Paul Vossen, Advisor
Paul Vossen has been a Farm Advisor in Sonoma County for over 25 years. He works with the county's 800 small-scale commercial farmers who grow olives, tree fruits, nuts, berries, vegetables, herbs, cut flowers, and other specialty crops on about 8,000 acres. His goal is to help farmers, processors, and marketers make a profit in local agriculture while promoting sustainable practices. His research and educational program emphasizes crop diversity. He also manages the 200 volunteers in the Master Gardener Program who help educate home gardeners about pest management and good cultural practices.

 NEW PEST: Spotted Wing Drosophila (SWD)                                                                           (for additional information click here)

Research projects:

• Olive harvest efficiency trials
• Oil olive variety evaluation
• Olive fruit fly control trials
• Olive production cost studies
• Olive oil industry grower, acreage, and production survey
• Oil olive irrigation study
• Super high density olive orchard evaluation studies
• Blueberry variety demonstration orchard
• Apple variety demonstration orchard
• Chestnut variety demonstration orchard
• Codling moth control in back yard trees
• UC olive oil research sensory taste panel

Educational programs:

• Organic olive production short courses
• Annual olive oil sensory short course at UC Davis
• Annual landscape fruit tree pruning course at UC Davis
• Olive oil production, processing, and sensory evaluation course at SRJC
• Statewide olive oil production short courses
• One-on-one meetings with county farmers
• Specialty crops production short course at the SRJC
• Pruning demonstrations for olives and fruit trees
• Quarterly First Press newsletter of olive oil production and evaluation

Information and publications:

First Press: Newsletter of Olive Oil Production and Evaluation

• First Press Summer 2008 - Verticillium Wilt of Olive, Oil Crop for 08-09, A Sea of Trees, Olive Fly Stings
• Spring 2008 (Sensory Descriptive Analysis, Production Short Course Info., What's Happening in Argentina and Chile, and Special Report: Mechanical Harvest for Modern HD Orchards)
• Winter 07-08 (UC Davis Olive Center; New Pest of Olives; Olive Oil Blending; Storage Tank Materials)
• Fall 2007 (Bigger Crops; Adulterated Oil; Research in Spain; Harvest Efficiency; 2007 Cost Study)
• Summer 2007 (Preferences of trained and untrained tasters; Mass-trapping; Oil standards, Set alert)
• Spring 2007 (Pruning; Density Debate; Organic Olive Manual; Irrigation Alert)
• Winter 06-07 (Orchard Spacing; Frost or Freeze; Excess Nitrogen & Oil Quality)
• Fall 2006 (Oil Yield; USDA Standards Update; Maturity Index; Olive Fly Products)
• Summer 2006 (Irrigation; Industry Statistics Update)
• Spring 2006 (Fertility Management; Black Scale; Understanding Competition Results)
• Winter 05-06 (Foliar Disease; Weed Control; UC Davis Olive Oil)
• Fall 2005 (Harvest Efficiency; Olive Fly Update)

Olives	Apples	Berries	Fruits & Nuts
Vegetables & Herbs	Floriculture	Irrig./Climate	Soil/Fertility

Gopher and Mole Control

• Controlling Gophers and Moles (PowerPoint)
• Gopher Control Techniques

Farming Resources:
http://cesonoma.ucdavis.edu/common/findinfo.cfm?county=2161&findinfosub=4

Gardening and Horticulture Resources:
http://cesonoma.ucdavis.edu/common/findinfo.cfm?county=2161&findinfosub=6

University of California Agricultural Cost Studies:
http://coststudies.ucdavis.edu/