Crop insurance adjusters are now dealing with “well over 1,000” notices of loss following the late June heat wave, and tree fruit growers face tough decisions come harvest regarding which fruit gets shipped. To prepare them for the choices and the financial relief available to them, the BC Fruit Growers Association and BC Cherry Association …
CROPS
Province announces rodenticide restrictions
A new provincial ban on second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides took effect July 21, but it will have limited impact on farmers. The ban will last 18 months with the aim of reducing harm to wildlife, through both direct poisoning and the consumption of poisoned rodents. The active ingredients in the rodenticides cause death by internal bleeding. …
BC Blueberry Council gets a new chair
Abbotsford blueberry grower and veterinarian Dalbir Benipal is the new chair of the BC Blueberry Council. Benipal narrowly edged out fellow grower Jason Smith at the first meeting of the council’s nine directors following the council’s annual general meeting in late June. Benipal received five votes while Smith received four. Benipal previously served as vice-chair, …
Armyworm pressure low
Four years after an unusual outbreak of true armyworm on Vancouver Island and in the Fraser Valley, BC Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries staff continue to monitor for the pest and other threats to the region’s forage crops. Provincial entomologist Tracy Hueppelsheuser noted that trapping caught just 10 true armyworm moths on Vancouver Island …
Peace whipped by wild winds
The record heat wave that baked many parts of BC last week also created turbulent conditions for crop farmers in the Peace region, where temperatures exceeded 36 degrees Celsius. The high pressure system unleashed dramatic winds of more than 100 km an hour that swept down from the mountains. By the time the winds reached …
U-pick demand stays steady
U-picks that saw record traffic last year as homebound families headed to berry fields for one of the few socially acceptable – and socially distanced – activities during the pandemic saw a more regular flow of visitors this year. “Last year, overall, it was busier during the weekdays. People were working from home and there …