JULY | AUGUST 2017
Almond Facts
35
Check for signs of pests and disease once the nuts are shelled.
Compare damaged nuts to pictures found at the UC IPM
website: http:\\www.ucipm.ucdavis.
edu. A hand sheller can be helpful
in processing many samples. It can
take 60-90 minutes for each sample
depending on size. Five hundred
nuts split into four 125 nut samples
should suffice for a 40-acre block.
Understanding the types and
intensity of damage to harvested
nuts allows the development of
the most cost-effective methods
to manage orchard pests. If
orchard practices are changed for
a season, a harvest sample can
provide information on whether
the changed practices affect
marketable yields.
Dust Management
A major concern when harvesting
is dust stirred up by harvesting
equipment. To reduce dust,
consider oiling or wetting roads,
maintaining clean orchard floors,
using correct settings on the
sweeper head, reducing blower
passes, and reducing harvester
speed to allow more time for
gravity separation. Also, when
working near the edges of fields,
it is important to blow inward
so canopies can naturally filter
the dust. These practices are
important in all operations, but
are of greater concern when near
roads, schools, homes, or other
residential areas.
Stockpile Management
While waiting to be processed, almonds can be stockpiled.
Stockpiling has a number of advantages, including
getting the almonds out of the orchard sooner, the ability
to perform post-harvest practices, reduce in-field ant
infestations, and allowing greater flexibility in scheduling
transport to the processer.
When stockpiling, make sure that the moisture content of
hulls and kernels is less than 12% and 6%, respectively, and
choose a location which is suitable for drainage in rainy
Dust at harvest is always a concern.
Adjust equipment and harvest
equipment passes to reduce dust
movement onto the roads and other
people’s property.
