By DAN WHEAT

Capital Press

DRYDEN, Wash. -- Alex Toban moves quickly, instinctively knowing his next lopper cut with the merest glance of the eye.

At 56, he's pruned, thinned and picked pears in the Wenatchee Valley for 30 years.

This year, Toban and pruners throughout Central Washington are two to four weeks ahead of schedule. A mild winter, until a Jan. 18 snowstorm, allowed crews to get a lot more done in November, December and early January than they usually do.

"Most years we can only work a few days a week because of snow. This year we worked right straight through. We had a lot better production," said Pat Burnett, owner of the Dryden orchard where Toban works.

With 234,000 acres of fruit trees in Central Washington, pruning is a huge effort that starts in November when trees go dormant and usually wraps up the end of March.

The southern Yakima district is normally ahead of the northern Wenatchee district but they are fairly even because of the long mild stretch, said Harold Austin, director of orchard administration for Zirkle Fruit Co. of Selah.

It's good to be ahead, Austin said, in case weather or labor emergencies crop up.

Labor normally isn't an issue during pruning but "help wanted" signs appeared at some orchards in the mid-Columbia Basin and lower Yakima Valley in the last month, Austin said.

Another labor shortage, like during pear and apple harvest last fall, is likely again this coming fall, he said.

Harold Schell, director of field services at Chelan Fruit Cooperative in Chelan, said the Wenatchee district is very much ahead of the game. Some Tonasket orchards were done and clippings chopped before it snowed, he said.

"I would say we are three to four weeks ahead of normal and probably 75 to 80 percent done," Schell said.

Growers took advantage of the good weather and wanted to get all they could done before the minimum wage went up, he said.

Washington's minimum wage increased from $8.67 to $9.04 per hour on Jan. 1. But some orchards pay piece rate by the tree or block of trees.

Burnett Orchards has been doing that the last couple of years, said Tony Burnett, Pat Burnett's son. It gets the work done faster and workers earn up to almost double the minimum wage, he said.

Pruning is critical work. It controls the size of the tree. It removes older wood and stimulates growth of new wood needed for fruit quality and size. It opens the tree canopy for penetration of pesticide sprays and sunlight to grow the fruit.

Pruners strive for uniform shape. They remove vertical shoots, called suckers, and branches growing down or at odd angles back toward the trunk. Side growth is desired.

Between sips of tea from a thermos during a morning break, Toban sharpened and oiled his loppers -- giving him that edge for speed.