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CapitalPress.com
Friday, August 26, 2022
People & Places
Grower goes from teaching to farming
By JULIA HOLLISTER
For the Capital Press
Established 1928
BRENTWOOD, Calif.
— When Al Courchesne
decided to quit his teach-
ing job in Hawaii to farm in
California, he got some good
advice.
“I came here as a complete
novice, and the first local
farmer I talked to said, ‘Plant
peaches, you’ll make noth-
ing but money,’” Courchesne
said. “He was right. People
love peaches, and peaches
grow better here than any-
where, even Georgia.”
“Farmer Al,” as he likes
to be called, farmed toma-
toes, corn, mixed vegeta-
bles and soybeans in Hawaii
while teaching history to
eighth-graders. When he
realized farming was his true
calling, he gave up the class-
room and moved to Brent-
wood and started farming in
1976.
Today he farms 270 acres
in Contra Costa County and
raises more than 97 variet-
ies of organic fruit. He also
sells baked goods, dried
fruits, meat, poultry and gift
boxes through his stand and
website.
Disease pests are ubiq-
uitous, he said. Fungus and
bacteria are everywhere in
the environment and become
a threat when conditions are
favorable to their growth.
It usually has to do with the
temperature and moisture.
“As a general rule, bacte-
ria and fungi don’t like it too
Capital Press Managers
Joe Beach ..................... Editor & Publisher
Western
Innovator
hot or too cold, they like it
just right — just like people,”
he said.
Drought continues to be
the biggest challenge for Cal-
ifornia farmers but it has not
directly affected his opera-
tion because of strong, pre-
1914 water rights in the area.
“It has affected our plan-
ning and spending though,”
he said. Out of caution and a
desire for an “insurance back
up,” he spent several hun-
dred thousand dollars drilling
a well, which will only be put
to use if desperately needed.
He also installed perma-
nent soil moisture probes
throughout the farm to mon-
itor the ground and make
more efficient use of irriga-
tion water.
Fruit boxes are his biggest
sellers.
Brie Mazurek, communi-
cations director of Foodwise,
formerly CUESA, said Frog
Hollow Farm has been a part
of the Ferry Plaza Farmers
Market since the market’s
founding nearly 30 years ago.
“They’re beloved by mar-
ket shoppers and restau-
rants like Chez Panisse alike
for the delicious tree-rip-
ened, organic fruit, as well
as their hand-crafted pre-
serves and pastries,” she
said. “They exemplify the
environmentally sustainable
and regenerative values that
we champion here at Food-
wise, with care for the land,
their workers and our market
community.”
Labor issues are a concern
for Courchesne on a deeper
level.
“Labor looms as a dark
shadow on the horizon
because of the unfriendly
political landscape towards
immigrants,” he said. “Here
in California we understand
and welcome immigrants but,
generally speaking, immi-
grants from across the border
are not welcome in America
and that is felt in a very real
way on an emotional level,
in villages and townships all
across Mexico.”
Samantha Stinnett .....Circulation Manager
Entire contents copyright © 2022
Occupation: Farmer
dba Capital Press
Family: Wife and
co-owner of Frog Hollow
Farm, Becky Courchesne,
and two teenage daugh-
ters
Al Courchesne of Brentwood, Calif., switched from teaching to full-time farming.
Carl Sampson .................. Managing Editor
‘FARMER AL’
COURCHESNE
Hometown: Brentwood,
Calif.
Foodwise
Anne Long ................. Advertising Director
Education: B.A. in an-
thropology and Spanish
from the University of
California-Berkeley, 1965
Website: https://www.
froghollow.com/
Personal quote: “I
wouldn’t trade this job
for Jeff Bezos’ job.”
Immigrants just aren’t
coming to the U.S. to seek
temporary work like they
used to, he said, and fed-
eral programs such as
the H-2A guestworker
visa are not built to help
“small and medium-sized
farmers, but unfairly
stack the deck against
us, in favor of big con-
ventional agriculture,” he
said.
