitrogen” back to the tree. Raw sawdust is a nitrogen thief and will grab it before the tree can.
4. Always use an anti-drift agent in your tank mix if spraying herbicides in your orchard. You may not see the mist, but a significant amount of damage can occur by off-target drift onto you succulent tree’s foliage. A slight breeze is all it takes to make you regret the damage.
5. 1st year plantings have products such as Prowl and Chateau which work excellent for keeping your strips “under” the trees weed free. Remember weeds are our enemies, they steal nutrient, moisture, light and space from your trees. Do not allow them near your trees!
6. Orchards more than 1 year old can be sprayed with Alion and I have used it and it works great at keeping the rows clean from annual weeds for close to 1 year!
7. Foliar nutrients on new plantings have been used with good success, so consider a couple of sprays to stimulate the new foliage and roots for next year’s scaffolding growth.
Your Newest Board Member.
We are happy to welcome Ben Coleman to the Hazelnut Growers of Oregon Board of Directors. He now occupies the vacant seat of Tim Aman as of March 1, 2013.
A message from Tim Aman
After 30 years in the consulting business as a certified Crop Advisor and Crop Consultant with Wilco Farmers, I am looking forward to this new chapter in my career as it focuses on a crop with which I have a great passion for, and I am excited to see how we can ‘capture’ new markets and help to promote this unique crop in a very special growing region of the USA.
As a Crop advisor, I have been able to work with a number of farmers and growers in the St. Paul and Newberg demographic with many different types of crops. I have focused much of my career on hazelnut production and nutrition, stemming from our family owned hazelnut farm in Mt. Angel and through our micro-propagated hazelnut tree nursery.
Being on the Board of Directors for HGO and the acting president of The Nut Grower Society this year has given me a unique view of the nut industry from planting to production to marketing.
As your new Grower Consultant at HGO it is my intention to direct my efforts to attract new tonnage to the coop to help maximize the efficiencies of our ‘nut factory’.
I want to provide a level of crop production and nutritional advice that makes sense, and bottom line, provide a sound economic return on your investment. Sound agronomic advice makes our grower base profit through higher yields and higher quality jumbo’s which will pay premiums.
I hope to be a channel to the grower base providing you with updates on market trends of nut sales, world outlook, new markets emerging, yeild estimates and new varieties coming down the pipeline for future plantings. I am here to answer your questions about varieties, pests, how to plant a new orchard and the cost associated, and when you can expect to see a return on your investment. I will give the grower good, sound advice about this exciting tree crop.
Above all, I want HGO to be the first choice of new growers as they look for a home to have their hazelnut crop processed and sold.
I am looking forward to making new friends in this industry that looks extremely promising.
Regards,
Tim Aman
