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January 27, 2017 CapitalPress.com 9 Washington Farmers, DNR support longer lease termination notices By MATTHEW WEAVER Capital Press Courtesy of Tim Murray/Washington State University Snow mold in a wheat field. Washington State University research- ers say wheat fields reach a critical point for the development of the disease at 100 days of snow cover, and some fields may reach that point this year. Snow mold concerns loom as snow cover lingers By MATTHEW WEAVER Capital Press Snow mold is a looming concern for some wheat farm- ers in Central and Eastern Washington. “We’re (estimating) right now we’re at about 75 days of snow cover,” said Tim Mur- ray, Washington State Univer- sity Extension plant pathol- ogist, “In the world of snow mold, 100 days is kind of the magic number. When you hit 100 and if the soil was not fro- zen when the snow fell, that’s where we get concerned about increasing damage.” Twenty-five more days of snow cover is possible, said Dale Whaley, Douglas Coun- ty WSU Extension educator. The mold spores are on the wheat under the snow, Wha- ley said. “Actually, it’s a lot warmer underneath the snow cover,” he said. “You have the envi- ronment, the host and the dis- ease. That’s when you have the disease triangle and you start to have the full-blown disease.” Snow mold is primarily a concern north of U.S. High- way 2, and around the Water- ville Plateau, particularly in northern and higher-elevation areas, said Ryan Higginboth- am, regional extension spe- cialist, who runs WSU’s cere- al variety testing program. Most varieties grown in the area are resistant to snow mold, Higginbotham said. It’s usually one of the first ques- tions a grower will ask when selecting which variety to plant. “Most farmers, if they’ve had snow mold before, they remember, and they’re not real willing to plant some- thing that’s susceptible,” he said. At this point, farmers can only hope that the mold doesn’t develop, Whaley said. They should scout their field when the snow comes off, looking for gray snow mold or speckled snow mold, which has a pinkish hue, he said. “We don’t expect huge losses from it, but the poten- tial for damage is there, that’s for sure,” Murray said. A variety selection tool, available on WSU’s small grains website, includes rat- ings for snow mold resistance, Higginbotham said. The snow cover protects wheat plants from the cold, Whaley said. “It’s a catch-22 — you want the snow cover, especial- ly if you’re forecast for subzero temperatures and any wind,” he said. “But then you don’t want the snow cover to lay around forever, because then snow mold can be an issue. There’s never a happy medium as a small grains producer.” Washington wheat farmers and the state Department of Natural Resources both sup- port a Senate bill that would increase the notice the agency must give farmers before ter- minating a lease on state land. Farmers and the depart- ment testified Jan. 19 in favor of Senate Bill 5051 before the state Senate Agriculture, Wa- ter, Trade and Economic De- velopment Committee. In the case of a “non-default termination,” the department is authorized to terminate a lease for “higher and better use, land exchange or sale.” The bill would require DNR to give written notice to farmers 180 days before termi- nation of the lease, and give to farmers written documentation of its plan for the land. The bill is in response to a situation last summer, when DNR terminated the leases of several Benton County farm- ers. The leases were to expire in 2020. DNR intends to convert the roughly 4,000 acres of dryland wheat production into irrigat- ed land for row crops and or- chards using its surface water right from the Columbia River, said Darin Cramer, manager of the department’s sales and leasing division. The department terminated the leases for four or five dry- land farmers, Cramer said. “At first, there was no com- pensation,” said Michelle Hen- nings, executive director of the Washington Association of Wheat Growers. “(DNR) just said, ‘Oh, no, you have to do this and you get nothing.’” Some of the farmers had already seeded the land, Hen- nings said. “Communication was han- dled poorly with those ten- ants,” Cramer said. “We didn’t do as good a job as we should have. We didn’t notify them as early as we should have. We had some miscommunication internally. One hand thought it happened, but it actually didn’t. When we went to meet with them, as you might imag- ine, those folks were surprised and not pleased.” DNR came to terms with all farmers, Cramer said. “We did arrive at what we consider fair compensation,” he said. “It’s my understand- ing some of those folks didn’t think the compensation was fair, but they did accept the compensation and cash the check.” Hennings said the offer covered costs, but the farm- ers were offered the option of accepting it or taking it to court. The growers did not want to take on the risk of losing the lawsuit and having to pay DNR’s attorney fees as well as their own, she said. The bill is consistent with practices the department has implemented in recent months, Cramer said. The de- partment has begun moving toward longer notification periods, he said. Farmers Chad Smith and Nicole Berg and lobbyist Diana Carlen testified in fa- vor of the bill, according to WAWG. Hennings said wheat grow- ers have asked for advance notice of a crop year instead of 180 days. Cramer said that would be fine with DNR. Puget Sound farm group shifts approach to saving crop land By DON JENKINS Capital Press SNOHOMISH COUNTY, Wash. — The Washington State Conservation Commis- sion toured the fast-growing north Puget Sound area last week, and farmer Dan Bartel- heimer had something to tell it. “This agricultural land needs to be protected and kept intact,” said Bartelheimer, president of the Snohomish County Farm Bureau. The simple message won’t be easy to carry out. The coun- ty’s agricultural sector has been losing ground to private development and government projects. The first stop on the commission’s tour was a for- mer dairy that will become a city park. Bartelheimer’s farm was the second stop. His family has been farming in the coun- ty for more than a century. Times have changed. “It seem like everybody’s sitting on a hill and looking down and ex- pressing their opinion, ‘Hey, here’s how they should do it.’ And years ago, we didn’t have that,” he said. So, Bartelheimer said, farmers must change, too. “The Farm Bureau has al- Don Jenkins/Capital Press Snohomish County Farm Bureau President Dan Bartelheimer, right, gestures while talking about preserving farmland during a Washington State Conservation Commission tour at his farm Jan. 18. Snohomish County Conservation District Manager Monte Marti looks on. ways been great for property rights,” he said in a post-tour interview. “It’s not just prop- erty rights. It’s responsible stewardship. We have to look at things a little differently if we’re going to preserve agri- culture in the community.” The county Farm Bureau has tried in vain to claim that converting publicly owned farmland into fish habitat vio- lates the state’s Growth Man- agement Act. Last summer, farmers shifted tactics. They hosted a dinner for govern- ment officials, environmental- ists and tribal leaders. “It was a very power- ful dinner,” organic farmer Tristan Klesick said. “When you break bread, you can’t demonize the person in front of you.” Snohomish County Con- servation District Manager Monte Marti said he’ll re- member the evening forever. “This has not been easy for Dan (Bartelheimer) to come to the table,” Marti said. “There are probably Farm Bureau members who think he’s nuts for even sitting at the table. “He’s not backing down on his beliefs. He still has very strong principles,” Marti said. “At least he’s going to get his day in court. He’s being heard.” The county has an array of land preservation initiatives. Bartelheimer said the Farm Bureau has been reluctant to engage because of the belief that projects valued fish res- toration over farmland pres- ervation. Large Transmission Power Lines on Your Property? Lease Us Your Land! 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