Farm Upgrades (5)
When you are betrayed by someone you trusted, anger is bound to surge more intensely than at any other time.
Frederick sent Raymond home first.
“Sir, please hear me out first.”
“Just go home for now. I’ll contact you once I’ve assessed the situation.”
To ensure Raymond wouldn't have a chance to destroy any evidence, Frederick took his two children and me, and we stormed into the office Raymond had been using.
“We should be able to figure it out by cross-referencing the documents with the actual inventory.”
“You’re right.”
With that, Frederick and I gathered every purchase order, delivery note, and invoice in the office. Naturally, Brandon and Chloe carried the load. We then headed back to the warehouse where the fertilizer was stored.
“Let’s check everything from last year to this year.”
Even at a glance, it was obvious, but as we checked the labels one by one, most of them were marked [UREA 46-0-0].
“As I thought... it’s all urea.”
Looking at the purchase orders and invoices, it clearly stated [SOP 0-0-50], and it showed that 50 bags had been ordered, but there were barely 10 bags left in the corner of the warehouse.
“Look here. The documents say 50 bags. In reality, there are 10.”
Hearing my words, Frederick frowned.
“You’re right.”
Chloe’s eyes widened in shock.
“So, he brought in cheap urea in bulk, bought only a fraction of the expensive SOP, and pocketed the difference?”
“To be precise, he billed your father for the expensive price while mostly ordering cheap fertilizer. DAP is cheap, so he brought a decent amount of that, but... it looks like the cheapest stuff, urea, makes up over 70% of the warehouse. At least there’s some lime and gypsum.”
As I finished my rough assessment of the warehouse, Frederick, perhaps suddenly curious, asked me a question.
“In your opinion, what is the optimal ratio?”
“It changes depending on the season. For example, in winter, you need to apply lime and gypsum to correct the soil pH and supplement calcium so the fruit sets firmly. In spring, you need to provide even trace amounts of boron (B) or zinc (Zn) to stabilize flowering and pollination, and to develop the leaves and stems.”
Frederick, who had been listening, signaled to Brandon with his eyes, as if telling him to listen carefully.
“And then?”
“In early spring, you need to apply phosphates like DAP or MAP (Monoammonium Phosphate) to help with initial growth. Right after germination, you provide nitrogen (N) like urea to develop new buds and leaves, and after flowering, you need to apply potassium (K) like MOP (Muriate of Potash) or SOP (Sulfate of Potash) so the fruit can grow, increase sugar content, and improve coloration and firmness. Because you were only giving them things like urea during this period, that’s why you ended up with aphid infestations.”
Around 2004, there were virtually no farms that fertilized so thoroughly according to each growth stage. Just looking at the fact that they ordered 50 bags of SOP, it was clear they didn't properly understand its importance. Back then, cherry orchard owners were under the impression that just applying nitrogen was enough for the trees to grow well and for the farming to be successful.
I shrugged at him as he let out a low exclamation of admiration, and then I asked Chloe.
“Did you write it down?”
“... No.”
“Tsk tsk tsk...”
“Tell me again.”
“I’m thirsty, so ask me while getting me some juice.”
“Shall we do that? Dad, let’s go home now.”
At his daughter’s suggestion, Frederick left the warehouse with a troubled expression. As he drove back home, he said to me:
“If it weren’t for you, I would have been in big trouble. Thank you.”
“It wouldn’t have been ‘big’ trouble. Even with the annual fluctuations, it wasn’t like the farm was going to go bankrupt.”
“I also receive training every year from the Agricultural Extension Office at UC Davis. I learn about fertilizer-related knowledge there, and you said exactly what they taught. Where I went wrong was that even though I learned it, because I was getting a consistent harvest every year, I just left it alone and entrusted it to Raymond.”
As I had expected, because he had learned at UC Davis, he seemed to have prepared some lime, gypsum, and SOP to some extent. He probably kept an appropriate amount of DAP, thinking it was just cheap nitrogen. Raymond simply didn’t understand it properly and saw it only as an opportunity to skim off the top.