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See it? Squish it! Officials put out a hit on spotted lanternfly
By MICHAEL HILL
Associated Press
When Stephen Nixon recently
noticed a “beautiful” spotted lantern-
fly by his bag as he skateboarded in
Brooklyn, he heeded the request of
city officials.
He stomped on it.
“I don’t like killing things. Not
many people do. I’ll catch and release
cockroaches if I find them in my
apartment,” Nixon said. But he said it
“seems like something worse” if the
insect’s population explodes.
Kill-on-sight requests in New York
City and elsewhere are a part of public
campaigns to fight an invasive insect
now massing and feeding on plants
around much of the eastern United
States. Pretty with red wing mark-
ings, the spotted lanternfly is nonethe-
less a nuisance and a threat — the sort
of insect that inspires people to post
about squishing and stomping them
on social media.
In cities, it swarms outside build-
ings and lands on pedestrians. It
excretes a sticky substance called hon-
eydew that can collect on outdoor fur-
niture. The sap-sucking insect also
poses a danger to grapes and other
agricultural crops, which is raising
alarms this summer in New York state
wine country.
Across mid-Atlantic states, offi-
cials are asking people to help them
Lawrence Barringer/Pa. Dept. of Agriculture
An adult spotted lanternfly
track and slow its spread, even if they
have to put their foot down.
“Be vigilant,” said Chris Logue
of New York’s Department of
Agriculture.
A native of Asia, the spotted lan-
ternfly was first identified in the United
States in 2014, northwest of Philadel-
phia. It’s likely that insect eggs came
over with a load of landscaping stones.
Eight years later, there are reported
infestations in thirteen states, mostly
on the East Coast, according to the
New York State Integrated Pest Man-
agement program at Cornell Univer-
sity. Individual insects have been spot-
ted in more states, with two turning up
in Iowa this summer.
The insect has been able to spread
so far, so fast because it is a stealthy
hitchhiker. Drivers this time of year
unwittingly give lifts to adults, which
look like moths, perched inside trunks,
on wheel wells or on bumpers.
“Check your vehicle,” warned
Logue. “What you’re really after is
anything that maybe is alive, that
is kind of hunkered down in there
and is not going to get blown off the
vehicle during the trip. Really, really
important.”
People also unknowingly trans-
port spotted lanternfly eggs, which are
laid later in the season. Females leave
masses of 30 or more eggs on all sorts
of surfaces, from tree trunks to patio
furniture. Eggs laid on portable sur-
faces, like camping trailers and train
cars, can hatch in the spring many
miles away.
Spotted lanternfly fighters are doing
everything from applying pesticides to
cutting down trees of heaven, another
invasive species that is a favored host
of the spotted lanternfly. But public
involvement is front and center.
In Pennsylvania, residents in quar-
antined counties are asked to check for
the pests on dozens of items — ranging
from their vehicles, to camping gear to
lumber and shrubs — before heading
to non-quarantined destinations.
Around the East, people are being
asked to report sightings to help track
the spread.
And if you see one? Show no
mercy.
“Kill it! Squash it, smash it ... just
get rid of it,” reads a post by Pennsyl-
vania agricultural officials.
New York City parks officials
agree, advising: “please squish and
dispose.”
“Join Jersey’s Stomp Team,” read
billboards in New Jersey showing a
shoe about to stamp out an insect.
Heide Estes did just that after see-
ing a spotted lanternfly on a Sunday
walk in Long Branch, N.J., this month.
“I came back and I said to my part-
ner, ‘You know, I saw a spotted lan-
ternfly,’” Estes said, “and she was like,
‘Oh, I’m sure there’s more. Let’s go
look.’”
There were more.
Her partner, an entomologist,
put four in a plastic bottle to show
co-workers on campus what they
look like. They killed at least a dozen
more. Many were massed on trees of
heaven.
“Clearly, the whole spot was
infested,” she said.
