Agriculture briefs

Apple moth quarantine expands

Sonoma County's Highway 101 corridor from Santa Rosa south now sits within a state quarantine area due to the light brown apple moth.

The county Agricultural Commissioner's office last week published the new quarantine maps on its website.

The expanded quarantine area, while expected, now runs from Guerneville Road in the north to the Marin County line and in the east from near Calistoga Road in Rincon Valley to Jonive Road west of Sebastopol. Along with Santa Rosa and Sebastopol, the quarantine takes in the cities of Rohnert Park, Cotati, Petaluma and Sonoma, as well as a large swath of the south county.

Growers in the quarantine area still can move their crops to market if they agree to adopt methods to prevent the spread of the pest. Even residents are directed not to take plants or homegrown fruit outside the quarantine boundary.

The apple moth, native to Australia, was first confirmed in California three years ago, and in Sonoma County in 2008.

To see the new maps, go to http://www.sonoma-county.org/agcomm/whats_new.htm.

Learn the latest hiring laws
Farmers can learn ways to comply with immigration and hiring laws at a seminar May 11 at the Sonoma County Farm Bureau.

Attorney Christopher A. Kerosky will address such topics as immigration law, filing needed forms and obtaining worker visas. Guadalupe Sandoval, of Sandoval Bilingual Safety Solutions, will discuss the information legally required when conducting orientation for new hires, as well as tips to improve the process.

The seminar will be from 8:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. at the bureau, 970 Piner Road in Santa Rosa. The cost is $40 for both farm bureau and California Farm Labor Contractor Association members, and $65 for non-members.

Advance registration is required by May 6 and can be done by calling 544-5575 or sending an e-mail to: info@sonomacountyfarmbureau.com.

Mertens keeps dairy board post
Sonoma dairy farmer George Mertens has been re-elected vice chairman of the board of Dairy Farmers of America, Inc.

The national milk marketing cooperative is divided into seven areas. The board of directors is made up of 51 members, each elected by cooperative members in their areas.

Mertens and his two sons milk 650 to 700 cows. Together they farm 1,700 acres of silage and hay.

Mertens will continue to serve as chairman of the Fluid Marketing and Public Policy Committee. He also serves as chairman of the group's Western Area Council.

— Robert Digitale