LAKE COUNTY – Most Lake County residents have seen the popular bumper sticker, “Lake County, CA – We love it!”, and may have paused for a moment to nod in agreement.
The reasons to love Lake County are many, but one of the most obvious ones is the rural charm it has retained. This is largely due to the fact that Lake County was, and still is, a significant agricultural center. This is most apparent each spring when the pear blossoms line local roads in Big Valley, Scotts Valley and Upper Lake.
Few people are aware that one of the historical backbones of our local economy, the pear industry, needs all of our cooperation to remain viable. Fresh and canned pears from outside of Lake County are available at local supermarkets year round for the same price as local ones, and most people never think of the far reaching effects of their shopping decisions. If we as consumers make a conscious effort to support our local agriculture, pear orchards will continue to be a part of Lake County.
Besides purchasing local fruit and fruit products, and encouraging others to do so as well, we can learn what is required to grow a crop of tasty, sun kissed Lake County pears.
In response to public concerns about the use of pesticides, the pear industry and public granting agencies have invested nearly half a million dollars to date on research and education to reduce pesticide use and is committed to ongoing funding toward that goal. These efforts have resulted in a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Stewardship Award to the California pear industry in the 1990s and two California Department of Pesticide Regulation Integrated Pest Management Innovator Awards to Lake County pear growers in the 2000s.
The result of this investment is that pear growers have implemented nonchemical approaches to pest control. A major example is mating disruption for codling moth, the main pest in pear orchards that causes “wormy” fruit. This technique uses the female insect’s own scent, which is diffused through the orchard to confuse the males and prevent them from finding the females.
Mating disruption has been highly successful in Lake County for nearly 20 years, but it will not continue to work where codling moth “havens” build up in adjacent unmanaged backyard trees or abandoned orchards. Female moths that are already mated fly into mating disrupted orchards from these unmanaged trees and lay hundreds of eggs. This makes a big percentage of the fruit unfit for sale or results in a return to reliance on the pesticide approach to control the pests.
While codling moth is the major insect pest in pear orchards, it is by no means the only one. Pears are subject to many pests, such as blister mite, rust mite, pear psylla, oriental fruit moth and to fungal and bacterial diseases, such as pear scab and fire blight. All of these problems reduce quantity and quality of marketable fruit.
As long as there are unmanaged pear and apple trees near commercial orchards that serve as pest hosts, non chemical (“soft”) pest management techniques such as mating disruption fail and orchardists must use pesticides to save the crop.
As concerned citizens of Lake County, especially those who own property near commercial orchards, it is important to be proactive and do our part to lessen the need for pesticides by being responsible owners of our own fruit trees. In fact, it is not just the right thing to do as a responsible member of our community, it is the law.
Realizing that the very survival of the local pear industry was at stake, the Lake County Board of Supervisors passed an ordinance in March 2009 mandating that all pear and apple trees within a quarter mile of commercial orchards be managed regarding pest control, or they can be removed at the owner’s expense.
While the ordinance gives the agricultural commissioner the option of ordering trees removed, the County is willing to make every effort to help home owners in the vicinity of orchards comply, realizing its ultimate goal is to protect the pear industry and to encourage more environmentally friendly farm practices at the same time. This is certainly in everyone’s best interest.
The new ordinance defines “unmanaged” as being “unpruned prior to the end of full bloom and having had no effective pest management activity employed.” Proof of management includes paid invoices documenting pest management activities, such as to control codling moth, oriental fruit moth, fire blight, pear scab, pear rust mites, and pear blister mites It includes entire trees, as well as re-growth from previously cut trees.
In order to educate residents about the ordinance and to promote voluntary cooperation and support for its goals, The Unmanaged Apple and Pear Tree Outreach Program (UAPTOP) has been launched to encourage residents with unmanaged apple and pear trees within one-quarter mile of commercial pear orchards to remove these trees, perhaps replacing them with other types of fruit or shade trees.
To show their thanks for voluntary cooperation, local pear shippers have offered to provide affected residents one box of pears for each tree removed up to two trees.
For residents who would like to keep their trees, the UAPTOP team will also be providing education on how to safely and effectively control pests to keep their trees from being a nuisance to neighboring orchards and to improve the quality of their fruit. Stay tuned for more information on the program as it develops.
By participating in the UAPTOP you will learn how to properly care for your own apple or pear tree and help Lake County’s pear growers survive and preserve a way of life that is such an important part of Lake County ambiance and history.
For more information about the new Unmanaged Apple and Pear Tree Outreach Program, or for help with caring for your apple and pear trees, contact UC Cooperative Extension for the free Agricultural and Natural Resources Publication #7258, Apples and Pears; Calendar of Operations for Home Gardeners, or speak with your local UC Master Gardener at 707- 263- 6838,
Rachel Elkins is pomology farm advisor, University of California Cooperative Extension, Lake and Mendocino Counties, and Gabriele O’Neill is the UAPTOP program representative.
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