Sandbox

The ongoing project at Pine Island Cranberry this week continues to be sanding, and the winter weather has continued to give our sanding team some challenges. While there hasn’t been much snow, the cold can still cause problems.

GM Fred Torres explains: “It was less than 25 degrees the other morning; that’s cold! When we started digging, there was a crust on the mound of sand; as you dig, you have to try to get that off and then start digging into the mound itself. It mostly works, but some of those clumps inevitably roll down and it’s so cold they don’t break up. Some go into the bucket, some get into truck, and from there some get into the sander. We try to take them out as we see them, but it’s inefficient for everyone.” Team member Jorge Morales tried out the GoPro this week to help demonstrate the issue. (Left unanswered is why he feels the need to wear Dallas Cowboys gear in Eagles country, but perhaps that’s better for all concerned.)

GoPro – Jorge from Pine Island Cranberry on Vimeo.

Things improved after lunch as the temperature went up into the thirties, but as Fred says, “You have to sand when it’s time to sand; you can’t wait for perfect weather to do what needs to be done.”

One thing that’s been a tremendous help to our team is the new sandbox. Built by our equipment team, the sandbox was designed to improve efficiency and reduce waste. In previous years, trucks would back up to the location and just drop sand directly onto the dam. “We figured out that dropping sand directly causes us to lose at least ten percent of it,” says Fred. “That means for every ten truckloads you lose at least one. That’s a lot. But with the box, we don’t lose anything and we’re able to use our time more efficiently; we can get a lot more done. The box keeps everything contained; we don’t lose anything and it’s easier to clean up.”

You can see from Joel DeJesus’ point of view how much easier it is, as well:

GoPro – Excavator from Pine Island Cranberry on Vimeo.

With both teamwork and technology, our team continues to be highly efficient no matter what the weather!

Ice Sanding

Pine Island Cranberry has been steadily working on sanding via barge since the winter flood went on last month. Sanding is a fundamental component of our Pine Island Integrated Crop Management (PIICM) program, helping us manage the relationship between water, soil, weather, disease, insects, weeds, and nutrition. This procedure helps improve growth and yield by stimulating the development of new uprights (covering the base of the roots strengthens the root system and creates a more healthy vine) while also suppressing disease and reducing insects (by burying weed seed, spores, and insect eggs). It also improves soil drainage while at the same time absorbing and releasing heat so that frost danger in spring is lessened. This increases our efficiency by lowering the need for extra plant nutrition as well as saving water by cutting down frost irrigation times. This year, it’s been cold enough to attempt sanding via another method: ice sanding.

Most growers typically try ice sanding mid January through mid February, when conditions are cold enough to give them ice that can support the sanding equipment. At Pine Island, that usually means about five inches of ice. Once that happens, we’ll temporarily take the water underneath off the bog while the equipment is on the ice. The method itself is simple: an ice sander (that will spread an even half-inch layer of sand on the ice) is attached to a tractor. When the ice melts the sand will sift into the vines. Once the ice is gone, the sand sinks, covering the runners and giving the vines the benefits mentioned above.

Unfortunately, snow has been hindering this week’s efforts, and while the temperature has been cold enough to form a thick layer of ice, it’s actually been too cold to make ice sanding efficient. “You have to wait for this kind of weather,” says team member Jorge Morales. “It’s been a while since it’s been this cold. Three, four years maybe. We did ice sanding on two bogs at Weymouth and did pretty well over there.”

“We didn’t get enough wind to take the fresh powder off,” says GM Fred Torres. “At some point, you’re pushing the snow around and just spinning your wheels. You’re on the ice and there’s no traction at all. When conditions are good, the ice is covered just like you’re painting it, but with this loose powder it makes for a sloppy job.”

There are also problems with the equipment when the temperature drops into the teens, so Wednesday morning we didn’t even attempt to work outside.

Jorge says wet sand has been an issue as well. “That’s been an ongoing problem even when we were out on the water,” he says. “It’s been so cold that we’ve had problems getting sand through the screener; we’ve just had too much snow.” Fred agrees, but takes a pragmatic view of the delay: “We tried; you have to give it a shot. If the temperature had gotten into the twenties we’d have been okay. But that’s why we always make an alternate plan.”

Winter Routine: Sanding

Now that the big show is over, Pine Island Cranberry has settled into the winter routine, chiefly the winter flood and sanding. (Though the weather has been so lovely that, as team member Vincent Arnwine says, it’s more like fall sanding.) Sanding is a big part of our striving for continuous improvement. “We are constantly evaluating and re-evaluating what sanding does for us,” says PIICM manager Cristina Tassone.

