From the Fields: Steven Springer, Yuba County farmer

By Steven Springer
Yuba County farmer

I just finished my walnut harvest and started harvesting persimmons. I grow four varieties of English walnuts. Walnut harvest was a little rough. Yields were off probably 15%. The size is off, and the meat yields are down. I think the heat in the summertime and the extended bloom in the spring came back to bite us. 

The walnut market doesn’t sound like it’s very good. The last word I got was prices were maybe the same as last year. That isn’t enough to make it, with all the inputs being super high this year. Fertilizer prices are up, and now this fuel price right through our harvest when we’re burning the most. It adds up. 

The persimmon crop looks decent. I’ve got about 24 acres of persimmons, which are split pretty much evenly between the fuyu and hachiya varieties. There’s a little bit of sunburn from the heat, but overall it looks fairly decent this year. I would say yields are average. Quality is a little better in the hachiyas. 

I sell the persimmons right here at the ranch. I’ve had a lot of phone calls the last two weeks—people wanting me to get started. I just don’t have enough employees to do the walnuts and persimmons at the same time. I always start a little behind everybody because of my walnut harvest. I’ve got some pretty good orders through the first seven to 10 days. It looks strong right now. Our biggest customer is a wholesaler who sells the persimmons to grocery stores. 

Persimmon harvest will go probably through Thanksgiving. I kept my price the same as last year. I’m selling a 40-pound box of fuyu persimmons for $28 and hachiya persimmons for $24. I feel like if I raise it too much, I’ll lose some sales. You’ve got to find a happy medium between making a dollar and leaving them out on the tree.

In this edition…

• View full issue
• California farmers explore seaweed crop
• Soaring costs and low yield dampen walnut prospects
• Lessons learned from being a dot on bankruptcy map
• Ventura County's record crop values describe 'only half the story'
• From the Fields: Bryan Van Groningen, San Joaquin County farmer
• From the Fields: Steven Springer, Yuba County farmer
• From the Fields: Jim Spinetta, Amador County winegrape grower
• From the Fields: Billie Roney, Tehama County rancher
• Market, prices strengthen for sweet potato growers
• Advocacy in Action: A legal victory, air monitoring, kangaroo rat, screwworm and wolves
• Protein boom marks 'paradigm shift' in dairy sector
• California FFA students win in Agricultural Proficiency
• Protecting your herd: Modern solutions for livestock theft