Raspberries, Apples and Black Mulch, Oh my!

Today is a day off, so i headed out towards Santa Cruz to see how they grow vegetables around here. The scale is just as grand as they do almonds, olives, pomegranate and apple trees here in Madera. Above is a picture of a raspberry field, what you don't is that is stretches forever and on the opposite side of the road, it does the same thing. Below, is a organic, high density dwarf apple tree orchard. The trees are only 4 feet high, planted in a double row and the next row is only about 6 feet away. There is no need for ladders for pruning or picking!

This was the most incredible thing i saw........... the amount of black plastic mulch laid out in these fields. I really don't know how to explain how gigantic the scale of their production is compared to what we do back in PA. It's just huge!!!!!

New Friend

It is cool, misty morning. It does not look like the clouds are going to burn off today. I think this is the olives favorite kind of weather..... though, i really don't know whether this is true or not. I am continuing to get faster at trellising and pruning, that is until i hit row 49. I don't know what happened on this row but by about a quarter of the way down it, I bailed. There are only 54 rows and number 49 is going to be the one i do last....it's a mess! While out in the field, i did stumble onto a new friend. He has actually been hanging out in the field for awhile before we formally met. It is Mr. Tumble Weed! Actually, Mr. Weed has a buddy over in row 51. That makes the field quite crowded with two tumblers, about a 1000 olive trees and myself. Tomorrow, I should be finishing up with trellising and we will see where i go from there.

Olive Trellising and Pruning

It is almost time for lunch and my eyes are getting to the point where they are so tired that it feels like they are going to cross at any moment. I have been looking at way too many olive trees. This may sound like bad news, but actually it is good. At this point, i have given up looking so hard and analysing every single tree. My eyes are tired enough that i have to look for the over all shape and rarely focus on the detail. By the time i leave for lunch, i have completed 1/2 a rows. After lunch, something has shifted in the way I "see" the trees. I complete 2 row in less time than it took me to do 1/2 a row this morning. Now, each tree that I step up to, i can almost instantly tell if some thing needs to be changed or to just let it be. The picture above is an example of instantly knowing something is amiss. The photo below is after a few minor adjustments. Tada! I am hoping this knowledge that i have gained in olive tree trimming can transfer to other tree....... olives tree don't like PA weather.

Olives

This morning the fog has lifted and the sun burned away the chill that had been in the air for the past few days. Tiny trees with tree trunks no thicker than a quarter, stand in geometrically straight rows. A row here, in this valley, can be acres long or up to what seems like a mile..........some, I just can't see where they end. Though the rows may seem at times to run to infinity, each tree must be careful trellised and trimmed several times before they are old enough to be harvested from. Then pruned once a year after that. To harvest these high density varieties, a large machine will be pretty much engulf each tree as it travels down the rows. Here long fingered tines will agitate the tree limbs up and down and back and forth causing most of the fruit to relinquish its hold on the tree. From there, the olives will be collected and sent to be pressed for olive oil. Today, while running into town for a couple of errands we stopped at the local olive oil shop. Here we tasted several varieties and blends. I never knew there could be so many variations in the flavor, texture and color. Sure wish i could grow olive trees in PA. For dinner, we tried out one of our several purchases and created a blend of our own. Mmmmmmmm!

Gophers

It is a cool and overcast Sunday. A lazy day off at the farm. Getting up late, I dive into the book, Garlic is Life. It is a wonderful story about a love affair with garlic and, leading also, to a love affair with life. In the earlier parts of the book gophers are not well received as they tend to savor garlic as much as the author. Having just left my sister in Tucson, AZ, she is currently also not finding the small rodents particularly endearing............. one in particular that seems to have had taken a fancy for her apparently sumptuous, bi-annual flowers for the past year. Here in the San Joaquin Valley gophers also, seem to be quite bountiful. This afternoon, I took a short break from reading and strolled around the yard to see what grows in this area. I noticed several unusual feathers on the ground but really didn't give them much thought. I found a gopher skull under a large, isolated palm tree, that looked like it had been delivered from an owl pellet; things begin to fall into place. All the white wash under the tree begin to pop out. The feathers didn't just happen to blow in, nor were they a by-product of molting. Many times, last night I heard an owl calling fairly close to my window. Ahhh, maybe there is some one that does truly have an affinity for gophers.

Family

For the past week, i have been visiting with members of my family. We have become scattered far and wide over time, but as we come together it seems as if time has really changed little. I am very lucky to have such wonderful people to travel through my life with.

Today, I go to Casa Rosa in Madera, CA to continue with WWOOFing.

Pesco, NM

Tucked in the mountains of the Santa Fe National Forest are the beginnings of a new farm and way of life. Currently, 3 or 4 miles off a maintained dirt road in a small meadow, a canvas tent sits under a velvety black blanket of sparkling stars. The voice of the wind, making its way through the miles of Pinion and Ponderosa pines, is the most prominent sound. There is no running water and heat comes from wood collected on the 40 acres. Here ones basic needs are met in very basic ways. You are tightly bound to all that surrounds you, for the consequences are direct and swift if you choose to be lax. To some this may seem harsh, but to me, it brings to life all that is has been put to sleep in the modern world. I feel we have given up so much more than we have gained in the striving for an "easier"or more "comfortable" life. Winter use to be a time of reflection and rest, but now we work year round with little rest. Contemplation is only something a monk does. But here in the mountains, as you set foot outside the tent, and are greeted with the hush of the snow and the grace of the expansive forest. One can not help but be humbled by the simple, yet profound beauty of nature. Contemplation, reverence and respect come effortlessly.