13
ALMOND COMMUNITY
Get to Know Your
Board – Part One
This February, the Almond
Board of California (ABC)
announced the results for its
2019/20 Board of Directors
election.
The Board is comprised of 10
members — five growers and five
handlers — and each member has one
alternate. The Board aims to serve the
California almond industry through its
involvement in an array of activities
and responsibilities, including
establishing policy, recommending
budgets and programs to the
Secretary of Agriculture for approval,
and reviewing ABC programs.
The Board embraces the California
almond story and is living it every day,
just like you. But how well do you
know your Board members?
We asked our Board members
to answer a few questions about
themselves. Read on to learn more
about three members representing
you and check out future issues for
features on other members.
is, from my experience, a conservative
look at a "typical" (if there is such a
thing) almond orchard using drip/micro-
irrigation in California's Central Valley.
To use this graphic, choose your
current system DU and desired years
for ROI. Then, determine how much
you can afford to invest to improve
your system DU to 90%. The graph
assumes you are compensating for
the poorer DU by applying sufficient
additional water to the driest area of
the orchard. (Note: I used no yield or
quality improvements in the crop to
develop the graphic.)
It is reasonable to assume that
improvement in the drip/micro-
irrigation system DU will provide
greater control of the desired
application of water and fertilizer to
the orchard. It is then also reasonable
to assume crop improvement, income
per acre and an even shorter period
of return on investment.
Ultimately, maintaining your system's
DU has significant, positive impacts
on your bottom line and allows you to
better care for your orchards.
PUTTING FUNDAMENTALS
INTO ACTION
Do you have questions about how
improvements in monitoring can be
made in your orchards?
Visit Almonds.com/Irrigation to
download the Almond Irrigation
Improvement Continuum, a
comprehensive manual of irrigation
management and scheduling
practices. Key practices are
also covered in "The Irrigation
Station" series on the California
Almonds YouTube page. Growers
are also encouraged to visit
SustainableAlmondGrowing.org to
participate in the California Almond
Sustainability Program, which provides
a free irrigation scheduling tool and
assessments of on-farm practices.
HOLLY A. KING
Chair, ABC Board of Directors
Q: When did you first become
involved in the almond industry?
Holly A. King: I grew up in
agriculture, but it was not until the
early 1990s that I got involved in
almonds. My family was looking to
diversify outside of the Klamath Basin
due to water issues, and one of my
California Ag Leadership classmates,
Keith Gardiner, wanted to expand his
operation in almonds. We pooled our
resources and a family partnership in
Kern County grew out of that.
Q: What does it mean to sit on
ABC's Board of Directors?
HK: It is an honor. The almond
industry is filled with progressive,
Continued on Page 14
Holly A. King
Triple Crown Holdings, LP
More than 100 almond industry
members volunteer on the Board of
Directors, committees, subcommittees
and working groups to help guide
the California almond industry's
broad-based promotional and
research investments. Growers,
handlers, hullers/shellers and allied
industry members are encouraged to
participate in shaping future direction
and program focus.
Visit Almonds.com/Committees
to learn how you can get involved.
