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other farms in the Kansas River Bottom between Perry and Topeka, was in the business of whip grafting apple varieties onto hardy rootstock. This grafting operation took place in the town of Perry at a warehouse which is presently the Perry Pub. The grafted seedlings were shipped to apple orchards across the country. Over time this industry shifted to other parts of the country and corn continued as the principal crop in the valley. But today truck gardens and roadside vegetable stands, which were once as prominent along highway 24 as Burma Shave signs, are making a comeback in the form of locally grown produce, u-pick operations, and farmer's markets. River Field Farm, formerly the Oliver Farm, is part of this trend. In 1989, River Field Farm entered into a long-term agroforestry study with Kansas State Extension Pecan Research Field Director, William Reid. The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential of pecan trees to meet multiple uses. The uses included providing an alternative high-value perennial crop to traditional agronomic crops grown in the Kansas River bottom; establishing a permanent riparian buffer to sequester non-point pollutants migrating from adjacent agronomic fields into the Kansas River; and, to establish a pick-your- own pecan grove that would provide area residents with a unique and enjoyable fall activity along the banks of the Kansas River. The natural distribution of pecans in Kansas follows the Kansas River as far north as Leavenworth, and there are some magnificent native pecans on the grounds of Fort Leavenworth. So the question as to whether or not pecans can grow this far north in Kansas had already been answered. The next question was whether improved cultivars - those selected because of their ability to bear nuts early (precocity), mature within the average frost dates of northern Kansas (hardiness), and to bear a consistent annual crop of nuts (prolificacy), could be grown successfully this far north. A 1987 wildlife planting of seedling pecans was enhanced with a drip irrigation system (photo) and converted to a scion wood orchard (photo). Ten different northern pecan cultivars were grafted onto native seedling rootstocks. That same year, an additional 250 seedlings were planted (photo). One hundred of these were to be used in a replicated pecan field trial, while the remaining seedlings would form the basis for a u-pick operation. In 1988, an additional 250 pecan seedlings were set out. During the early establishment, the trees were watered with a converted ground sprayer designed by Alan Clough (photo). The first grove was planted on 30' x 30' spacing. The orchard was interseeded with alfalfa during the establishment years and later converted to a fescue, timothy and red clover cover. Pocket gophers which were a problem in several areas of the grove were forced to migrate during the 1993 flood (photo below). Although the grove was inundated for 19 days during the flood, the pecans survived. A late-May 1997 hailstorm shredded the bark off the young trees and set back the orchard for the next several years. (photo) Nevertheless, the grove has started to produce nuts in significant quantities and the u-pick operation was launched in 2003. Today, River Field Farm has a weekend u-pick operation, participates in the Lawrence Farmer's Market in the fall, and provides nuts to several other vendors including the Community Mercantile (Lawrence), and Rees Fruit Farm (Topeka). River Field Farm follows sustainable pecan production guidelines found on the National Sustainable Agricultural Service website (www.attra. org.). The farm was awarded the 1986 Bankers Conservation Award and the Northeast Kansas Forestry Stewardship Award in 1998 when it hosted a Riparian Woodland Management and Walnut-Pecan Grafting Workshop. River Field Farm, in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, has restored two wetlands on the property. Wildlife conservation has always been a priority and the pecan grove provides bountiful forage for deer, wild turkeys, blue jays and squirrels. |
Drip Irrigation for seedlings
Seedling Pecan Trees
Ground Sprayer converted to a pecan seedling waterer.
Kansas River Flood - 1993
Hail damage to bark
| Robert E. Russell 9609 15th St. Perry, Kansas 785-841-2708 |
Harvest - Fall 2003
