Keep In Mind Availability Of Soil Fumigants

As almond growers make plans for tree removals and soil fumigation, it is important to be aware of the current state of availability and restrictions for soil fumigants.

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Which fumigants are available continues to evolve, and it is likely that growers who do plan to fumigate will need the services of a specialized applicator. Book those services as soon as possible to ensure applicators are available within the limited fumigation window.

As a reminder, methyl bromide as a preplant fumigant for almonds is no longer available unless growers have access to existing stocks from prior to the 2005 ban under the Montreal Protocol agreement.

As methyl bromide has gone away, the use of Telone (Dow AgroSciences) has been increasing. With this increased use, township caps are being hit more frequently — either in regions with high annual usage or when large acreages are to be fumigated. Once the cap is hit, no further Telone can be used in that township for the remaining calendar year. California labels for compounds that include chloropicrin, such as Telone C35 (Dow AgroSciences), have changed in recent years, and EPA last year revised mitigation measures for fumigants that contain chloropicrin. Those measures include buffer zone restrictions, depending on tarp usage, notification requirements and the requirement that trained applicators be present.

The Department of Pesticide Regulation will also soon release a draft risk assessment for chloropicrin with additional proposed risk mitigation measures.

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Source: Almond Board of California

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