Frederick looked at Brandon in the backseat through the rearview mirror and said:
“Brandon! Do you understand now why I told you to learn properly?”
Brandon, who had been just as blindsided, had a dazed look on his face the whole time, but he answered with a look of realization.
“Yes!”
“Then from now on, pull yourself together and learn well from Brian.”
As I made eye contact with Brandon and twitched my eyebrows, Brandon answered obediently, though he looked a bit resentful.
“I understand.”
I smiled broadly at his satisfied appearance and said to Frederick:
“In that sense, Frederick, you are quite lucky. Because you’ve formed a strategic partnership with us. From now on, Brandon and Chloe will have so much knowledge packed into their heads that they won’t be able to forget it even if they want to. Knowledge learned through the body is rarely forgotten.”
At those words, a hint of fear flickered across the faces of Chloe and Brandon as they anticipated their future.
In the end, it was discovered that Raymond had been skimming $20,000 every year for the past three years. Frederick had his lawyer review all the documents before reporting him to the police. Considering he had worked on the farm for a long time, he offered to write a letter of clemency if he just returned the embezzled money. He seems to be a man with more heart than his appearance suggests.
The person most affected by this process seemed to be Brandon. Brandon, who used to pout and make it obvious he didn’t want to work even when given the smallest task, has been doing exactly as he’s told lately. His grumbling has also decreased significantly.
“It’s definitely different.”
Frederick bent down, scooped up a handful of soil, and marveled slightly. Instead of rough sand grains, soft, fine soil flowed through his fingers.
“Isn’t it?”
“It wasn’t this moist before.”
As he muttered in admiration, Chloe and Brandon also nodded slightly as they stepped on or touched the ground.
“It really is different.”
“Hmm... it feels fluffy?”
I smiled and walked toward the vacant lot. Today was the turn to show them something new.
“Now, take a look.”
What I took out was a tensiometer, a soil moisture sensor. As I plunged it deep into the soil, a reading immediately appeared on the small screen. Next to it, I set up an EC meter (Electrical Conductivity, a device that measures the salt concentration in soil via electrical conductivity).
“I told you that growth happens in stages, right? The first step for farm development was the soil. And we finished that well. From now on, as long as you apply fertilizer according to the schedule I taught you and manage it well, next year’s harvest will increase significantly compared to this year, and the condition will be good. Now, this is the second step. It’s moisture.”
I continued my explanation very slowly and in detail, as if teaching students in a lecture.
“Until now, moisture management in farm management has mostly relied on experience. It’s at the level of touching the soil, as you did just a moment ago, and if it feels dry, you give it water. Isn’t that right?”
Frederick nodded instinctively.
“Y-yes, that’s right.”
“Good. But that isn’t very efficient. First of all, you end up using a lot of water. This leads to wasting groundwater and the accumulation of soil salts.”
“Soil salts accumulate?”
“Ah, you didn’t know. Groundwater in California’s Central Valley and Delta regions contains small amounts of salt (NaCl), sulfates (SO₄²⁻), and bicarbonates (HCO₃⁻). Also, river and canal water can increase in salt concentration through evaporation and mixing processes while being used for irrigation.”
“Ah... I see.”
“Since trees mainly absorb pure water, the salts dissolved in the water remain around the roots and accumulate in the soil. This causes osmotic stress, making it harder for the trees to absorb water.”
Frederick focused on my lecture as if he were spellbound.
“Now, what should you do? The optimal method is not to water by gut feeling, but to check and manage it with numbers through equipment like this. Then, what improves when you manage it this way? First, your water bill decreases. It drops by about 30–40%.”
“Oh!”
“What was one of the advantages we gained by laying down charcoal? It’s that because charcoal holds moisture and nutrients, you can use less fertilizer. Costs go down. This is the same. Charcoal already holds onto not just fertilizer but moisture, and since you’re using even less water on top of that, your annual fixed costs will decrease. I told you that production increases while costs decrease, right?”
Frederick nodded.
“That’s exactly because of this. It wasn’t nonsense. Then, what is the second advantage gained from moisture management? It’s the increase in fruit quality.”
