Beautiful Bounty

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Still waiting for moisture to fall from the sky over here. There is a ridge of high pressure that has blocked any storms from reaching us so far this year. Fingers crossed that breaks down towards the end of this month.

In the meantime, citrus is already coming off the trees, as are persimmons and pomegranates. Our Banana Pumpkins are on the menu at The Penny, and fresh fruit is available at Wild Roots.

Wishing all gratitude, happiness, health and family over the Thanksgiving holiday!

The Sunset of Summer

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A few shots of summer before it fades to fall... avocados are sold; tomatoes and peppers are on; pumpkins, plums and pears are next, followed by persimmons, pomegranates and kiwis.

We've actually had fairly "normal" weather for the duration of the summer: not too many scorching days, and even a few unseasonably cool ones. Evapotranspiration for the year is only at 31.62". Hopefully September and October continue the trend and smoothly transition to fall and winter. We have everything mowed to the quick, raked and swept in case they don't.

Wishing everyone prosperity, happiness and abounding harvests!

Rain Day Mid-May!

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In a rare turn of weather, we've had 1.66" of rain so far today, bringing our total for the year to 53.99". Furthermore, the rain is forecast to intensify this evening and perhaps even continue through next week.

It is a welcome respite from mowing, mulching, bed-prep and the planting of our summer crops. After putting all of our irrigation systems on a one week rain delay today, I finally took the time to look back through the photos since our last post.

The results of that effort are above. Not documented are our Shasta Gold Mandarins, which were truly winners this year. Also a huge shout-out is in order to our newest customer Snap Taco: 'EAT TACOS, BE HAPPY!' and, as always, thank yous to Wild Roots Market for featuring our citrus all winter!

Storm Update, 5.21: 3.84" storm; 56.17" year-to-date.

Rain, Rain, Snow Away!

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February is off to a wet start! 6.50" of rain fell during its first four days, bringing our gauge up to 30.33" for the rain-year to date. The storm ended with a light dusting of snow yesterday morning (last photo above). Far more fell on some of the higher peaks around the Bay Area and remained there today.

On the farm front, citrus season is in full swing. I spent all day harvesting Meyer lemons and plan to do the same tomorrow. Algerian "Clementine" Tangerines, Bergamot Sour Oranges, Buddha Hand Citrons, Cara Cara Navel Oranges, Fukushu Kumquats, Genoa Italian Heirloom Lemons, Golden Globe Satsuma Mandarins, Hayward Kiwis, Meyer Lemons, Owari Satsuma Mandarins, Page Tangelos, Shasta Gold Mandarins, and Washington Navel Oranges have all gone out the door so far in 2019. Gold Nugget Mandarins, JinCheng Sweet Oranges, Late Satsuma Mandarins, and Tango Mandarins are on deck.

Wishing you a (Belated) Happy 2019! We are grateful for all of our clients and excited for the year ahead.

P.s.- We recently captured some amazing footage of a lioness and her cubs feasting on a doe. Be forewarned, it is fairly graphic. The video can be viewed here.