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A 2011 CT Farmer Innovator Award goes to Michael Crowell of Bar Vee Dairy in Turlock, Calif. This award acknowledges the outstanding and pioneering work he has done to develop and expand no-till dairy forage production systems not only at his dairy, but also throughout the Turlock region, and also recognizes the very generous contributions he has made to achieving the goals of California’s Conservation Cropping Systems Workgroup.
CT innovators
Fritz Durst - 2011
A 2011 CT Farmer Innovator Award recipient is Fritz Durst, the owner of Tule Farms in the Dunnigan Hills in Yolo County.
Steve Fortner and Fred Leavitt - 2011
The CT Farmer Innovator awards for 2011 go to Steve Fortner and Fred Leavitt of Sun Pacific Farming in Exeter, Calif. Together, they have developed and successfully refined state-of-the-art tomato production systems that employ strip-tillage with winter cover crops.
John Diener - 2010
John Diener, the owner of Red Rock Ranch in Five Points, Calif., was named the 2010 CT Innovator by the Conservation Tillage and Cropping Systems Workgroup. He has been an articulate spokesperson for Central Valley agriculture over the years, and a demonstrated leader in a variety of civic, research and policy arenas.
Alano Sano and Jesse Sanchez - 2009
Alan Sano is the co-owner of Sano Farm, a 4,000-acre farm in western Fresno County. Jesse Sanchez is the farm manager. Together, they have developed revolutionary tomato production systems that are based on conservation tillage, the inclusion of off-season cover crops, and highly efficient and innovative management.
Sano and Sanchez have made advances in CT systems for a crop that previously has not had reduced till practices available. The essence of their innovative CT system involves permanent, 60-inch tomato beds, subsurface drip irrigation, winter cover crops (when water allocations have been sufficient to allow their growth), strip-tillage in the tomato transplant line, and minimal postharvest tillage.
Dino Giacomazzi - 2008
Giacomazzi epitomizes the intent of this prestigious CT workgroup award and he continues, and indeed enhances, our tradition of acknowledging truly outstanding innovation and achievement.
Tony Turkovich - 2007
In addition to the very extensive research that has been conducted at Button & Turkovich Ranch, Tony has been very generous with his time and farm equipment that he has contributed to the Sustainable Agriculture Farming Systems (SAFS) Project on the UC Davis campus.
Jim Couto - 2007
Jim Couto has excelled in developing innovative conservation tillage approaches for his farm and has become a true leader in the entire arena of CT in California’s Central Valley.
Tom Barcellos - 2006
Tom Barcellos readily acknowledges that there is a learning curve associated with transitioning to CT and that yields cannot be categorically guaranteed to be higher or equal to standard-till systems every single season. On balance, however, his experience and success with cutting out tillage operations have enabled him to continue to pursue a range of innovative CT practices quite successfully.
Bob Prys - 2005
Bob Prys is AgroManager for Borba Farms in Riverdale and has been extremely active and innovative in conservation tillage system development, evaluation and refinement for many years.