Blenheim Apricots on Fairview Road

Have you seen the Ag in Classroom sign of B & R Farms on Fairview Road? It lets you know what fruit is growing in the orchards there. The sign is one of several agricultural signs posted on farms and ranches throughout San Benito County. To see a few more signs, please click here.

To learn more about the Ag in Classroom project, read "Farm Bureau Signs Celebrate Local Ag History" by Alexandria Triolo, which was published at BenitoLink.com.

Today, I'm hanging out at Our World Tuesday. Please click here to check out what other bloggers from around the world are writing about their neck of the woods.

A Mellow Yellow Tractor

I saw this old guy on Southside Road. Notice the crank? I wouldn't mind having it standing in our front yard. I can already see it sporting many kinds of flowers.

Monday Mellow Yellows is where I am today. Click here to see what bloggers around the world are posting.

Farmers' Market Flowers

I always love the display of bright colors in the flower vendor booths at farmers' markets. How about you?

The Downtown Hollister Farmers' Market is every Wednesday, from 3 to 7:30 PM, until September 24, 2014. It's located on San Benito Street, between Fourth and Seventh Streets. I like how the city closes the main street for the market.  For more info, check out the market's webpage or Facebook page.

Today, Take 25 to Hollister is hooking up at Monday Mellow Yellows.

Moving On Up Amazing Machinery

Yesterday, I posted a photo of a wise-ass tomato plant that decided to flaunt itself next to the tomato cannery. Today's photos are of trucked-in tomatoes being conveyed to their destiny inside the cannery. How the tomatoes go from that truck to the conveyor belt is beyond me.

I'm participating in Jenny Matlock's Alphabe-Thursday. The letter "M" is this week's featured letter.

Here Grows Asparagus

I came across another gorgeous sign by the Ag in Classroom project, sponsored by the San Benito County Farm Bureau. The sign is located on Fallon Road.

Want to see a few other signs done by this project? Check out this link.

Farming on the Bolsa

Farm work is back breaking intensive labor. I appreciate the men and women who are willing to do these jobs. Day in, day out, regardless of the weather.

Conserve Water!

As we go through this drought, some farmers will allow their fields to lay fallow and some homeowners will let their lawns go brown or die completely.  It's only common sense.

Yesterday, August 1, the emergency state regulation to restrict water use in California went into effect for 270 days.  To learn more about what that means for residents of San Benito County, read the article, "State Water-use Rules Allows $500 Fines" by Adam Breen at BenitoLink.com.

Fairhaven Orchards

Just after you pass Flynn Road while driving south on Highway 25, you can see the agricultural sign for Fairhaven Orchards on the right side of the highway. It's another sign put up by the Ag in the Classroom project sponsored by the San Benito County Farm Bureau. If you'd like to see a few others signs, check out this post.

Fairhaven Orchards produces cherries and Blenheim apricots. Located on Bolsa Road (aka Highway 25), the orchards have been owned and run by the Rajkovich Family since 1958. To learn more about Fairhaven Orchards, check out its website and Facebook page.

The Agricultural Signs in San Benito County

Back in January, I began noticing the beautiful agricultural signs popping up around San Benito County. They showcased both the products and the growers. The signs are part of Ag in the Classroom project sponsored by the San Benito County Farm Bureau. They deserve a big round of  applause for their work!

So far, I've taken photos of three of the agricultural signs. You can find this sign at the southwest corner of Union and Southside Roads.  It's like a scavenger hunt for me. As I take photo of the different signs, I'll post them. To see the other two agricultural signs, click here and here.

Blenheim Apricots

When I was a kid many years ago, Hollister was full of orchards of California Blenheim apricots, the most tastiest apricot around. Today, nearly all of those apricot orchards are gone and only a few local farmers continue to grow Blenheim apricots and produce  dried apricots, apricot jam, apricot syrup, and other artisanal products.

If you're searching for fresh Blenheim apricots, you might contact one of these businesses in Hollister. But, act quickly, the harvest season is almost over.

• Apricot King
• Bertuccio's Market–The Farm
• B&R Farms
• Casa de Fruta

 

Coming Up: The 2014 San Benito Olive Festival

Save the Date, Folks: Saturday, October 11, 2014!

That's the day of the second annual San Benito Olive Festival, which will be held at the Bolado Park Fairgrounds. The festival's board members and planners invite food lovers, fans of hometown festivals, and outdoor enthusiasts locally as well as far and wide to celebrate the rich agricultural bounty and rural beauty of San Benito County. This gourmet celebration will feature many local olive oil producers, wineries, artisanal food makers, restaurants, artists, craftspeople,  community groups, and more.  

