Farms

Women Growing Change: The Class of 2022 FruitGuys Community Fund Grantees

By Pia Hinckle on

A diverse group of women farmers dominate the 2022 class of grantees for The FruitGuys Community Fund, the nonprofit’s 10th year of providing grants to small farms and agricultural nonprofits that …

Featured Farm: Fruit World

By Pia Hinckle on

Fruit World is famous for its extraordinary Sky Ranch Mandarins, a clementine grown on farmer Bianca Kaprielian’s grandfather’s ranch, which sits atop one of the area’s tallest foothills and is named …

Winter Citrus Guide

By Pia Hinckle on

Winter is the peak of the citrus season. Officially beginning on the winter solstice (December 21), the bright shades of orange, red, pink, yellow and green of citrus add brightness and light to the …

Announcing The FruitGuys Community Fund 2021 Farm Grantees

By The FruitGuys on

Despite funding setbacks caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, The FruitGuys Community Fund, a nonprofit founded by office fruit delivery pioneers and certified B Corp The FruitGuys, is pleased to announce …

First Farm Visit of 2021: Rancho Charanda

By Miguel Esteban Robles on

I visited Paul Rodriguez's farm, Rancho Charanda, in Redlands, CA on February 24, 2021. I had been worried about taking the time because of all of my other responsibilities in the office, but …

Rebecca North Honored by EcoFarm

By Pia Hinckle on

Rebecca North, The FruitGuys Senior Buyer and chief Fruit Detective, has been awarded the prestigious 2021 Golden Pliers Award from the Ecological Farming Association (EcoFarm).  According to …

Farm Grantees Make Progress Despite Pandemic

By The FruitGuys Community Fund on

The FruitGuys Community Fund 2020 grantee farms have sent us their interim updates, and in spite of the pandemic, these farms and organizations have done some incredible work! These 15 small farms and …

Bernard Ranches is in a Fight to Save its Business and its Citrus Trees

By Pia Hinckle on

“I had a terrible dream one night,” says Vince Bernard, founder and farmer of Bernard Ranches, who has watched the COVID crisis cut into his sales so much that he may not be able to afford to water …

The 2020 FruitGuys Community Fund Grantees

By The FruitGuys Community Fund on

During the COVID-19 crisis, small farms are showing once again just how essential they are to keeping our local communities fed, healthy, and functioning. The FruitGuys Community Fund is excited to …

The FruitGuys Response to COVID-19

By The FruitGuys on

March 2020 We will get to the other side of this---together. We wish you, your employees, your vendors, your customers, and their families the best, and especially good health. Please let us know of …

Eat the Endangered Gravenstein Apple

By Pia Hinckle on

“Farming is a complex math problem,” sighs Dave Hale as he looks sadly at piles of wood chips that had been Gravenstein apple trees in the lot next to his thriving Sebastopol, CA, orchard. He tended …

Deadly Harvest

By Elisabeth Flynn on

The Farm-to-Table movement of the last decade has celebrated local farmers and their rural lifestyle. Sustainable farming is a wholesome and noble occupation that provides nutritious whole foods to an …

The Little Apple That Could

By Heidi Lewis on

Around the small Northern California town of Sebastopol, you see bumper stickers of all kinds. From the political to the apolitical to cosmic questions such as “What if the hokeypokey is what it’s all …

Live from the Hedgerow

By Shannan Slevin on

Embracing the dry June heat of San Joaquin County is a small price to pay when exploring the grounds of Lagier Ranches. This 120-acre family-run farm in Escalon, CA, is rich in trees and small fruits: …

Apples for All

By Heidi Lewis on

To satisfy the sharp desire I had Of tasting those fair apples, I resolved Not to defer; hunger and thirst at once / Powerful persuaders, quicken'd at the scent Of that alluring fruit, …

Winter on the Farm

By Heidi Lewis on

In seed time learn, in harvest teach, in winter enjoy. —William Blake Winter is finally here in drought-stricken California, and we’ve gotten a break from all that balmy, summerlike weather we’ve …

From Law to Lambs

By Heidi Lewis on

“Farming looks mighty easy when your plow is a pencil and you’re a thousand miles from a cornfield.” —Dwight D. Eisenhower Dick Blair and Betty Hui are second-career farmers. Blair spent 35 years …

From Pastry to Plow

By The FruitGuys Community Fund on

Chocolates and Tomatoes Farm in Poolesville, MD, is a four-acre farm that strives to be sustainable, colorful, and delicious. And while we didn’t choose Chocolates and Tomatoes for a 2015 The …

Less Time to Chill

By Pia Hinckle on

Cherries are finicky trees. They don’t like it when it gets too hot, when there’s not enough rain, and when it doesn’t stay cold enough during the winter. For the last few winters, California’s …

