Program Notes
Staff activities

SAREP and the UC ANR Organic Farming Research Workgroup coordinated the first UC program focused on organic strawberry production in February at the UC Cooperative Extension, Monterey center in Salinas. SAREP director Sean L. Swezey, associate director Jenny Broome, education coordinator David Chaney, and program assistant Jeri Ohmart were joined by other UC and USDA researchers and industry speakers in the presentation of information on organic strawberry certification, economics and production. (See www.sarep.ucdavis.edu/newsltr/v15n1/sa-2.html for story.)

Sean L. Swezey presented a talk on “Pest management in organic strawberries” and participated in the panel discussion “What’s going on in organic research in the land grants?” with Ron Walser of New Mexico State University and Carol Miles of Washington State University at the Ecological Farming Conference in Asilomar in January. In February he was part of a panel on “Structure and development of California organic production and research” moderated by Will Horwath of the UC Davis land, air and water resources department at the American Society of Agronomy’s annual Plant and Soil conference in Modesto.

Jenny Broome and her cooperators received a second year of funding from the US-EPA Region 9 FQPA Initiative to conduct research on the use of her grape Botrytis infection risk model on California strawberries. Since January she and her cooperators have been setting up weather stations and research plots. She also finalized the UC Davis College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences seminar series, The Science of Sustainable Agriculture: Measuring the Immeasurable, that begins April 4 and runs through the fall quarter (see story at www.sarep.ucdavis.edu/newsltr/v15n1/sa-3.html ).

David Chaney attended the steering committee meeting of the Sustainable Agriculture Network (SAN) in March in Dallas, Texas. SAN, based in Washington, D.C. is the outreach arm of the national USDA-SARE program. Chaney serves as co-chair of the committee, which provides input to SAN on program direction, publication planning and outreach strategies.

Gail Feenstra, SAREP food systems analyst, has been named an associate editor of the American Journal of Alternative Agriculture by editor John Doran, USDA-ARS soil scientist, Lincoln, Neb. Feenstra joins former SAREP director Bill Liebhardt as one of the 32 associate editors.

Gail Feenstra, Jeri Ohmart, and David Chaney coordinated the final meeting of the five-state leadership team (Calif., Idaho, Ore., Colo., Hawaii) for the USDA Western SARE funded project, “Sharing Resources to Help Connect Farmers to Direct Marketing Niches.” They reviewed the impacts of the project and outlined a final Direct Marketing Workshop Design Handbook.

Bev Ransom, SAREP BIFS coordinator, worked with the California Dried Plum Board and members of the dried plum (prune) BIFS project management team to conduct a survey of California dried plum growers this winter. She is currently working with dairy BIFS farm advisors and specialists to develop a spring survey of Central Valley dairy producers. The results of these studies, which address current farming practices and knowledge of sustainable practices, will help the BIFS program, as well as industry and UC Cooperative Extension, target research and extension programs to best serve the needs of California growers.

Robert L. Bugg, SAREP senior analyst, was one of 14 science advisers asked to provide independent evaluation of the Eastern Merced County Natural Community Conservation Plan and Habitat Conservation Plan. Bugg also made presentations to 30 Marin County organic farmers on “Integration of the Whole Farm Plan” at a November event organized by Marin Cooperative Extension organic coordinator Steve Quirt and Ellie Rilla, UC Cooperative Extension farm advisor in Point Reyes Station, and to 100 attendees on “Influencing pest, parasite and predator populations via covercrop management” at a November Mendocino College pest management seminar in Ukiah organized by Jim Xerogeanes of the College.

Sam Prentice, SAREP postgraduate researcher, is in the final stages of coordination of the first round of Technical Advisory Panel (TAP) reviews for the National Organic Program (NOP). The TAP review process is part of the NOP’s mandate to develop a comprehensive set of national standards governing certified organic systems. Completed TAP reviews are now posted on the Organic Farming Information section of the SAREP Web site under Organic Materials Review Information (http://www. sarep.ucdavis.edu/Organic/materials.htm) as well as on the NOP Web Site, which can be accessed from the SAREP site. (See story on SAREP's work, www.sarep.ucdavis.edu/newsltr/sa-7.html .)

Visitors
Robert Bugg presented a slide presentation on organic agriculture and tour of U.C. Davis Vineyard (in collaboration with vineyard manager Richard Hoenisch) to 16 agricultural researchers from Jiangsu Province, People’s Republic of China in February. Also in February, Bugg hosted and gave a tour of local farms to Stefanie Aschmann of the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service, Lincoln, Neb.