Early bird tickets are already on sale online at Eventbrite. Here's the page link for ticket information.

If you are interested in volunteering with the planning or becoming a vendor, query to team@sanbenitoolivefestival.com

For more information and updates about the San Benito Olive Festival, check out its website and Facebook page. And, if you'd like to see photos of last year's event, check out the photos stream at Facebook.

If It's Wednesday . . .

 

. . . then it must be Farmers' Market Day!

The Farmers' Market opens at 3 PM and closes at 7:30 PM. That's plenty of time to purchase some fresh produce, baked goods, sausages, olive oils, honey, and other goodies. You can also pick up dinner at any one of the food booths, if you don't feel like cooking tonight.

Another cooking demonstration will take place at 5:30 and 6:45 PM near the Veterans' Memorial Building. Artichokes will be the star this week, prepared by Pat Hopper of the California Artichoke Advisory Board.

Remember: Free parking is available at the Briggs Building, which you enter by going through the small parking lot next to the Granada Theater on Fifth Street. Also, no pets are allowed at the Farmers' Market.

Grazing Cows and Horses

Cows graze towards the west. Horses graze towards the east. Does that happen all the time all over the world when you have cows and horses in the same pasture? Or, was this just an odd instance at this particular moment when I took this shot?

Again, the things you might think about and see as you're moseying along Airline Highway between Hollister and Tres Pinos while pushing a bike with a flat tire. This is my last photo from my slow trek down Highway 25 the other day. Maybe. If you'd like to see my other photos, here you go: grass, palm trees, and yellow barn.

2014 Hollister Farmers' Market

Whooo-hooo! Today is the first day of the 2014 Farmers' Market in downtown Hollister. Fresh vegetables and fruit. Fresh eggs, chicken, and meat. Artisan breads and sausages. Local honey and olive oils. Flowers, crafts, and local goods. BBQ and other restaurant fare. And more!

What more? You'll just have to go down and see for yourself.

Where: San Benito Street, between 4th and 7th streets
When: Every Wednesday, 3 to 7:30 pm, from May 7 to September 24

For more details, check out these sites:
Downtown Certified Farmers' Market, Hollister Downtown Association
Hollister Farmers Market at Facebook
Downtown Hollister Farmers Market, Yelp reviews

Dry!

This field borders the west side of Highway 25, before Santa Ana Road. I've never seen the soil look so dry around here.

The other day I noticed that the soil of the outdoor potted plants were ridiculously dry, and I had watered them a few days earlier. "Is it because of the heat?" I asked the Husband. "Yeah," he replied. "And the low humidity."

Good Morning, World!

It's morning irrigation on farm land between Meridian Street and Santa Ana Road, only a few miles from downtown Hollister. It's wonderful to see, don't you agree?

Farming Continues

San Juan Valley

Drought. Or not.

Fields of Cauliflower

Roasted cauliflower anyone?

If you've driven Highway 156 to or from San Juan Bautista recently, you may have noticed the beds of white on the south side of the highway.

Shop Locally: The Pinnacle Farmstand

Last Saturday at the Pinnacle Farmstand in San Juan Valley, this potato guy was smiling at us along with the young ladies who work there. They, the young ladies, brought out the potato's personality with green eyes and a carrot tail. And, of course, they let everyone know it's a product of the USA.

The Saturday farm stand is open until 1 p.m. today. It's the only place in San Benito County that sells fresh, local organic vegetables and fruits throughout the year. Thank you, Phil and Katherine Foster!

Ferry-Morse Seed Company

Who else remembers the fields upon fields of beautiful flowers about halfway between Hollister and San Juan Bautista on the south side of San Juan-Hollister Road (aka Highway 156)? As a kid sitting in the back seat, I looked forward to that stretch of the drive. And, today, those brilliant splashes of color come to mind when I first see the buildings of the old Ferry-Morse Seed Company in the distance.

One of the old Ferry-Morse buildings

Ferry-Morse grew the flowers for seeds. I have no idea whether the seeds were directly sold in stores or if the horticulturists were experimenting to find the best seeds to eventually sell. Anyone know?

Originally, the C.C. Morse Company bought about 900 acres of the San Justo Ranch, in 1910. Twenty years later, it merged with D.M. Ferry Company to become the infamous Ferry-Morse Seed Company. I don't know when Ferry Morse sold its San Juan Bautista branch. Today, Ag-Biotech, a company that offers plant genetic analysis services, has facilities there.

My Sources:
Gilroy's Early Seed Companies
Ferry Morse Seed Company
Ag-Biotech 

FYI: Since this past Sunday, I've been blogging about San Juan Bautista and the San Juan Valley.