Hungry for Farmland

By Stephanie Rosenbaum on

Clear Spring Farm, PA. If you live in an eco-conscious region fighting to preserve its local family farms, chances are you’ve seen bumper stickers such as “Know your farmer, know your food.” “I …

Buy a Box; Save an Apple

By Miriam Wolf on

Like the snowy owl and the snail darter, foods can be endangered too. If farmers stop growing your favorite variety of tomato because it’s too hard to ship or too prone to pests, we come that much …

Perspectives on Drought Part 1: Alexis Robertson of Skyelark Ranch

By Alexis Robertson on

Recently, California’s growers and water districts approached Governor Jerry Brown to declare California in a state of drought. It has been one of the driest winters on record and the state’s …

Eat Fruit & Be Happy

By Alexander Scaletta on

BOYERTOWN, PA -- You may think “farmer direct” and “local produce” are trendy concepts invented for the millennium, but Boyertown, Pennsylvania’s Frecon Farms has been getting their fruit directly …

Navels from the Orange Patch

By Heidi Lewis on

Farmer Allen Freeman with granddaughter Emery at the Orange Patch, Mesa, AZ. Phoenix and Mesa, Arizona locals may know the Salt River for tubing fun, but it also has a serious job of watering the …

10 Fun Facts About Citrus

By Alexander Scaletta on

Once again, we have felt a monumental shift in the weather here in the valley. Pleasantly warm fall days have given way to frosty mornings that turn into short frigid days. Many trees have been …

Animal Farm

By Kim Jordan on

By Kim Jordan Snipes Farm and Education Center in Morrisville, PA, was one of five farms awarded grants in April 2013 from The FruitGuys Community Fund, established in 2012 as a fiscally sponsored …

Arizona’s Own Valley Farms

By FruitGuys Staff on

  At 4,000 feet, the Willcox area in Northern Cochise County, AZ, was known as the “Cattle Capital” in the Old West days. Situated near Dos Cabezas Mountains, Willcox is now a major producer …

The Last Pixie Show

By Friend 's Ranch on

Ever wonder what an Ojai Pixie does during the off-season? Well here is a little insight about the secret lives of out-of-season Pixies. Lately some friends of mine, during our usual after-school …

Apple Farmers Benefit from Grav Box

By FruitGuys Staff on

Every September, when apple season is just hitting its zenith in most of the country, the harvest is already fading in Sonoma County, CA. This area of California is where the Gravenstein Apple reigns …

Tales of Tomato Season

By Seth Wright on

As I drive around the valley, everywhere I look, tomato plants are quickly growing larger. Watching them grow is torture because tomatoes have been on my mind since they went out of season early last …

Ten Tasty Facts You Probably Didn’t Know About the Peach

By Seth Wright on

Peaches have been on my mind lately. They are my favorite fruit, and they grow bountifully and beautifully in the Capay Valley. Many of our farms here cultivate more than one variety, and I feel …

Save The Gravenstein

By FruitGuys Staff on

“Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree.” —Martin Luther (1483–1546, a German monk and church reformer) In a world awash with Red Delicious …

Profile: Olson Family Farms

By Heidi Lewis on

Olson Family Farms in California’s Central Valley is truly a family affair. Five generations have lived on the farmstead and worked the land since John and Anna Olson emigrated from Sweden in 1888. …

A Little Apricot History

By FruitGuys Staff on

from Good Humus Produce, courtesy of  Capay Valley Farm Shop A combination of Royal and Blenheim Apricots From the Luxemburg Gardens in Paris to England’s Blenheim Palace to the imperiled orchards …

Lots of Heat Means Good Eats

By Seth Wright on

By Seth Wright, courtesy of  Capay Valley Farm Shop This 2013 has been an unusually hot and dry spring here in the Capay Valley.   The rain, which usually occurs from January until the end March, …

New Family Farm

By Heidi Lewis on

New Family Farm of Sebastopol, California, was one of six farms awarded grants in April 2013 from The FruitGuys Community Fund, a fiscally sponsored project of Community Initiatives. An outgrowth of …

In Our Spring

By Jeff Main on

by Jeff Main of Good Humus Farm, Courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Image courtesy of Good Humus Produce With the passing of the 2013 equinox a few weeks ago, and all the warmth and wetness …

Farmers on Food Safety

By FruitGuys Staff on

By Judith Redmond  of Full Belly Farm, courtesy of  Capay Valley Farm Shop When I first heard the term “food safety” I knew that even the term itself was a problem, representing an approach to …

Voices From The Field

By FruitGuys Staff on

From Full Belly Farm, courtesy of  Capay Valley Farm Shop In April of 2013, we wanted to let folks learn a little bit more about the people who work at Full Belly Farm, so we interviewed one of the …

Durst Organic Growers

By Heidi Lewis on

Farming with Heart By Heidi Lewis The main ingredient in good vegetables, says farmer Jim Durst, is soil: “Feed the soil, and the soil will feed the plants." Jim and his wife, Deborah, have been …