As we mentioned here last December, sanding is a process where we apply 1/2″ to 1″ of sand on the bog surface every five years on a rotating basis. This year we are scheduled to sand almost 215 acres. This procedure helps improve growth and yield by stimulating the development of new uprights (covering the base of the roots strengthens the root system and creates a more healthy vine) while also suppressing disease and reducing insects (by burying weed seed, spores, and insect eggs). It also improves soil drainage while at the same time absorbing and releasing heat so that frost danger in spring is lessened. This increases our efficiency by lowering the need for extra plant nutrition as well as saving water by cutting down frost irrigation times.

“This year, we’re isolating all variables to see what sanding really does for us and what is really needed,” says Cristina. “To that end, we’re moving to a six-year cycle. A good sanding plan means not having to micromanage the relationship between frost, weather, disease, insects, weeds, and nutrition.”

Also, the sand needs to be as pure as possible in order to prevent soil compaction (which can restrict water and limit growth) so we screen our sand before using it on the barge to take out any clay, stones, or other debris which could cause problems. “It’s important to make sure you’re screening ‘good’ sand and not clay,” says team member Junior Colon.

The process itself is simple: a dump truck is loaded with two or three loader buckets of sand. The dump truck then heads over to the bog being sanded, backs up to the excavator, and drops the load. The excavator operator then loads the hopper of the sander, while the sander operator moves along the cable, adjusting the opening for the sand to fall. Jorge is sanding at 1/2″ for this particular bog. The process is repeated, with the excavator and tractor moving forward the length of the bog together.

Sanding from Pine Island Cranberry on Vimeo.

Sanding

Now that the bogs are flooded for the winter, we have started our next big project at Pine Island Cranberry: sanding. Sanding is a fundamental component of our Pine Island Integrated Crop Management (PIICM) program, helping us manage the relationship between water, soil, weather, disease, insects, weeds, and nutrition.

Sanding is a process where we apply 1/2″ to 1″ of sand on the bog surface every five years on a rotating basis. This year we are scheduled to sand 232 acres. This procedure helps improve growth and yield by stimulating the development of new uprights (covering the base of the roots strengthens the root system and creates a more healthy vine) while also suppressing disease and reducing insects (by burying weed seed, spores, and insect eggs). It also improves soil drainage while at the same time absorbing and releasing heat so that frost danger in spring is lessened. This increases our efficiency by lowering the need for extra plant nutrition as well as saving water by cutting down frost irrigation times.

In New Jersey, it doesn’t always get cold enough for ice sanding (the preferred method for growers at more northern latitudes), so our team usually works with a sanding barge. This process starts as you might expect: checking on water levels. Our team needs to make sure the water is the right depth, so that Jorge Morales, our barge operator, doesn’t get stuck on any vines or worse, tear them out. “This weekend, the water levels dropped a little bit,” sanding team member Matt Giberson says. “We ended up having to let some water in.”

When barge sanding, it is particularly important to check for debris. The sand needs to be as pure as possible in order to prevent soil compaction (which can restrict water and limit growth) so we screen our sand before using it on the barge to take out any clay, stones, or other debris which could cause problems.

Our team begins to prep a couple of days beforehand by checking to see how much the water level needs to come up. The day before the crew arrives, a supervisor will get the water to sanding level (high enough to cover all vines) and measure out the distance the sander will travel. The crew will begin to sand on the deepest side. The water level can then be adjusted if necessary, which helps with dam conservation.

Our team also prepares by sending the necessary equipment out to the sanding location. A tractor with a winch is on one side of the bog, ready to move the length of the bog; an excavator is on the opposite side of the bog. The cable from the winch is stretched across the bog, through the sander (which has been lifted and put in the bog next to the excavator), and connected to the excavator.

On Wednesday, the sanding team was out at Harrison. “This one’s a little easier to do because it’s pretty square,” Matt says. “Oddly shaped bogs can be tough. But here Jorge just has to work his way to the middle and back and keep marking with stakes. It’s a simpler pattern.”

Harrison should also respond well to the sanding process. “Some varieties do better with sanding than others,” says PIICM manager Cristina Tassone. “With a Stevens bog our preliminary analysis shows that production can go down slightly, but Harrison is a Ben Lear bog, and Ben Lear seems to respond very well to sanding. So we’re experimenting a little with that.” Our PIICM program is also experimenting with how sanding affects the growth and spread of fairy ring, a fungus which works to kill cranberry vines in the root system. “Our suspicion is that it helps to spread the disease,” Cristina says, “so we’re skipping some bogs in the rotation where fairy ring has appeared. We’ll see what happens.”

The process itself is simple: a dump truck is loaded with two or three loader buckets of sand.

The dump truck then heads over to the bog being sanded, backs up to the excavator, and drops the load. The excavator operator then loads the hopper of the sander, while the sander operator moves along the cable, adjusting the opening for the sand to fall. Jorge is sanding at 1″ for this particular bog. The process is repeated, with the excavator and tractor moving forward the length of the bog together.

“It’s especially important to clean out the machines every night in case the temperature drops below freezing,” Matt says. “We clean out the sander, the trucks, the dams…everything. It’s all about efficiency.”