Southern California is especially dry, with wildfires continuously posing a serious risk for farmers and ranchers. Avocado growers say that they are still recovering from the widespread fires they faced last fall.
“There are about 50,000 acres of avocados in the state of California, and there are about 4,000 acres of avocados that were within the footprint of the mountain fire burn area, and I know, you know, some of those are orchards that were completely destroyed. Some of them it just blew through very quickly as a flash fire and did varying levels of damage. So, they lost a lot of crop for this season, but the trees may bounce back,” according to Chris Sayer, a fifth-generation farmer.
With such varying degrees of damage on nearly 8% of the state’s acreage, Sayer says that the true test of the condition of the trees will come at harvest this summer.
March 16, 2026 10:58 AM
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Roger McEowen of Washburn University School of Law joined us to discuss key legal and tax issues ranchers should consider as they recover from recent prairie fires across the Southern Plains.
March 03, 2026 01:06 PM
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Colorado Congressman Jeff Hurd joins Champions of Rural America to share insights into the Western Caucus legislative priorities as they champion wildfire prevention and mitigation in the West.
February 27, 2026 02:35 PM
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Britt Hilton with the Oklahoma Farm Bureau joined us to discuss current conditions, producer impacts, and the road to recovery following the Ranger Road Fire.
February 27, 2026 02:18 PM
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The Ranger Road Fire is fully contained after burning nearly 300,000 acres. Ranchers face significant cattle and fence losses, with recovery efforts underway.
February 26, 2026 01:04 PM
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Michael Kelsey of the Oklahoma Cattlemen’s Association joined us with the latest on the Oklahoma wildfires, recovery efforts for ranchers, and the role agriculture leaders are playing in supporting rural communities.
February 25, 2026 12:13 PM
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