Friday, May 20, 2022
CapitalPress.com 7
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
Plans: Computer engi-
neering degree at Syracuse
University in Syracuse, N.Y.
Treasurer: Madi
Weber, Pullman FFA,
senior
How does it feel?
“Relieving.”
Agriculture background:
Family owns a wheat farm.
Family: Her dad was in
FFA.
Favorite thing about FFA:
“All the people I’ve met and
extemporaneous speaking.”
Plans: Considering study-
ing at University of Idaho
or nearby to become a
veterinarian.
Sentinel: Pedro Men-
doza-Zamora, Eastmont
FFA; East Wenatchee,
senior
How does it feel? “Sur-
real. I can’t believe it really
happened. I’m still try-
ing to process everything,
but I think it’ll be an amaz-
ing year with this amazing
team.”
Agriculture background:
Parents work in the fruit
industry.
Family: First family mem-
ber in FFA.
Favorite thing about FFA:
“Being able to meet diff erent
types of people from all over
Washington and see what
drives them to be in FFA.”
Plans: Major in zool-
ogy or animal science at
Washington State Univer-
sity, hopes to become a zoo-
keeper or private researcher,
working with endangered
animals.
Washington’s new FFA offi cers
look ahead to year after pandemic
KENNEWICK, Wash.
— New state officers were
elected Saturday, capping
the Washington FFA’s
state convention.
It was the first in-per-
son convention in two
years due to the COVID-
19 pandemic, and the first
time the convention has
been in Kennewick, Wash.
“For this year, I’m
really hoping we get mem-
bers back involved, back
in the swing of things now
that we’re mostly out of
the woods with the pan-
demic and can have things
in person again,” Samuel
Gillis, newly elected pres-
ident for the coming year,
told the Capital Press.
Gillis said he wants
members to be excited, but
also feel included.
“We’ve been suffer-
ing with isolation for so
long, just making sure
every member has the
chance to succeed and feel
included,” he said. “That’s
the big thing for this year
for me.”
The new state officers
are:
President: Samuel
Gillis, Elma FFA, senior
How does it feel? “It
feels great.”
Agriculture
back-
ground: Family owned a
small tree farm in Florida
for several years; when
he was 5, he and his dad
Matthew Weaver/Capital Press
From left to right, the new Washington FFA state offi cers are sentinel Pedro Mendoza-Zamora of Eastmont FFA in
East Wenatchee, reporter Lillian McGregor of LaCrosse, secretary Esther Grosz of Rochester, vice president George
Dress of Kamiakin FFA in Kennewick, treasurer Madi Weber of Pullman and president Samuel Gillis of Elma.
started a nursery in their
backyard, selling plants at
local fairs and festivals.
Family: His father was
an ag teacher and FFA
member, an aunt is a for-
mer state officer, grand-
father was ag education
teacher for 30-40 years.
Favorite thing about
FFA: “Definitely the com-
munity feel. I enjoy get-
ting to see all of the people
in different blue jackets.
It just immediately feels
like home and makes me
feel all warm inside, like
a nice box of good cook-
ies. It’s definitely exciting
to see everyone back and
in person for convention.”
Plans: Double major
in agricultural education
and horticulture at Wash-
ington State University;
wants to become an agri-
cultural educator.
Vice President:
George Dress, Kamiakin
FFA, Kennewick, senior
How does it feel? “It
means so much, it really
does. I don’t even know
how to explain it. It’s a
really great experience
to continue to benefit the
organization and Washing-
ton state, and make sure to
help members get involved
and understand what agri-
culture is all about.”
Agriculture
back-
ground: Family is involved
in the agriculture retail
industry, owning Ranch &
Home stores.
Family: His mom was
involved in FFA. Her
uncles were also involved.
Favorite thing about
FFA: “Just getting to
socialize with all of
the members and ben-
efit
agricultural
edu-
cation, agriculture as a
whole.”
