April 2019 - 35

NOTES FROM THE FARM
It's out with the old and in with the new
JERRY MILLS
Mills Apple Farm
jerry@millsapplefarm.com
Replanting. It is time to be thinking
about replacing some of our orchards.
I have heard it said an old man and an
old orchard is a formula for disaster.
Can't do much about the former, but
the latter is doable. So what to plant?
New varieties of old standards will be
our first concern. We need redder Galas
and Fujis. Maybe better Jonagolds.
Jonathans, which are popular here,
can be the same, just with more
modern planting systems. Same with
Grannies. I am tempted to order a
bunch of rootstocks and simply graft
them over.
Winter restlessness: What do you do
when temperatures are falling toward
zero, with high winds from the north,
chill factor well below zero ... and you
are going stir-crazy? Answer: Plug in
the engine heater on the track loader,
wait an hour, and then go out and clean
brush from the edges of fields.
My fields have more wooded edges
than not. Most of the invaders are
Osage orange, oaks and locust. They are
constantly trying to move into cropland.
The easiest way to uproot these
things is to point the bucket down
over them, then push down and then
rotate upward in a rolling motion
while pushing forward. The bucket
teeth will go down under the root
crown, lift it and much of the root
system pops up and out. Many plants
are attached to large older roots. Most
of the time roots, trunk and top will
Sherry Chase and her pruning crew at Mills Apple Farm, Marine, Illinois. Photo: Jerry Mills
come out without much strain on the
tractor. It helps if the ground is not yet
frozen very deep.
I'd guess I have reclaimed at least
two acres this way and stopped
encroachment from the woods for the
next five years.
Later we will come back and cut off
the trees that lean out into the field.
If I were more energetic, I would also
run the trencher along the edges to cut
the roots extending into the cropland.
Best pruning crew ever! Two
women, one in her 60s and the other
in her 40s plus two young men. The
women are meticulous in their work.
The men have energy and can heft
a chainsaw if needed. I have never
had such a nice pruning job and I am
proud of them.
Parkinson's hints: I just learned that
we who have Parkinson's disease have
more sleep problems than I realized,
specifically, insomnia, REM Behavior
Disorder, Restless Leg Syndrome and
sleep apnea. I have all of these.
For more information, Google
" Sleeping well with Parkinson's, "
then click " Watch on demand " and
finally register. There is no risk in
registering and it may set you up for
future webinars. There is a tremendous
amount of information available for
those who are curious.
I just completed a month-long therapy
class for Parkinson's patients. It was
well worth the effort. I now walk better,
have better balance and muscle tone,
especially in the mid-section. Kinda fun
overcoming these annoying symptoms as
they develop. Hope I can continue.
Going in for a valve job. Next week I
am going in for a valve replacement on
my heart. The operation is part of the
leading edge of heart medicine and with
luck will set me up for 20 more years of
active life.
Stay tuned. VGN
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April 2017 | Volume 56 |
Issue 4
200
H-2A workers approved for U.S.
150
* Excellent weed removal provided by
rolling cultivators or disk gangs.
100
H-2A struggles to keep
up with grower demand
50
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Graphics: U.S. Department of Labor Office of Foreign Labor Certification
* Renovate Strawberries, cultivate
Blueberries
* Cultivate close to the edge of
plastic.
Photo: Stemilt
By Gary Pullano
Associate Editor
H-2A, the country's agricultural guest-worker
program, continues to grow.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor
(DOL), the number of H-2A workers jumped
from 77,246 to 165,741 between 2011 and 2016.
Since 2001, there's been a 106 percent increase
in H-2A certifications. Certifications in Florida,
North Carolina, Georgia, California, Arizona and
Washington have doubled since 2011, according
to DOL.
In Washington state, H-2A labor certifications topped
15,000 last year, compared to just over 12,000 in 2015,
said Dan Fazio, executive director of wafla (formerly the
Washington Farm Labor Association).
In 2010, Florida employed about 4,500 H-2A
workers. By 2016, that number had risen to more than
22,800, said Michael Carlton, director of labor relations
for the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association.
The H-2A program is for seasonal workers,
generally for a period of 10 months or less, to
provide farms with short-term agricultural labor
when the number of available domestic workers
is insufficient.
The program has been criticized because it
See DEMAND, page 6
Washington growers focus on top apples
By Gary Pullano
Associate Editor
Several apple growers shared their
strategies for taking product " From Bud
to Bin, " which was the theme of the 60th
annual International Fruit Tree Association
conference in Wenatchee, Washington,
Feb. 19-23.
The conference was structured with
two days of orchard tours, two days of
educational sessions and a ton of networking
in between. Emphasis was placed on trends
and planning what to plant, how to prepare
and how to grow high-value varieties.
Production systems were a focus, and crop
load balance - including how to target fruit
and optimum return - were discussed.
Knowing when to harvest upon crop
maturity also was explored.
In the first day of tours, Jake
Robison, a fourth-generation grower at
Robison Orchards in Chelan, said he's
part of a transition plan to take over
the business, focusing the 125-acre
operation on identifying high-value
varieties in order to remain profitable.
Robison outlined the succession planning
that started on the family farm four years
ago. It's anticipated it will take seven years to
complete the process.
It's all about using high-value varieties
to avoid having to compete with larger
growers on lower-value selections. The
operation is located on sloping hills, unlike
flatter ground to which larger growers
likely have access, he said.
" What's good for the business is good for
the business, " Robison said. " The higher the
value, the better. We're always looking for
the next big thing that would make us a
lot of money. "
Harvesting 3,600 bins of apples in
2016, the effort came with 30 percent of
the orchard under renovation and out of
production, said Robison, who topworked
a Scifresh (Jazz) block.
See APPLES, page 8
Hillside Cultivator Co. LLC
911 Disston View Dr., Lititz, PA 17543
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Use discount code FGN19 at checkout.
Visit our web site: www.hillsidecultivator.com
or Call (717) 626-6194
VGN | APRIL 2019 | 35
* Toolbars include Hydraulic Width
Adjustment
* Very adjustable for use on many
crops
11
Tougher pesticide
safety rules are
now in effect
13
App to help
migrant laborers
connect with jobs
14
Growers share pros
and cons of H-2A
program
Cultivators designed for
Strawberries, Blueberries, and
Vegetables in Plastic Culture
R
S
L

http://www.hillsidecultivator.com http://www.fruitgrowersnews.com

April 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of April 2019