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CapitalPress.com
October 7, 2016
People & Places
Seeking a better Christmas tree
Gary Chastagner
wants to take
needles out of
holiday season
Western
Innovator
Capital Press
Gary Chastagner
Age: 68
Position: Washington State
University professor of
plant pathology at Puyallup
research center
Don Jenkins/Capital Press
Washington State University plant pathologist Gary Chastagner researches Christmas trees at the
school’s research center in Puyallup.
The American Phytopatho-
logical Society awarded him
the Excellence in Extension
Award in 2011 for his re-
search. A university proile
called him “Mr. Christmas
Tree.”
“Boy, as an industry, did
we get lucky when he decid-
ed to do research in our in-
dustry,” said Philomath, Ore.,
Christmas tree grower Betty
Malone, chairwoman of the
national Christmas Tree Pro-
motion Board.
“You can trust what he
says because he is so precise
about his research,” she said.
Chastagner said he’s not
sure when he will retire. But
until he does, he will contin-
ue working on a career-long
project: Keeping Christmas
trees from making a mess.
“If we can eliminate nee-
dle shedding, that would
be a major improvement in
the overall quality of trees,”
Chastagner said.
It was needles that got
Chastagner into Christmas
tree research.
Chastagner was hired in
1978 by WSU to research or-
namental bulbs and turf grass.
At the time, however,
the plant disease Swiss nee-
dle cast was rampant among
Douglas irs in the Paciic
Northwest. Needles turned
yellow and fell off. Some 84
percent of the Douglas irs
on Christmas trees in Oregon
and Washington Christmas
tree plantations were infected
in 1981, according to a USDA
publication.
The Legislature gave WSU
money to study the problem,
but the school needed a re-
searcher.
“I was the new kid on the
block. The dean came into
my ofice — it’s probably the
only time the dean has been
in my ofice — and wanted
to know if I would be willing
to work on Christmas trees,”
Chastagner said.
Research and solutions fol-
lowed, namely the application
of an inexpensive fungicide.
Only 13 percent of thousands
of trees surveyed between
1987 and 2007 had the disease,
according to the same USDA
publication.
“We got a clear path to
solving the problem, thanks to
Gary,” Malone said.
The success kept the North-
west Christmas industry from
losing millions of dollars.
Oregon leads the country in
Christmas tree production.
Washington ranks ifth.
Some 92 percent of the
trees are sent to other states
or countries, according to the
Paciic Northwest Christmas
Tree Association.
California is the No. 1 mar-
ket, but trees also travel as far
away as China, Japan and the
Philippines.
Some people like to have
their trees up for weeks, test-
ing the limits of even well-wa-
tered irs to keep their needles.
Industry surveys indicate that
consumers cite needle loss as
a top reason for being dissatis-
ied with a real tree.
“It’s absolutely primary,”
Malone said.
Chastagner and colleagues
at several other U.S. universi-
ties and in Denmark are col-
laborating on a multi-year re-
By BRENNA WIEGAND
For the Capital Press
Calendar
Brenna Wiegand/For the Capital Press
Dana Childers of Medford, Ore., and 2-year-old “Made You Look”
prepare to enter the ring at the American Boer Goat Association
show Oct. 1. Childers says the demand for goat meat in the U.S. is
skyrocketing because of the country’s growing ethnic population.
milk goats.
“When people think of
goats they think of skin-
ny, bony dairy goats; not
the breeds being grown just
for the meat and that with-
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1400 Broadway St. NE, Salem, OR
97301.
Ranchers of the Northwest will take
part.
Friday, Oct. 7
Oregon’s Bounty: A Celebra-
tion of the Harvest. 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
Oregon State Capitol, 900 Court
St. NE, Salem. Attractions ranging
from a giant chinook salmon to a
free pumpkin patch and an old-time
tractor display are planned. www.
oregoncapitol.com
Perrydale Corn Feed. 4:30-8
p.m. Perrydale High School, 7445
Perrydale Road, Amity, Ore. The
Perrydale FFA corn feed is a fun
family community event, a good
meal and a football game. Cost:
$25 for a family, $12 couple, $7.50
individual.