Plans:
Associate’s
degree at Columbia Basin
College in Pasco, go on
to a four-year college to
study agribusiness. “I
really like real estate, so
maybe try to sell farms
and ranches some day.”
Secretary: Esther
Grosz, Rochester FFA,
senior
How does it feel? “A little
unreal, but super exciting.”
Agriculture background:
Parents own a farm in North
Dakota, manage it from afar.
Family: First family
member in FFA.
Favorite thing about FFA:
“The members. I love con-
necting with people. That’s
my big thing.”
Plans: Attend Washing-
ton State University for agri-
business or agri-law.
Reporter: Lillian
McGregor, LaCrosse FFA,
senior
How does it feel? “It
feels really great. I’m really
happy to help represent ag
and Washington FFA across
the state next year.”
Agriculture background:
Born and raised on a farm
in Whitman County, fam-
ily owns the McGregor Co.,
owns herd of 20 goats.
Family: Grandparents and
parents were in FFA. “My
parents actually met at an
FFA competition.”
Favorite thing about FFA:
“All of the opportunities it
has provided me ... It’s really
helped me a lot in terms of
confi dence. I remember my
fi rst FFA competition. Cer-
tainly I wouldn’t ever have
thought in a million years that
I would be doing this when I
started out in 7th grade.”
Stripe rust begins Company helps farmers ‘reset’ orchards, berries
to develop in PNW
By GEORGE PLAVEN
Capital Press
By MATTHEW WEAVER
Capital Press
The wheat disease stripe
rust has been found in a
handful of isolated areas of
the Pacifi c Northwest.
The fungus was found
on “isolated hotspots” on
UI Magic in Morrow and
Gilliam counties in Ore-
gon, and two commercial
fi elds near Walla Walla,
Wash.
It was also found at
low levels in experimen-
tal fi elds near Pullman,
Central Ferry and Walla
Walla, said Xianming
Chen, USDA Agricultural
Research Service plant
geneticist.
Recent conditions have
been favorable for stripe
rust development, said
Christina Hagerty, assis-
tant professor of cereal
pathology at Oregon State
University.
“Late arrival of rust
this year is good news for
growers,” she said. “The
earlier rust arrives in the
season, the bigger dent it
typically makes on yield.”
For highly suscepti-
ble varieties, such as UI
Magic and Mary, it is best
to spray when rust is fi rst
found rather than wait
for fl ag leaf emergence,
Hagerty and other OSU
researchers said in a recent
alert to growers.
Farmers should be pre-
pared for a second spray,
Hagerty said in the alert.
“Rust is never a disease
to chase,” she said. “We
need to stay on top of it
with timely applications in
infected fi elds of suscepti-
ble varieties.”
In his report, Chen rec-
ommended fungicide appli-
cation for susceptible and
moderately
susceptible
varieties of winter wheat
before the fl owering stage.
He also advised farm-
ers to check fi elds planted
to moderately resistant
varieties.
“Growers should check
fi elds immediately in
southcentral and central
Washington, Oregon, and
southern and central Idaho
for stripe rust,” Chen said
in a report. “Fields in the
Palouse region of Wash-
ington and Idaho and
farther north should be
checked starting about
(May 22).”
UI Magic is known to
be susceptible to stripe
rust. During years of dis-
ease pressure, growers
should utilize fungicides,
said Hannah Kammeyer,
Pacifi c Northwest regional
commercial manager for
Limagrain, which devel-
oped the variety with the
University of Idaho.
Limagrain is releasing
two new Clearfi eld wheat
varieties with improved
stripe rust tolerance in col-
laboration with UI — VI
Voodoo and VI Presto. Cer-
tifi ed seed will be available
this fall, Kammeyer said.
WOODBURN, Ore. —
One by one, the Prinoth
Raptor mowed over blighted
hazelnut trees in a 30-acre
orchard near Woodburn,
Ore., snapping branches
like toothpicks and leaving
behind a trail of mulched
wood and leafy debris.
Tom Senter stood and
watched as the tank-like
vehicle devoured each row.