Infestations in New York state
had been concentrated in the metro-
politan area, but have spread close
to the state’s wine-growing vine-
yards. Agricultural officials are con-
cerned about the fate of vineyards in
the Finger Lakes, the Hudson Val-
ley and Long Island if infestations
spread. Sen. Chuck Schumer said
Sunday the insect could cost the
state millions.
“The spotted lanternfly sucks the
sap out of the vines,” said Brian Esh-
enaur, an expert with the Cornell pest
program. “And it makes them less
hardy for the winter, so vines can be
lost over the growing season.”
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CALENDAR
Submit upcoming ag-related
events on www.capitalpress.com
or by email to newsroom@capital-
press.com. All times reflect the local
time zone unless otherwise noted.
THROUGH AUG. 28
Western Idaho Fair: 11 a.m.
Western Idaho Fairgrounds, 5610
Glenwood St., Boise. Western Idaho
gets together annually for this cel-
ebration of country living. Website:
https://idahofair.com
AUG. 26-SEPT. 5
Oregon State Fair: 10 a.m. Ore-
gon State Fair & Exposition Center,
2330 17th St. NE, Salem. The Ore-
gon State Fair continues through
Sept. 5. Website: https://oregon-
statefair.org/
SEPT. 2-10
Eastern Idaho State Fair: East-
ern Idaho Fairgrounds, 97 Park St.,
Blackfoot, Idaho. It’s fair time in
Idaho. Website: https://funatthefair.
com/general-info/
SEPT. 2-25
Washington State Fair:
10:30 a.m. Puyallup Fairgrounds,
110 9th Ave. SW, Puyallup, Wash.
The Washington State Fair is the
largest single attraction held annu-
ally in the state of Washington.
Closed Tuesdays and Sept. 7. Web-
site: https://www.thefair.com/
THURSDAY SEPT. 8
Farm & Ranch Succession
Planning and Working Lands
Easements: 12:30- 4 p.m. OSU Mal-
heur County Extension, 710 South-
west 5th Ave., Ontario, Ore. Attor-
ney June Flores will present on the
topics of succession and estate
planning, and how to prepare your
operation to be resilient for future
generations. Easement special-
ist Marc Hudson will answer your
questions about working lands con-
servation easements —what they
are, what they aren’t, and how they
may be helpful in executing your
agricultural business plans. These
in-person events are part of a free
6-workshop series in Lake, Har-
ney and Malheur counties. All are
welcome, and the events are free.
RSVP for these or any of OAT’s other
events and refer any questions
about the event to diane@orego-
nagtrust.org 503-858-2683
FRIDAY SEPT. 9
Farm & Ranch Succession
Planning and Working Lands
Easements: 12:30- 4 p.m. Burns Elks
Lodge, 18 N. Broadway Ave., Burns,
Ore. Attorney June Flores will pres-
ent on the topics of succession and
estate planning, and how to pre-
pare your operation to be resilient
for future generations. Easement
specialist Marc Hudson will answer
your questions about working lands
conservation easements —what
they are, what they aren’t, and how
they may be helpful in executing
your agricultural business plans.
These in-person events are part of a
free 6-workshop series in Lake, Har-
ney and Malheur counties. All are
welcome, and the events are free.
RSVP for these or any of OAT’s other
events and refer any questions
about the event to diane@orego-
nagtrust.org 503-858-2683
SATURDAY OCT. 1
Free Waste Pesticide Collec-
tion Event in White City: Rogue
Transfer and Recycling, 8001 Table
Rock Road, White City, Ore. The
Oregon Department of Agricul-
ture through the Pesticide Stew-
ardship Partnership is sponsoring
a Free Waste Pesticide Collection
Event. This event is an opportunity
for landowners, farmers and other
commercial pesticide users to rid
storage facilities of unwanted or
unused pesticide products. Con-
tact: Kathryn Rifenburg, 971-600-
5073, kathryn.rifenburg@oda.ore-
gon.gov Registration for this event
is required by Sept. 16. Website:
https://bit.ly/3FIoyFE
WEDNESDAY-
THURSDAY
OCT. 5-6
National Cooperative Busi-
ness Association IMPACT Con-
ference (in person and online):
National Press Club, Washington,
D.C. The conference provides a plat-
form to re-energize the cooperative
movement. Website: http://ncba-
clusa.coop
WEDNESDAY-
SUNDAY OCT. 5-9
Trailing of the Sheep Festi-
val: Ketchum, Idaho. The five-day
festival includes activities in multi-
ple venues and culminates with the
big sheep parade down Main Street
in Ketchum. Website: https://www.
