California Almond Yields To Increase 6 Percent

By Tim Hearden

ORLAND, Calif. — Almond growers in California expect to produce a 2 billion pound crop this year, a nearly 6 percent increase from 2015, according to a government report.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service cites a robust almond blossom in forecasting a yield of 2,220 pounds per acre, up 4.7 percent from the 2015 yield of 2,120 pounds per acre.

The increase is expected even though some growers reported concerns about sufficient cross-pollination and though heavy winds after the bloom accelerated nut crop and caused limb breakage in some areas, the agency reported.

Dani Lightle, the University of California Cooperative Extension’s orchard systems adviser in Orland, said the nut set in the middle Sacramento Valley has been spotty.

“Some orchards look very strong and some are a little bit on the weak side,” she said. “I think it has to do with pollination and the flash bloom, whether the bees had a chance to get around or not.”