Klamath Basin Crops,
Products and Livestock

Oregon Agriculture Power Point Presentation March 2005 Oregon Dept of Agriculture.

Estimates for water now online, H&N posted to KBC 6/2/05

Regional and National Articles go HERE

Klamath Articles

38 Tons donated potatoes feed hungry around Oregon H&N 2/18/10

(Klamath) Potatoes cross the Pacific, Delegation helps expose Southeast Asia to Klamath Basin potatoes, H&N 12/17/09

 

< Sheepdogs have their day, 2009 National Finals in Klamath Basin, Capital Press 10/2/09.

Over 200,000 plants removed from Seiad Valley grow operation, Siskiyou Daily News, posted to KBC 8/25/09
From the archives: **44,000 pot plants seized in 2005, Last year, 27,000 marijuana plants were confiscated, followed by Billion dollar pot business takes hit, Liz Bowen, Pioneer Press posted to KBC 11/22/05
**25,151 marijuana plants confiscated in Siskiyou County, California, Pioneer Press 10/20/04. For more on local crops, go HERE. (Anyone want to guess why Klamath Forest Alliance wants to shut down our forests to logging and the public?)

Purple passion, new potato will be grown in Klamath basin, H&N 8/20/09

Klamath Basin farmers get rights to grow, market new purple potato, Oregon State University PRESS RELEASE posted to KBC 8/12/09

Fish farming in the (Klamath) basin, H&N, posted to KBC 7/6/09

Picking mint at its peak; Tulelake distiller helps determine best time to harvest,  H&N, posted to KBC 6/14/09

WESTERN INNOVATOR: Manager helps even out co-op's ups and downs; Greenbank revives grain co-op in area troubled by battle for irrigation water. Capital Press 5/1/09. Tulelake, Calif. - "Ron Greenbank's dream was to return home and give to the farm community that he loved." Oregon: The Agriculture Quarterly, Oregon Dept. of Agriculture, 4/6/09. "Klamath County, "$301 million 2008 gross farm and ranch sales." Klamath Bull and Horse sale brings in more than $300K, Capital Press, posted to KBC 2/17/09 Local farms lose operators and acreage; Latest agriculture census shows Klamath County losing 21 farms in past five years, H&N, posted to KBC 2/14/09 Siskiyou Crop Disaster Program deadline is Feb. 27, H&N 1/22/09

Ron Greenbank, manager of Newell Grain Growers Association, inspects a handful of white wheat from a 6,000-ton pile.

USDA Program sends assistance directly to ag producers; proposals due by March 2. Capital Press, posted to KBC 1/23/09

Farmers protest permitting program, Capital Press 1/22/09.

Klamath Basin harvest brings good prices, many challenges Fertilizer and fuel expenses up 30 to 50 percent in some areas, Capital Press 12/14/08 Video

< PHOTO-Javier Chevez is ranch manager at Sierra-Cascade Nursery’s Tulelake facility. About 500 people are employed at the Tulelake trim shed from the H-2A guest worker program, about half domestics and half from Mexico. (Klamath Basin) Family operation gives strawberries head start, Capital Press 12/20/08. "Last year (the nursery) produced more than 100 million strawberry plants in the Klamath Basin; altogether they grew more than a quarter-billion plants on 1,000 acres. VIDEO > Giving strawberries a head start

Farm prices not small potatoes, H&N, posted 10/5/08

Gopher killer takes the war underground, Farmer takes on rodent pests with automated invention, Capital Press 10/3/08. “This machine is an elegant solution and efficient,” (Allen) Hurlburt said. “It kills the gopher quickly and humanely. And there is no poison bait, and no explosions.”

Potato harvest underway in Klamath Basin, KDRV, posted to KBC 9/24/08. Story and video.

Local century farms or ranches, H&N 9/2/08

Five Minutes With The Rickert Family, Prather Ranch, The Cattle Network 8/30/08

Horseradish grinds out its place in market, H&N 8/7/08

Klamath Basin growers not joining gold rush on wheat crops, H&N 7/24/08

< (Sprague River) Ranchers find Salers a perfect fit; Disposition suits their hearts; quality suits their wallets, Capital Press 7/11/08. "Bruce Topham, owner of the Flying T Salers Ranch near Sprague River, Ore., said the propaganda about these Salers cattle sounded too good to be true. Today, 26 years later with 500 Salers, he is a believer."

UC extension leaders tout fresh start, Capital Press, posted 7/8/08

Farming with a second income, Family works to build farming operation, H&N 7/3/08

 Wetlands-crop rotation paying off, H&N 6/5/08

May 24th, Celebration of Our Arabian Horses

< Plowing in the Klamath Basin ended abruptly as 2 inches of snow covered the ground on April 8. It’s that time of year when the farmer just never knows what tomorrow, or this afternoon, might bring. Photo by Jacqui Krizo for the Capital Press.