Friday-Sunday
Oct. 7-9
Schafer Meadows Fiber Arts
Festival, noon-5 p.m. Friday, 10
a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m.-4
p.m. Sunday. Grays Harbor Coun-
ty Fairgrounds Rabbit and Poultry
Barn, Elma, Wash. The Alpaca
Saturday, Oct. 8
Northwest Farmers Union An-
nual Convention and Meeting. Wal-
la Walla Community College, Walla
Walla, Wash. www.nwfu.org
Monday, Oct. 10
Why Save Farmland Discus-
sion. 6 p.m. Boise State University
Jordan Ballroom, 1700 University
Drive, Boise. The Treasure Valley
Food Coalition is launching this
initiative with a series of questions:
Why is the time right for preserv-
ing farmland in the Treasure Val-
ley? What is the value of farmland
in ive months can provide a
100-pound goat that’s ready
to butcher,” Dana Childers
of Medford, Ore., said. Her
2-year-old doe, ‘Made you
Look,’ weighs 225 pounds;
her males reach about 300
pounds.
With a 4-H beginning,
15-year-old Megan Walton
and her older sister Riley
started Little Star Farm at
their home in Aurora, Ore.
“Goats are popular around
the world because they can
go in groups; they’re easy to
eat because the bone-to-meat
ratio is better than cows and
they’re easier to keep cool
in the heat because of their
ears,” Megan Walton said.
The care they put into their
animals can yield healthy re-
turns, to which Childers can
attest.
“The more that you show
and the more that you promote
your herd, the more money
there is,” said Childers who,
with husband Bruce, owns
Childers Show Goats. “Artii-
cial insemination can be pretty
expensive; you’re looking at
about $100 for a single straw,
but with the right buck the ba-
bies will sell like mad.”
Bruce Childers would like
to see goat meat take its right-
ful place in American refrig-
erators.
preservation in the Treasure Valley
(economic, cultural, environmen-
tal)? Who is already working on
farmland preservation in the TV?
How can we work together moving
forward? www.treasurevalleyfood-
coalition.org
Gorge Fruit and Craft Fair. 10
a.m.-5 p.m. Hood River County
Fairgrounds, 3020 Wy’east Road,
Odell, Ore. www.hoodriverfair.org
Tuesday, Oct. 11
2016 National FFA Convention
and Expo. Bankers Life Field House
and Indiana Convention Center, In-
dianapolis, Indiana. www.ffa.org
Why Save Farmland Discussion
continues at 6 p.m. at the College of
Idaho’s Langroise Auditorium, 2112
Cleveland Blvd., Caldwell, Idaho.
www.treasurevalleyfoodcoalition.org
Saturday-Sunday
Oct. 15-16
All About Fruit Show, 10 a.m.-4
p.m. Clackamas County Fairplex,
Canby, Ore. This is an opportunity
to taste hundreds of pears, ap-
ples, kiwis and grapes and order
a custom-grafted tree. Speakers
will answer questions and an ID
Team will identify “mystery” ap-
ples. www.homeorchardsociety.org/
events/2016-fruit-show/
Wednesday-Saturday
Oct. 19-22
Friday-Saturday
Oct. 21-22
Montana Farmers Union Con-
vention, Best Western Heritage Inn,
Great Falls, Montana. montana-
farmersunion.com
Saturday, Oct. 22
Oregon Agriculture in the
Classroom 16th Annual Fall Har-
vest Dinner and Fundraiser, 5
p.m. CH2M Hill Alumni Center,
Oregon State University, 725 SW
26th St., Corvallis. The social
hour and silent auction start at 5
An independent newspaper
published every Friday.
Favorite Christmas tree:
Noble ir
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and at additional mailing ofices.
search project to identify trees
with superior needle-retention
genetics.
Christmas trees of various
types are being grown in dif-
ferent conditions. Branches
will be sent to Chastagner to
test needle retention.
“We are trying to identify
genes that are associated with
good needle retention and
genes that are associated with
resistance to Phytophthora
root rot,” he said in an email
following up an interview.
“There has been some dis-
cussion about genetically mod-
iied trees, but our understand-
ing of the genes that control
desirable Christmas tree traits
is very limited at this time,” he
said. “A few years ago there
were a number of stories in
the media about using a gene
from jellyish to make trees
that glowed in the dark. These
tend to get a lot of press, but
the reality is that genetically
modify Christmas trees is not
something that is likely in the
foreseeable future.”
