Specialty machines in Tulare.

Following the rains, floods and a heavy snowpack of this past winter, the weather turned out great for the 30th anniversary of the three-day 1997 California Farm Equipment Show, popularly known as "The Tulare Show." Exhibit space sold out earlier than ever before, and the number of foreign attendees, who were particularly interested in specialty equipment, reached a new high.

To some degree the exhibits at Tulare reflect the pressures that California growers are facing as manufacturers try to provide solutions to growers' problems, and this year was no different. Pest control continues to be a major concern and fewer pesticides are available, particularly for specialty crops. Numerous environmental groups in the state which are concerned about pesticide usage continue to press for additional restrictions. Thus, growers need sprayers which provide better crop coverage while minimizing drift of materials to non-target areas.

Sophisticated sprayers displayed included air assist units, electrostatic units and a novel unit called the "Innsector." This machine uses an impeller inside a hood over the row to create a pulsating air stream which moves the spray material throughout the crop canopy. Large self-propelled field sprayers were also in abundance, reflecting the need of growers in the Central Valley of California for high capacity ground rigs as they convert from aerial to ground spraying.

Rubber tracked or belted tractors attracted the attention of many California growers. The new units from John Deere and Case appeared to be the high points of both companies' displays, as lines of growers waited for the opportunity to test drive the new tractors. Although both the green and red machines were introduced to their respective dealers last August, only a few pre-production machines have been available for demonstration in California. Some growers and dealers have been less than happy with this situation.

Of course, the Caterpillar display featured the Challenger tractors, the original rubber tracked machines that are now available in six models. OmniTrack, promoting rubber tracks for specialty applications, showed them on an orchard sprayer and a small Landini crawler tractor.

California is a large market for heavy duty tillage equipment. Heavy offset discs, chisels and rippers were shown by a number of manufacturers. Much of the demand for this equipment is in cotton, rice and a variety of other field crops, and some of these tillage units require tractors with 250 and more horsepower.

The machinery shown and demonstrated at Tulare continues each year to be as varied as the crops grown in the state. Many tried and true machines, some with new or improved features were exhibited and demonstrated, and several new machines for specialty crops, at least new to the California market, were introduced at this year's show. While it would be impossible to present photos of all the machinery that caught our eye, here is a sampling of what the Tulare show had to offer.