Sheep ranchers work hard just to break even; High expenses, low returns … but it’s in their blood, Capital Press, posted 4/11/08 John O'Keeffe and his wife, Gail, raise Columbia sheep on the Oregon-California state line near Malin, Ore. They have 500 lambs from 300 ewes, with several yet to be born...I am a hobby farmer, he said, explaining that he doesn't make a profit from raising sheep, so it must be a hobby."

A tough season for calving, H&N, posted to KBC 2/10/08

Cattlemen’s group opposes deal, H&N 2/5/08. "The Shasta Nation of Northern California and Klamath Cattlemen’s Association of Klamath County voted to oppose the proposed Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement...this deal would be detrimental to the county’s cattle industry"

Klamath bull sale wraps up, H&N, posted to KBC 2/5/08 "105 bulls and 21 horses were auctioned"

Wheat prices climb to record above $10 per bushel on depleted supply, Capital Press 12/17/07

Adaptability a key word in agriculture, H&N, posted 10/29/07. Includes ag sales from '98 - '06.

Video of Tulelake potato harvest, Herald and News 10/4/07, YouTube

Articles with ** are our local pot growers crops, mostly grown in our national forests which have been shut down to logging by those involved in growing the drug.

CROPS: Oregon seizures of marijuana double in 2007, H&N, posted to KBC 11/8/07. Scroll toward bottom of CROP page for N California pot crops in forests shut down to logging by and for the growers.

**KLAMATH Basin: Beyond National Security; Inside the Wire & Operating from Within, Pioneer Press 10/19/07. "dirty cops working hand in hand with radical Native separatists and leftwing ideologues seeking to upset local and regional economic health and balance. In this formula, the dirty cops get hand outs, the anti-western Native revolutionaries destroy economic infrastructure, and the socialists running the dope trade strengthen their grip over policy makers. It's a win win all around except for pro-western farmers, ranchers, and common folk unaffiliated with the drug trade - that's you, your family and friends." For more on destroying our infrastructure, go to our Dam Page.  

Harvest under way; Frost helps effort to get Basin potatoes picked, Herald & News 10/4/07

Hay prices stay high all season, H&N, posted to KBC 9/30/07

Potatoes, Staunton Style, Farming in the Klamath Basin, Potato Grower, posted to KBC 8/16/07. “It is a win-win situation. The wildlife loves it because there are instant wetlands rich in food and habitat. Farmers love it because it rejuvenates the farm ground.”

Farmers reap high grain prices, H&N 8/16/07

Tulelake Basin soil cranks out heat; Horseradish farmers operate certified organic operation, Capital Press 5/11/07

Potato cyst nematode survey planned, H&N, posted to KBC 2/26/07

Organic grower figures extra work is worth it Klamath-area farm turns out wheat, barley, alfalfa and variety of row crops, Capital Press, posted to KBC 2/18/07

Hay shortage in Oregon, Mail Tribune 1/18/07

Supply management no longer 'taboo', Capital Press 12/15/06 "Today, potatoes are profitable again and the future looks brighter for those still in business."

New Potatoes, New Markets, H&N 12/14/06

**Brucker-Monkey Pot Raid, A ton of pot hauled out of Salmon River, Pioneer Press posted to KBC 12/3/06, (KBC note: Petey Brucker and Felice Pace, both from the East Coast, came to Siskiyou County and formed the Klamath Forest Alliance. KFA was instrumental in shutting down most of the timber harvest (and local economies) in Siskiyou County, keeping people out of the forest. He counts the salmon, the count that was instrumental in shutting down the coastal fishery this summer. He is Program Director of the Salmon River Restoration Council, Sawyers Bar, CA, and instrumental in films and efforts to remove the Klamath River dams. KFA bought www.klamathbasincrisis.COM and .NET, diverting lost KBC viewers to their anti-farm website. It was his daughter Allegra who was arrested for growing 2000# of pot in his neighborhood.)

**Tons of pot, FBI and Sheriff take $125 million from Mexican drug cartels Massive law enforcement operation pulls out six tons of Mexican greenbud, by Daniel Webster, Pioneer Press Publisher, posted 9/21/06

First run for mint still, Kinks resolved, equipment will aid research, Herald and News 8/17/06

**8,300 pot plants seized, The cash crop of Siskiyou 8,300 plants times $4,000 per plant equals $33.2 million dollars, by Liz Bowen, Pioneer Press, posted to KBC 7/31/06

(Tulelake) Mint farmer looks abroad, H&N July 20, 2006.

