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About Capital press. (Salem, OR) 19??-current | View Entire Issue (April 13, 2018)
4 CapitalPress.com April 13, 2018 Willamette Valley farmers make switch to hazelnuts Farm is down to 20-30 acres of Christmas trees By BRENNA WIEGAND For the Capital Press When the last Christmas tree falls, Gerald Mast and Jerry Roth of Mast-Roth Farms hope their young ha- zelnut orchards will pick up the slack. Five years ago, after a glut in the market, the Mon- itor-Molalla area farmers stopped planting Christmas trees and started putting in hazelnut trees. Mast’s father-in-law, Don Roth, began planting Christ- mas trees about 40 years ago and Mast joined him five years later. Since then Roth’s son Jerry came in and the two now run the farm. “Labor was also one of the biggest factors for the change; we can do the hazel- nuts with just a few people,” Gerald Mast said. The farm is down to 20- 30 acres of Christmas trees from its peak of 400 acres. “All the Christmas trees are off the land that we own but there are a few pieces of leased ground that still have them,” Mast said. “The last couple years the Christmas tree market has been very good, which has been help- ful as we establish our ha- zelnut orchards.” They’re nearly finished planting hazelnuts. They’re in their sixth year of plant- ing about 30 acres a year and hope to end up with about 185 acres in nuts. Two years ago, they began harvesting nuts from 4-year-old trees and this past year harvested from 4- and 5-year-old trees. Brenna Wiegand/For the Capital Press Gerald Mast, left, and Jerry Roth walk a new hazelnut orchard. Mast-Roth Farms near Molalla, Ore., has planted about 30 acres of hazelnut trees a year for the past six years as it transitions out of Christmas trees. It was a low production year for everybody, but Mast and Roth were pleased at their yield, gathering 600 pounds per acre on the 4-year-old trees and a little more than 1,500 pounds on the 5-year-olds. Selling off some of their Christmas tree equipment has helped them in purchasing a whole new set of machinery for their new crop. Along the way, they’ve had a lot of help. They fol- low the program set out by Valley Ag, a division of Wilco, and Wilbur-Ellis pro- vides recommendations. “We’ve also learned a lot from other growers,” Mast said. “This indus- try is different than others; growers seem to share in- formation freely; it’s very refreshing.” Lately, some growers have been double-planting for higher, earlier produc- tion. Trees go in 10-by-20 feet apart and then when they start to grow togeth- er every other tree is tak- en out and the remaining trees end up 20-by-20 feet apart. “We’re going 18-by-12 because we figure we can get a few more years off the trees before we need to take them out,” Mast said. While the Willamette Valley produces about 99 percent of the U.S. supply, it only produces 4-5 percent of the world’s hazelnuts. “We haven’t hit the domestic market like we could,” Mast said. “When the supply is there for a year- round market, talk is there’s going to be a problem with overproduction if we don’t build up our domestic mar- ket.” In addition to the unpre- dictable market and labor costs associated with Christ- mas trees, Mast is just ready to stop. “I’ve done it long enough and the harvest is quite bru- tal,” he said, “It can be very wet and muddy and you can’t stop; you’ve just got to keep going.” QUICKSILVER POSTand POLE HIGHEST QUALITY POST AND POLE PRODUCTS State-of-the-art facility in La Pine, Oregon, manufacturing post and pole products for all Home, Ranch, Farm and Agricultural applications. STOCKING POPULAR SIZES SUCH AS: Prices quoted are F.O.B. La Pine, Oregon. Delivery to your location available – ask for details. SPECIALIZING IN BEST QUALITY HOP POLES! Sizes available from 3”x 7’ to 9”x 26’. Treated or Untreated. Custom sizes available. Call for your quote! Truck load quantity orders preferred. NO QUANTITY TOO LARGE! To discuss your project, please contact: Travis Cook, Sales Mgr. 541-371-1130 Joe Davidson, Sales 541-699-2498 Or email Travis or Joe at: qscpoles16@gmail.com Quicksilver Contracting Co. 64682 Cook Avenue, #99 Bend, OR 97703 Office: 541-382-3653 ONV18-4/100 • 8’, 10’, 12’ lengths in 4”, 5”, 6” and 7” diameter • 14’ and 16’ lengths in 3”, 4” and 5” diameter • 4”x 21’ Line Poles • 5”x 20’ Line Poles • 6” x 22’ Anchors • 7” x 22’ Anchors All of our products are harvested and manufactured in the U.S.A. ONV18-4/106