“I think if people tried it
and it was prepared properly,
it would become a highly con-
sumed meat,” he said. “Goat
meat is so much better for
you than other red meats and
really tastes good if prepared
properly. Goat meat would
really appeal to people who
are health conscious and want
meat, if they really knew what
it was.”
The word’s getting out,
thanks to word-of-mouth
Facebook-style.
“Facebook is amazing,”
Dana Childers said. “I’ve put
goats on there and had them
sell within 10 minutes. Web-
sites are great, but the volume
of people you can reach in a
minute on Facebook is amaz-
ing.”
The family goat may also
be coming back into vogue.
“A lot of people are get-
ting 5-acre plots now and
goats could work very well
there because you put ive
goats where you can put
one cow,” Kilgore said. “A
family can handle them
easily and still have other
jobs.”
20 Northwest Locations
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Capital Press Managers
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Education: Bachelor’s de-
gree, 1971 California State
University, Fresno; master’s
degree 1973 and Ph.D. 1976
University of California-Da-
vis.
Boer goats spotlighted at Oregon show
McMINNVILLE,
Ore.
— The fact that many were
expecting twins didn’t keep
nearly 100 top meat goats
from congregating at the
American Boer Goat Associa-
tion’s Fall Show and Sale Oct.
1-2 at the Yamhill County
Fairgrounds.
South African Boer goats,
with their white bodies and
red heads, are docile, fertile
animals with rapid growth
and density of frame.
“About 60 to 70 percent
of the world eats goat meat,”
Ruth Kilgore, president of the
Oregon Meat Goat Producers,
said. “With our growing eth-
nic population, the demand
for goat meat in the U.S. ex-
ceeds our ability to keep up.”
In 2014 the U.S. imported
more than 43 million pounds
of goat meat, primarily from
Australia, for a total value of
$94.7 million, according to
North Carolina State Univer-
sity.
Before the Boers arrived
in the U.S. in 1993 people ate
Established 1928
Board of directors
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Steve Forrester
Kathryn Brown
Sid Freeman .................. Outside director
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Corporate oficer
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Chief operating oficer
By DON JENKINS
PUYALLUP, Wash. — As
beits a scientist who studies
Christmas trees, Gary Chast-
agner discusses his research
with good cheer.
Not that the job is a holiday.
The Washington State Univer-
sity plant pathologist tackles
problems that would make a
pre-reformed Grinch smile.
Slugs and yellowjackets
lurk in irs, and no one wants
that under the tree.
Like other crops, Christ-
mas trees are threatened by
pests and pathogens. Unlike
other crops, Christmas trees
compete with artiicial facsim-
iles. An organization called
the American Tree Christmas
Association touts the purport-
ed ecological beneits of faux
over ir.
“Everyone knows the envi-
ronmental value of trees, and
here we are, selling trees! That
have been cut off!” Chastagner
said. “I don’t know of any oth-
er agricultural crop marketed
as a tree — that’s been harvest-
ed. Even though it’s grown as a
crop and replanted.”
Chastagner, 68, has studied
Christmas trees over a nearly
40-year career at WSU’s re-
search center in Puyallup.
The research has been
wide-ranging. He evaluated
tree stands to see which ones
hold enough water to slake a
cut ir’s thirst (very few). He
set up a Christmas tree lot in
Tempe, Ariz., to test how Pa-
ciic Northwest irs weather
desert heat. The lot was not
proitable, but the venture
yielded information to help
other retailers, Chastagner
said.
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Oregon Society of Weed Sci-
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Western Hood River Inn, 1108 E.
Marina Way, Hood River, Ore.
Wednesday-Friday
Oct. 26-28
FSPCA Preventive Controls for
Animal Food Course, 8 a.m. Sprin-
ghill Suites by Marriott,424 E. Park
Center Blvd., Boise, Idaho. The
course will cover an overview of
the FSMA requirements for animal
food, current good manufacturing
practice requirements, animal food
safety hazards, an overview of the
food safety plan and other related
issues. Cost: $650/person for 2 or
more people from the same compa-
ny registering at the same time or
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