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capacity of the sector to adapt is in question. The factors which affect the ability to adapt have been tabulated.


To enable and/or assist adaptation will require “a shift in the underlying approach to development of policies and decision making at all levels”. The report on the Okanagan Region opens with acknowledgment of the many who participated in the preparation of the document. It then has a brief history of agricultural development of the region, followed by a brief geological and climate description.


There is good discussion of the factors that contribute to the resilience of the region, such as financial resources, human and social resources, farm operators, networks and organizations, knowledge resources, physical resources, on-farm infrastructure, current management practices, and policy and regulatory resources. Needless to say, with such a long list of factors that often vary independently, there is no simple statement to sum up resilience. It’s a bit like posting an accurate weather forecast.


I don’t know whether the projected changes for the Okanagan are good or bad. By 2080, it is estimated that the region will have an extra 1.5 to 1.7 months of growing season, but there will be less summer


precipitation. There will be increased winter and spring precipitation, so we will have to manage our irrigation districts well.


One concern is that warm springs will encourage earlier bud break while there is still risk of frost. Warmer summers are viewed as a potential benefit for tree fruits, both from the cultural standpoint and from expansion of local markets. New grape varieties may be required for the wine grape industry because grapes require a few weeks of cool weather prior to harvest.


There is a great deal of information in these reports. When a farmer is trying to determine whether he will break even this year, it’s hard to get concerned about what might happen one or two generations from now. If you want to maintain the family farm, I encourage you to read these reports.


— Gary Strachan can be reached at gestrachan@alum.mit.edu .


Looking Back


Crops were grown to supply cigarette, plug, and cigar market products. A number of factors combined against the


By Wayne Wilson


obacco was grown in a number of communities across British Columbia beginning in the 1890s. In the Central Okanagan area there were numerous efforts to grow the crop in commercial quantities from the 1890s through the 1930s.


T


development and stabilization of the


industry — indeed, one journalist remarked that the industry ended “in an orgy of swindling.” One of the unique relics of that cigar-making era is a cigar box for Flor de Kelowna cigars.


— Wayne Wilson is executive- director of the Orchard Industry Museum and the B.C. Wine Museum.


Since the beginning of BC Wines, Flory Bosa has devoted her talents to ensuring the best supplies for her customers. Flory joined the industry in 1989, and worked with the BC Amateur Winemaker Association. Today she serves the needs of small, medium and large wineries. If you want to get the best from your grapes, come to Bosa. Where wine, and winemakers, matter.


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