Going Organic (Modoc County), H&N 7/10/06

Show restraint, (potato)growers urged, Capital Press, posted to KBC 4/15/06

**Marijuana Crops in National Forests Invasion - The Mexican border has moved 800 miles north, The Town Cryer 4/14/06 "Please note the huge holes dug to plant. The land is scraped of any natural vegetation. Water is piped in from the natural watershed. Chemicals are spread over hundreds of acres. The trees are skinned with only a canopy left for cover. Remember, US citizens aren't allowed to touch anything in our National Forests."

Potato market looking promising, H&N 4/13/06

Research, potatoes, grass and water, H&N 3/6/06. Dr. Ken Rykbost retires. Klamath Watershed in Perspective A review of historical hydrology of major features of the Klamath River Watershed and evaluation of Hardy Iron Gate Flow requirements. By Dr. K.A. Rykbost, Superintendent, Klamath Experiment Station, Oregon State University, and R. Todd, Klamath County Extension Office, Oregon State University. HERE for Power Point presentation. 3/25/04. HERE for Dr. Rykbost biography

TULELAKE - Spud variety licensing shift under way, Capital Press 3/3/06

Genetically-modified seed stirs debate, H&N 3/2/06

Tulelake students get FFA farm growing by Jessica Hemphill, Tulelake, posted to KBC 2/19/06

Livestock health: regarding Neospora caninum: Wolves have by far the highest infection rate for the disease. This is a devastating disease for cattle producers
Transmission of Neospora Caninum between wild and domestic animals, UC Illinois-pdf document
Recognizing and Preventing Neospora caninum Infections Potentially Transmitted by Dogs, Coyotes and Wolves

Falling supply means more demand in Klamath Basin, Capital Press, posted to KBC 2/6/06

Cow Chips: Controversial microchips will ID all livestock, Tracking livestock will be a national “mandatory” program, by Liz Bowen, Pioneer Press, posted to KBC 1/23/06

Hay acreage up; prices stay high, Capital Press 1/13/06

Idaho spud prices disappoint, Capital Press 1/13/06 "Grower returns in Colorado have risen to more than $8 per hundredweight for spuds run through fresh-pack sheds. Wisconsin growers have been getting $8 to $8.75 field-run prices for Norkotah shipments, and in the Klamath Basin, growers have been receiving about $7 for Russet Burbanks and $8 for Russet Norkotahs."

Lamb hobby goes commercial, Capital Press 1/13/06

(Klamath Basin Potato) Spud co-op takes credit for national price improvement, Capital Press posted to KBC 12/25/05

Cattle prices heat up, Capital Press posted to KBC 12/25/05

(Potato) Co-op seeks to lower supply, H&N, posted to KBC 12/18/05

**44,000 pot plants seized in 2005, Last year, 27,000 marijuana plants were confiscated, followed by Billion dollar pot business takes hit, Liz Bowen, Pioneer Press posted to KBC 11/22/05

Potato production pales in 2005, H&N posted to KBC 11/18/05  “ 'According to statistics, we've had the best September and October we've had since 1995 on prices,'  Staunton said."

Growers report decent onion season, H&N 10/21/05

Klamath horseradish has global appeal, California Farm Bureau Federation, posted to KBC 9/22/05. "Several growers are raising a combined total of about 900 acres of horseradish in Tulelake, in the Klamath Basin on the California-Oregon border. That acreage constitutes roughly 30 percent of total U.S. production"

Sweet success, Klamath Basin sweet corn crop, posted to KBC 9/20/05

Pope Ranches ranks sixth in Oregon for Angus registration, H&N 10/6/05

All but Basin onion crops in good condition, H&N posted to KBC 8/15/05.

A gentler kind of drill, H&N 4/21/05

Klamath County posts profitable year, H&N 2/16/05. "Higher prices for alfalfa and beef cattle helped Klamath County become the eighth-leading agricultural producer among Oregon's 36 counties last year, up a notch from the previous year, a report shows. Klamath County posted ag sales of $182 million in 2004, according to a report issued this month by the Oregon State University Extension Service."

Potato co-op planners set costs, H&N posted to KBC 1/27/05

Local growers opening door to the Far East, Cooperative effort starts to pay off for Klamath Basin agriculture, by Kehn Gibson, Klamath Courier Editor, posted to KBC 11/8/04

It's harvest time for Basin strawberry plants, H&N 10/20/04.

**25,151 marijuana plants confiscated in Siskiyou County, California, Pioneer Press 10/20/04. For more on local crops, go HERE. (Anyone want to guess why Klamath Forest Alliance wants to shut down our forests to logging and the public?)

Klamath team prowls for new crops, Capital Press 9/23/04.

Mini mint still is ready for research 9/2/04

Approximately 1/3 of the horseradish grown in the United States is from the Klamath Basin. Over 1/3 of that is grown organically.  The bi-annual harvests employ more than 90 people. KBC photo taken 4/13/04

Small potatoes no more, 4/19/04 Capital Press