Ruesch Century Farm

By FruitGuys Staff on

Have you ever been browsing in an antique store and found a wooden box with rakish teeth on it? It could be a hand cranberry rake, a farm implement of yore. Possibly the same kind that farmer Brian …

Hale’s Apple Farm

By FruitGuys Staff on

In Fall, you can’t miss the explosion of roadside color that is Hale’s Apple Farm as you drive along Route 116 just north of Sebastopol, CA. The riot of piles of brilliant gourds can cause the unwary …

The Fall Finish Line

By FruitGuys Staff on

Image courtesy of Good Humus Produce, Capay CA by Jeff Main of Good Humus Produce, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop OK. Can we finally stop and say summer is finished? We have crossed what …

Marty’s Angels!

By The FruitGuys on

No, it’s not a new TV series—Marty’s “angels” are Angelcots, a special variety of apricots grown exclusively by Marty Maggiore and his family in Brentwood (Contra Costa County), CA. Every year, at …

August Field Notes from Riverdog Farm

By FruitGuys Staff on

Courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop 8/6/12 The mystery white peach orchard was so prolific – both high yielding by the sheer number of fruit but also by size – this year that we are sun-drying …

Ode to a Grav Grower

By Pia Hinckle on

Lee Walker has been farming with his family in their Graton, CA, apple orchard his whole life, except for a tour in the army and a few years playing pro baseball. Lee has kept growing Gravenstein …

The Peach Party

By Jeff Main on

By Jeff Main of Good Humus Produce, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop In August of 2012, we had the Peach Party, our midsummer thanksgiving to all the bounty that comes our way, year after year. …

July Field Notes from Riverdog Farm

By FruitGuys Staff on

From Riverdog Farm, courtesy of  Capay Valley Farm Shop July 2, 2012 Summer crops are beginning to fill the fields and coolers; pallets of beets and greens are sharing space with summer squash and …

Lifelong Farm Romance

By Paul Muller on

Image courtesy of Full Belly Farm, Guinda CA By Paul Muller of Full Belly Farm, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Sunday Mornings start the week in a relatively quiet and reflective time here …

The Royal Blenheim

By FruitGuys Staff on

From Good Humus Produce, courtesy of Capay Valley Farmshop From the Luxemburg Gardens in Paris to England’s Blenheim Palace to the imperiled orchards of Brentwood and Gilroy, California’s …

This Week at Good Humus Produce

By FruitGuys Staff on

by Annie Main, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Image courtesy of Good Humus Farm, Capay CA When I am unsure what to write about I always take a walk around the farm-it is an easy place to …

May Notes from the Field

By FruitGuys Staff on

From Riverdog Farm, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Image courtesy of Riverdog Farm, Guinda, CA May 7, 2012 Mild weather and sunshine have boosted crop growth in the field and in the …

Summer In May

By FruitGuys Staff on

Judith Redmond of Full Belly Farm, Courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Resting in a prominent corner of our farm, under a native black walnut tree, there’s an enormous Allis Chalmers crawler …

Research, Education & Farming

By Judith Redmond on

By Judith Redmond of Full Belly Farm, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Years ago, when I was studying at the University of California, I noticed that there was research being done on “organic” …

April Field Notes

By FruitGuys Staff on

From Riverdog Farm, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop 4/2/12 It’s getting close to tomato transplanting time. The plants, all 80,000 (about 9 acres) of the first seeding, have been ready to go from …

Farm Hands: Lessons of a Farm Intern

By Becca von Trapp on

By Becca von Trapp of Full Belly Farm, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Well, folks, the rain has finally come. Here at the farm, we are heaving a collective sigh of relief as we are finally able …

Mick Klug Farm, Saint Joseph, MI

By Heidi Lewis on

By Heidi Lewis The USDA classifies family farms as “any farm organized as a sole proprietorship, partnership, or family corporation.” But a cold definition is never the whole story, is it? Mick …

A Full Belly Crew Member

By Alexander Scaletta on

Courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop In March 2012, Nolan O’Brian, one of the Full Belly Farm interns interviewed orchard manager, Jesus Jacobo Garcia. Where were you born? My hometown is called …

The Almond Festival Arrives In The Valley

By FruitGuys Staff on

By Dru Rivers of  Full Belly Farm, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Almond blossoms are everywhere at the moment on Full Belly Farm – filling the air with honey scented smells and brightly …

The One Percent

By Thomas Nelson on

By Thomas Nelson, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Farmers, seed and equipment suppliers, food distributors and retailers, NGOs and community members from across the country, came together last …

Sustainability, Resources, Food Safety are Hot Topics

By Heidi Lewis on

Winter Farm Conferences By Heidi Lewis The Monterey Peninsula is one of the most beautiful spots in the world, but it wasn't just the sparkly ocean breeze dancing through the pines that brought a …

February on a California Farm

By Paul Muller on

By Paul Muller of Full Belly Farm, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop It is a fine Sunday morning. The sun is shining on a windless, cloudless blue sky.  The light frost last night kissed crops …

The Lemon Lady

By FruitGuys Staff on

Karen Morss is called the Lemon Lady. She started her suburban Emerald Hills, CA (San Mateo County), an organic citrus farm, Lemon Ladies Orchard, in 2004. She has done her part breaking glass …

What Does a Farmer Do in December?

