<p></p><p>High temperatures have raised concerns regarding water stress <br></p> <p>California's 2015 almond production is forecast at 1.80 billion meat pounds, down 3 percent from May's subjective forecast and down 4 percent from last year's crop, according to a report Wednesday from the National Agricultural Statistics Service. <br></p> <p><b>The forecast is based on 890,000 bearing acres.</b></p> <p>Production for the Nonpareil variety is forecast at 670 million meat pounds, down 6 percent from last year’s deliveries. The Nonpareil variety represents 37 percent of California’s total almond production.The California almond bloom began in early February, one of the earliest almond blooms in memory. In general, the bloom was fast and compact with Monterey and Fritz blooming earlier than Nonpareils. In several instances, the lower two-thirds of trees blossomed two weeks ahead of the top, possibly indicating insufficient chilling hours, the report says. <br></p> <p><b>Nonpareil set appears to be below previous year’s.</b></p> <p>High temperatures in late June have raised grower concerns regarding water stress. Some growers have observed reduced production from their wells as water levels have declined. In areas where ground water is the primary source of water, some salt damage, wilting of trees, and defoliation has been seen.Harvest preparations are underway with ant baits being applied to orchards. Harvest is expected to begin ten days to two weeks ahead of normal.The average nut set per tree is 5,874, down 12 percent from 2014. The Nonpareil average nut set is 5,239, down 14 percent from last year. The average kernel weight for all varieties sampled was 1.43 grams, down 1 percent from the 2014 average weight of 1.45. The Nonpareil average kernel weight was 1.61, up slightly from last year. A total of 98.8 percent of all nuts sized were sound.<br></p><p></p>