It was a pity there wasn’t a blackboard in front of me to write it down. Instead, Chloe, who was sitting behind Frederick, was writing it down diligently.
“As you all have heard, a significant number of grape farms in the U.S. prioritize moisture control. However, cherry farms have been lagging far behind in that area until now.”
Even though it was the same California during the same period, many of the grape farms that were well-known and maintained a good state prioritized irrigation. But cherry farms were not yet using that technique.
In reality, it wasn’t until the early 2020s that SWP (Stem Water Potential) was introduced in cherry farms in a form combined with drip irrigation. Before that, you could say that almost all farms were not doing any moisture control at all.
“Isn’t moisture control only used by grape farms?”
“People think it’s only effective for grapes, but that’s not actually the case. If there’s too much moisture, the fruit can easily burst, and conversely, if there’s too little, it becomes small and the taste drops. Maintaining constant moisture keeps the fruit quality consistent while making the cherry color deeper and increasing acidity.”
“Oh, I see.”
“Now that you know moisture management is helpful for cherries, you’re thinking you should introduce a moisture management system, right?”
“Th...that’s right?”
“Now, there is one more hurdle.”
At those words, Frederick immediately frowned.
“Don’t tell me...?”
“That’s right. It’s money. I can’t give you an exact quote, but I asked over the phone before coming here... they said it costs about $250,000 to $350,000 to install a drip irrigation and sensor-based system for 200 acres.”
“Oh, my...”
Frederick looked tearful at the mention of having to spend more money. In 2004, that was an additional cost of around 300 million won in Korean currency.
“So you have to make a decision. As I said, it’s fine if you don’t apply the moisture management system. If you improve the soil and apply balanced fertilization according to the schedule, you will be able to see significantly better results with just that.”
“...... Can’t I recoup the installation cost just by saving on water bills?”
“I calculated it, and I think you could recoup most of the installation cost in about 5 years. Of course, that’s a conservative estimate.”
“5 years...”
Frederick, who had been lost in thought for a moment, soon nodded.
“Alright. I’ll do it.”
“Excellent. It would be better for you to look for the relevant companies yourself. Since the area is large, you’ll be able to negotiate the unit price down. The Agricultural Extension Office will probably introduce you to some good companies.”
“I’ll do that.”
After deciding on yet another investment, Frederick returned home and was lost in thought for a long time. Since he had already made up his mind to improve the farm, investing around $300,000 was something he could certainly do, but it would be a lie to say he didn’t feel anxious, as no one among the cherry farmers had ever attempted this before.
At that moment, he received a phone call. It was William Hartford of the Brentwood Cherry Growers Cooperative.
“Good heavens, what did you do to your farm? Are you planning to open a pizza place to supply the whole of California?”
He must have seen the makeshift oven I had built in the vast vacant lot.
“Ah, that... I’m trying to introduce a new farming method.”
“Hahaha! You’re doing something useless. Don’t spend money on useless things like that, and what about what I told you before?”
“Ah, you mean the talk about bundling it under the association brand?”
“That’s right. When are you going to give me an answer?”
William had been demanding for several years that they bundle it as ‘Brentwood Cherry’ rather than on a farm-by-farm basis. He argued that doing so would raise the price, but for Frederick, whose fruit quality was not bad among the nearby cherry farms, it was a request he was hesitant about.
But now, he thought there was definitely no need to do that. No, it had reached a situation where he shouldn’t.
“I’m sorry, but we’ll do it separately.”
“What? Do you think you can get a significantly higher unit price just by doing that? This is problematic!”
Despite William’s coercive insistence, Frederick did not back down. The farming method he was attempting now was achieved with so much money and such a firm resolution that he couldn’t share it with other farms.
“I’m sorry, but count us out. I don’t want to be evaluated wholesale with other farms.”
“Hmph! Fine. Let’s see how good a price you get.”
Frederick felt a bit of pressure from William’s aggressive attitude as he hung up the phone, but he soon steeled his heart. He didn’t know if he hadn’t started, but since he had made up his mind to change the farm, he couldn’t turn back.
“Let’s see. Let’s see what happens...”