These trees, he said, were
heavily infected with East-
ern Filbert Blight, a fungal
disease that reduces crop
yield and requires labor-in-
tensive management to
avoid spreading.
Senter, who has farmed
hazelnuts for 33 years, spent
six seasons trying to save the
orchard. Then came a major
ice storm in February 2021
that caused severe damage
for him and other produc-
ers across the Willamette
Valley.
“The trees just broke off
this high off the ground,”
Senter said, holding his hand
to about his waist. “That was
the fi nal straw. ... Mother
Nature made the decision
for us.”
Senter hired Advanced
Land Management, a crop
removal and reintegration
company based in Sweet
Home, Ore., to clear the
orchard. That will allow him
to replant newer blight-re-
sistant hazelnut varieties —
specifi cally McDonalds or
PollyOs.
It isn’t just hazelnuts
driving demand for the ser-
Best Prices on Irrigation Supplies
George Plaven/Capital Press
The Prinoth Raptor maneuvers along rows of hazelnuts
at an orchard near Woodburn, Ore., knocking down and
mulching trees that will later be tilled into the ground
using a Rotovator.
vice, said Matt Bostrom,
the company’s owner. Blue-
berry farms are also tran-
sitioning to newer variet-
ies that can better handle
extreme heat and drought,
while apple growers are con-
verting more acres to Hon-
eycrisp and Cosmic Crisp to
meet consumer demand.
“We can fl ip an orchard in
days, depending on the size
of it,” Bostrom said. “And
we don’t have to burn any-
thing. You don’t have hardly
any groundwork afterward.”
Bostrom
founded
Advanced Land Manage-
ment in 2008. At the time, he
was working mostly on tim-
ber and riparian restoration
projects, doing everything
from mowing brush to pil-
ing and burning nonsalable
forest slash.
Rather than resorting to
burn piles, Bostrom said he
wanted to come up with a
way to put all that organic,
carbon-rich material back
into the ground, where it
could improve soil health
and water retention.
In 2014, the company
acquired the 630-horse-
power Prinoth Raptor 800,
one of the largest linear
mulchers on the market. It
didn’t take long to draw the
attention of farms, Bostrom
said, realizing its potential
for resetting cropland.
The entire crop reintegra-
tion process takes several
phases to complete. First,
the Prinoth Raptor does the
primary mulching, knock-
ing down entire trees or con-
suming bushes down to the
stump and roots.
A second round of mulch-
ing grinds the material even
fi ner before it is mixed into
the ground using a Rotova-
tor. Once fi nished, the site
looks like a freshly tilled
garden, providing essen-
tially a blank slate for farm-
ers to replant newer and bet-
ter crops for their operations.
After about two years,
Bostrom said the organic
material
breaks
down
enough to signifi cantly
boost production.
“Overall, it’s been great
for the soil,” Bostrom said.
Advanced Land Manage-
ment works with about 200
clients per year in agricul-
ture and forestry, from the
Rogue Valley in Southern
Oregon north to the Cana-
dian border and as far east
as the Tri-Cities in Wash-
ington. Bostrom said they
plan to push into Northern
California.
“We have the right
machine for just about
everything,” he said.
Save the
Fundraiser for
Date
September 22
Oregon Cattle PAC
Why your donation matters...
We’re building a STRONG voice in the
election cycle for Oregon’s Cattle Industry.
Location: Powell Butte at the Malott Ranch on the eve
Sprinklers • Rain Guns
Drip Tape • Dripline • Filters • Poly Hose
Lay Flat Hose • Micro • Valves • Air Vents
Fertilizer Injectors ...and much more!
Fast & Free Shipping from Oregon
1-844-259-0640
www.irrigationking.com
of the Central Oregon Ranch Supply Tradeshow
Expect: Silent & Oral Auction, Food & Drink, Music &
Friends, plus first-access to tradeshow vendors
10% OFF
PROMO CODE:
CAP10
S280808-1
Register & Donate at:
W W W. O R C AT T L E . C O M