CROP NEWS & REPORTS
Last Update: May 01, 2012
Mother Nature spoke in early April. We received close to 3 inches of very well received rain coming off of a very dry winter in California. These late rains admittedly threw a little unexpected curveball at some of our row crops, but nature is as resilient as it is unpredictable, and most crops are now looking very good. For a few crops like beans, it’s still a little early to know whether or not certain plantings were adversely affected (if at all), and so we must exercise both attentiveness and patience! If you have any questions for us about this year’s growing season, please select the email link below. –Ian Teresi PEPPERS Our first plantings were delayed about a week due to weather conditions. I initially thought the delay would be much longer, but some intense sunshine (which immediately proceeded those rains) dried the fields out quickly and enabled us to get to work. We are currently about half way done with the transplanting from the greenhouse to the fields.
SQUASH We’ve completed one planting thus far and those seeds are just barely starting to pop. Because squash is very sensitive to cold, wet weather, I’ve learned over the years that it’s best to wait until almost May before putting the seeds into the ground.
BEANS We have 4 plantings in the ground thus far. The first planting got rained on just as it was about to emerge and the seedlings got trapped under the crust formed by the quick drying of all that rain. It’s still too soon to know if that first planting will make it or not, but the good news is that the next three plantings look great.
GARLIC Garlic looks really good. The bulbs are starting to form now. This is the time of year that garlic starts to get really thirsty, so we’re attentively making sure it has the water it needs.
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ORGANIC LEEKS We’re down to the last planting of organic leeks, and waiting for the earlier plantings to size up just right. Harvest should commence very soon!
STRAWBERRIES Strawberries season is underway! Although plump, sweet and delicious, we’ve been off to a little bit of a slow start due to rains, but expect this to change in the weeks to come.
RASPBERRIES / BLACKBERRIES All of our bushberries are looking really good. The only challenge we’ve had thus far is that rabbits have been congregating in the rows. There are more rabbits this year than we’ve ever seen! They don't seem to bother anything except the drip irrigation lines, which they’ve been chewing holes in (presumably in search of water). We’ve had the guys fill up water buckets and position them at the corners of the fields, and this really seems to be helping!
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