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New York apple grower receives IPM award…
George Lamont’s innovative and best management practices in his tree fruit orchards earned him an “Excellence in Integrated Pest Management” award from the New York State IPM Program at Cornell University. The award was given during the New York State Fruit and Vegetable Exposition which was held in Syracuse, New York.
One practice he implemented ten years ago at Lamont Farms near Albion, New York, was to stop applying soil sterilant herbicides to the orchard floor and change his nutrition program. He now uses chickweed as a tool to help suppress other weeds and provide organic matter to the soil. Lamont was one of the first, according to Cornell University officials, to use a predator mite to manage red mites in the orchards. The predator mite was located on tree suckers from a nearby grower, and Lamont placed the suckers in his tree branches.
Cornell also commends Lamont for being an early tester of insect growth regulators and for working with the manufacturer to fine-tune application timing.
Lamont, partner in Lamont Farms with his brother Roger and orchard manager Rod Farrow, stepped down in January from serving for nearly six years as the executive director of the New York State Horticultural Society.
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Oregon Hort Society honors Henri…
Ron Henri of Bear Creek operations in Medford, Oregon, received the Oregon Horticultural Society’s Hartman Cup award for his more than 30 years of contributions to the fruit industry and community service. Henri received the award during the society’s annual meeting held recently in Portland.
Henri, a past society president, started his tree fruit career in 1974 as chief horticulturist with Harry and David. Today, he is senior vice president of Bear Creek Agricultural Operations. He has held leadership positions with many civic, agricultural, and land-use groups. He is a commissioner of Oregon’s Land Conservation and Development Commission, a governor-appointed position that works to adopt land-use goals and coordinate state and local planning, and chairs its transportation committee. He is also a member of the Oregon Transportation Commission-LCDC joint committee, a board member of ACCESS, Inc., and member of the Northwest Agriculture Consortium, workforce training organizations, agribusinesses, as well as farmworker and labor representatives.
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Dan McCarthy honored…
During the annual Okanogan (Washington) Horticultural Association meeting, Tonasket area grower Dan McCarthy was recognized for his dedicated service to the association. He is a board member and was president in 2000.
In addition to running his own orchard, McCarthy has been fieldman for the Okanogan County Pest and Disease Board for the past ten years. John Bartella, retiring Okanogan Horticultural Association president, who presented the award, said that as the pest board fieldman, McCarthy has always looked for programs that could help the county’s growers.
“He’s got the attitude where we’re all trying to help each other because it’s tough times,” he said.
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