The 31st Annual Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) and Western Plant Health (WPH) Nutrient Management Conference was held in Modesto, CA, on November 8-9, 2023. The conference had over 120 attendees including crop consultants, growers, industry representatives, researchers, and government personnel.
This blog provides a quick recap of the event. For more detailed information, including summaries from presented FREP projects, check out the 2023 Conference Proceedings on the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) FREP webpage: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/is/ffldrs/frep/FREP_Conference_Proceedings.html
Pre-Conference Tour
The conference started off with a tour of Duarte Nursery. Family owned and operated, Duarte Nursery is the largest permanent crop nursery in the United States. During the tour, attendees had the opportunity to learn about irrigation and nitrogen management from start to finish in a commercial nursery.
Caption: Pre-conference tour attendees view production greenhouses (left) and learn about irrigation and nitrogen management practices as well as other industry practices such as grafting (right) at Duarte Nursery.
Day One
CDFA Secretary Karen Ross and WPH President/CEO Renee Pinel welcomed attendees to the 31st Annual Nutrient Management Conference. Their warm welcome was followed by a full day of presentations, workshops, and discussions facilitated by Dr. Jerome Pier, Senior Agronomist, Qualitech.
Caption: Panel discussion focuses on managing water and nitrogen in a wet year.
The first half of day one included presentations on two FREP-funded research projects and two presentations focused on fertilization considerations in almond orchards.
- Enhancing Nitrogen and Water Use Efficiency in California Carrot Production Through Management Tools and Practices – Ali Montazar, University of California Cooperative Extension
- Nitrogen Response of Industrial Hemp Cultivars Grown for CBD, Essential Oils – Bob Hutmacher, University of California West Side Research and Education Center
- Nitrogen Management for Almonds in Recycled Orchards – Brent Holtz, University of California Cooperative Extension
- Phosphorous Fertilization Considerations for Almonds – Phoebe Gordon, University of California Cooperative Extension
The second half of day one featured a panel discussion, two rotational workshops, and an evening poster reception.
- Panel: Managing Water and Nitrogen in a Wet Year: Grower Challenges and Opportunities – Khaled Bali, University of California Cooperative Extension, Nick Davis, Davis Vineyards, Mark McKean, McKean Farms, and Tom Devol, Almond Board of California
- Workshop 1: Fertigation Distribution Uniformity – Bill Green, Fresno State Center for Irrigation Technology
- Workshop 2: Salinity Management – Sebastian Saa, Almond Board of California and Mae Culumber, University of California Cooperative Extension
Day Two
FREP Senior Environmental Scientist (Supervisory) Mark Cady welcomed attendees with an update on current FREP activities including the Irrigation and Nitrogen Management Training Program and the Nitrogen and Irrigation Initiative. Cady’s updates were followed by a morning of presentations facilitated by Scott Stoddard, Vegetable Crops Farm Advisor, University of California Cooperative Extension.
Caption: Mark Cady presents FREP program updates (left) and Alan Blaylock presents on green ammonia production (right).
Day two included presentations on five FREP-funded research and education projects as well as two industry focused presentations.
- Immobilization of Nitrate in Winter-fallow Vegetable Production Beds to Reduce Nitrate Leaching – Joji Muramoto, UC Santa Cruz
- Development of Site-Specific Nitrogen Fertilization Recommendations for Annual Crops – Daniel Geisseler, University of California, Davis
- Crop Nutrient Minute Video Series – Parry Klassen, Coalition for Urban and Rural Environmental Stewardship
- Certification and Distance Learning for Fertigation – Carlos Orozco-Riezgo, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
- CropManage – Michael Cahn, University of California Cooperative Extension
- Green Ammonia Production – Alan Blaylock, Nutrien
- Multidisciplinary Research to Increase California Olive Orchards’ Profitability through Informed Water Management – Giulia Marino, University of California, Davis