8
in other words
may21
2015
Diggin’ in the Dirt: Water
By Chip Bubl
Oregon State University
Extension Service - Columbia County
Garden Updates
Western tent caterpillars hatched
very early this year. It wasn’t clear
whether this represented the first wave
of a very large population or just an early
hatch of an average amount. Cooler
weather followed the first sightings
which seemed to slow both the growth
rates of the already emerged caterpillars
and the pace of subsequent hatchings.
That pace has now picked up. An area
I monitor almost weekly has quite a
few more webs though they are still
relatively small but expanding rapidly.
So there isn’t a definitive answer as to
the ultimate size of this brood. They
are not worth worrying about on alders.
Fruit trees in Rainier last year lost much
of their fruit to the very large population
that munched its way through the
landscape. There still is an important
take home – these caterpillars will
not kill the tree. Once they drop to the
soil and pupate, the trees push out new
shoots and leaves. Several weeks later,
they look fine (except no apples on the
heavily damaged trees).
Fruit set on most fruit tree
species looks excellent. The early bloom
wasn’t frosted and the weather has kept
some of the worst disease in check. Apple
thinning could be done soon. Codling
moth females start to mate and lay eggs
about one month after full bloom. For us,
that is often late May. This year, it should
be earlier by mid-May. One good home
garden insecticide is spinosad, which is
sold under several trade names. Apples
need to be treated periodically (every 2-3
weeks) throughout the summer. There is
a virus called Cydex that attacks codling
moths but it is harder to locate. Some of
the older insecticides labeled for fruit
trees work as well.
Most of our vegetable crops are
off to a good start. Commercial growers
have already harvested one crop of
some of the faster growing species like
radishes and lettuce. It could be a very
good tomato and pepper year. But, this
is Oregon and the weather can turn on a
dime.
Water, water
One meteorologist described the
winter/spring moisture pattern in western
Oregon this year as a “wet drought.” On
this side of the state, snow packs aren’t
an issue but the volume of rain and its
soil storage are. Our rainfall is only
slightly less than normal for this water
year (October –September) so far. But it
came in several drenching periods and
then dissipated as runoff. This pattern of
rain falling in deluges has been predicted
by climate change models for northwest
Oregon. Right now, our topsoil and
subsoil profiles are quite dry. Watering
may need to start earlier.
Drying
winds,
warm
temperatures and transpiration through
plant leaves removes soil moisture.
Plants (crops and weeds) remove most
of the moisture. To grow a garden we
have to irrigate vegetables and lawns at
1 to 2 inches of water per week during
WANTED
Volunteers for Jamboree
The Vernonia Friendship Jamboree
and Logging Show is an annual
event which welcomes visitors,
residents and old friends to
celebrate and showcase our
community with food, music,
activities and events.
The Jamboree
Committee - your
friends and neighbors
who make this event
happen each year.
the summer. 1 inch of water applied over
a 30 by 30 square foot garden or about
1000 square feet = about 630 gallons.
Done 4 times a month = about 2500
gallons/month! When you irrigate at 1.5-
2 inches as the weather gets hotter, the
volume delivered climbs higher. Zoning
your irrigation by drip or soaker systems,
using mulches, and learning how to
assess your soil moisture status can cut
your water needs dramatically. So can
planting a drought resistant landscape in
the place of lawns. But the point is that
a vegetable garden (or lawn) can use a
lot of water. I do have concern about the
wells in Columbia County running low
this year. We shall see.
California is coming to grips
with the fact there is no more water
left to steal (if we guard the Columbia).
That very productive state is in trouble.
All their water is over committed.
Households are being rationed and
most farmers have received less than
their ration for several years. This year,
many will receive less than 30% of their
normal allocation.
Permanent crops like nut trees
and vineyards may have to struggle on
the roughly nine inches of rain that the
central Valley receives normally. With
choices to make, some plantings won’t
make it. I had heard that an almond
requires a gallon of water to produce.
At first I didn’t believe it but I did the
calculation based on average yield (2200
pounds per acre and 500 almonds in a
pound) and the amount of water applied
(3.5 acre feet per acre = 43,560 square
feet in an acre x 3.5 acre feet = 152,460
FOR TOWING EMERGENCIES
IN AND AROUND THE
VERNONIA AREA
Polife and County personnel are required
to use a rotation of available providers,
UNLESS YOU SPECIFICALLY ASK
for a servife by name.
cubic feet and multiply that by 7.5 (the
number of gallons in a cubic foot) and
you get about 1.15 million gallons per
acre used to produce about 1.1 million
almonds on that acre. The Central Valley
in California, where the almonds are
grown receives about 10 inches a year in
rain.
Do you know how much
irrigation it takes to produce a hazelnut
(or millions of hazelnuts) in western
Oregon? None, once the trees have
grown for one year. That is the virtue of
Oregon with our 35-45 inches of rain a
year in the Willamette valley. Enough
moisture is stored in the soil to grow the
tree during the spring, summer, and fall.
But we can’t grow almonds – too cold,
for now.
Plant an extra row for the food bank,
senior centers, or community meals
programs. Cash donations to buy food
are also greatly appreciated.
The Extension Service offers its
programs and materials equally to all
people.
Free newsletter
The Oregon State University
Extension office in Columbia County
publishes a monthly newsletter on
gardening and farming topics (called
County Living) written/edited by yours
truly. All you need to do is ask for it and it
will be mailed to you. Call 503 397-3462
to be put on the list. Alternatively, you
can find it on the web at http://extension.
oregonstate.edu/columbia/ and click on
newsletters. You can also be sent an
email when the newsletter is posted.
Contact Information for the
Extension Office
Oregon State University Extension
Service – Columbia County
505 N. Columbia River Highway
(across from the Legacy clinic)
St. Helens, OR 97051
503 397-3462
Email: chip.bubl@oregonstate.edu
REQUEST TOWING SERVICE FROM
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WE NEED YOUR
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We could use your help with:
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VOLUNTEER AND GET ONE OF THE YELLOW T-SHIRTS!
For more information to volunteer
and help make Jamboree happen contact:
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Volunteer@VernoniaFriendshipJamboree.com.
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