trailingofthesheep.org
FRIDAY OCT. 14
Federal Milk Marketing Order
Forum: 12:30 p.m. local time Kan-
sas City Marriott Downtown, Kansas
City, Mo. Hosted by American Farm
Bureau Federation, the forum will
explore solutions to FMMO shortfalls.
Registration closes at noon on Sept.
23. Website: https://bit.ly/3QCo8Xp
newsroom@capitalpress.com
SATURDAY OCT. 15
Free Waste Pesticide Collec-
tion Event in Roseburg: Douglas
County Fairgrounds, 2110 Frear St.,
Roseburg, Ore. The Oregon Depart-
ment of Agriculture through the
Pesticide Stewardship Partnership
is sponsoring a Free Waste Pesti-
cide Collection Event. This event
is an opportunity for landown-
ers, farmers and other commercial
pesticide users to rid storage facil-
ities of unwanted or unused pes-
ticide products. Contact: Kathryn
Rifenburg, 971-600-5073, kathryn.
rifenburg@oda.oregon.gov Regis-
tration for this event is required by
Sept. 16.
TUESDAY OCT. 18
FIRA USA Agricultural Robot-
ics and Technology Forum: Fresno
Convention Center, Fresno, Calif.
The forum focuses on problem solv-
ing, decision making and planning
for agricultural robotics. Website:
https://www.fira.usa@fira-agtech.
com
SATURDAY OCT. 22
Free Waste Pesticide Collec-
tion Event in Madras: Jefferson
County Fairgrounds, 2110 Frear St.,
Madras, Ore. The Oregon Depart-
ment of Agriculture through the
Pesticide Stewardship Partnership
is sponsoring a Free Waste Pesti-
cide Collection Event. This event
is an opportunity for landown-
ers, farmers and other commercial
pesticide users to rid storage facil-
ities of unwanted or unused pes-
ticide products. Contact: Kathryn
Rifenburg, 971-600-5073, kathryn.
rifenburg@oda.oregon.gov Regis-
tration for this event is required by
Sept. 16.
MONDAY-TUESDAY
OCT. 24-25
Idaho Farm and Ranch Con-
ference: Riverside Hotel, 2900
Chinden Blvd., Boise. Registra-
tion for the Idaho Farm and Ranch
Conference is open now until Oct.
14. It’s never been a more import-
ant time to come together and
exchange knowledge and exper-
tise that position Idaho agricul-
ture for success. Website: https://
agri.idaho.gov/farmcenter/
conference/
WEDNESDAY-
SATURDAY
OCT. 26-29
85th National FFA Conven-
tion and Expo: Indianapolis. FFA
members from around the nation
will converge on Indianapolis to
celebrate agriculture and com-
pete. Website: https://convention.
ffa.org/
FRIDAY-MONDAY
NOV. 4-7
Angus Convention: Salt Pal-
ace Convention Center, Salt Lake
City, Utah. The convention pro-
vides industry updates, educa-
tion and networking. Website:
https://www.angusconvention.
com
TUESDAY-
WEDNESDAY
NOV. 30-DEC. 1
Organic Grower Summit: Hyatt
Regency Hotel and Spa, Monte-
rey, Calif. The summit offers presen-
tation, education and networking.
Website: https://www.organicpro-
ducernetwork.com
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Index
Markets .................................................12
Opinion ...................................................6
Correction policy
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staff and to our readers.
If you see a misstatement, omission or
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caption, please call the Capital Press news
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