By Judith Redmond on

By Judith Redmond of Full Belly Farm, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Each season on the farm has its own tempo. The harvest overwhelms everyone’s attention for most of the year. The lambing …

Bear Track Farm

By FruitGuys Staff on

Betty Hui is powered by fruit. She has to be, she has a busy life. As The FruitGuys Retentions Specialist, she zips up, down, and around the San Francisco Bay Area visiting customers and keeping …

Reflecting on Summer”¦

By Jeff Main on

By Jeff Main of Good Humus Produce, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop It seems like a long time since I’ve had a chance to touch bases with all of you, as a matter of fact, it has been a long …

Steamboat Acres Historic Pear Farm

By Pia Hinckle on

The Sacramento River Delta was at the center of the California Gold Rush. The northern California town that would be the future state’s capital was the gateway to the goldfields in the Sierra Nevada …

A Day in The Country

By Judith Redmond on

courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Top chefs and food purveyors, representing 27 of northern California’s most innovative and creative restaurants, 13 wineries and 8 farms with tastings of their …

Coco Ranch

By Pia Hinckle on

Coco Ranch in Davis, California is a labor of love for the House Family. Jennifer and Greg House met at the University of California Davis where they were both studying agriculture. Their certified …

The Grav-ity of Change

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

Change has come slowly but steadily to the foods we’ve eaten over the last 70 years. While there has been no acute onset to clearly demonstrate the difference between the food of today and yesterday, …

Great Gravenstein! This Heirloom Apple has a Story to Tell

By FruitGuys Staff on

Joe has his hands in his pockets, rocking heel to toe gazing into a crate of Gravenstein apples. Barbara Walker, who operates the Walker Apples’ booth, listens to Joe with full attention whilst her …

Hartland Cherries: Kauffman’s Fruit Farm

By Heidi Lewis on

By Heidi Lewis How many people say “worth two in the bush!” when they enter the town limits of Bird-in-Hand in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania? We don’t know,  but FruitGuys buyer Jessica says …

Whole Earth CSA—Waddell, Arizona

By FruitGuys Staff on

“In the hierarchy of healthy vegetables, heirlooms are at the top,” says Shyryn Joy. She explains this statement by adding that “they’re closest to their natural order and have the most integrity.” …

Health Per Acre

By Judith Redmond on

By Judith Redmond of Full Belly Farm, courtesy of Capay Valley Farm Shop Despite heavy rain, a surprisingly large group of people turned out for the Full Belly Open Farm Day. While we couldn’t …

Old Style Custom Meat Market

By Reed Adam on

By Reed Adam, Capay Valley Farm Shop At first glance, the almost-completed Manas Ranch Old Style Custom Meat Market, located on Highway 16 just east of Esparto, appears identical to the packing …

News From Good Humus Produce

By Annie Main on

By Annie Main of Good Humus Produce   I went for a bicycle ride to Esparto on Sunday, Jeff and I had breakfast at Zach and Nicole’s house. I took my camera and stopped for some photos. I took …

The Importance of Pollinators

By FruitGuys Staff on

On Saturday, March 12, 2011, a small contingent of FruitGuys joined Cub Scouts from Santa Rosa and participants from the Volunteer Center for Sonoma County at Gabriel Farm in Sebastopol, CA (Sonoma …

How Broccoli Will Save Strawberries: Organic Farming Practices Leave Pesticides Aside

By FruitGuys Staff on

Broccoli Shortcake. Mmmm, can you picture it? Golden cake, florets of green broccoli, and a cloud of sweet whipped cream... What? Doesn’t sound appealing? Do you prefer Strawberry Shortcake? But …

Almond Queen: Visioning Capay’s Future

By FruitGuys Staff on

By Hallie Muller of Full Belly Farm In March of 2011, our small community celebrated a 96-year old tradition: the official crowning of the Almond Queen.  In a valley rich with history, this is a …

Capay Valley FarmShares: Collaboration Brings Small Farms to City Tables

By Heidi Lewis on

From a satellite view, Northern California’s Capay Valley looks like a green quilt caught between the folds of the Coast Range. This makes it good for farming with plenty of clean water from Cache …

Three Sisters Garden

By Heidi Lewis on

Farmers Tracey Vowell and Kathe Roybal came to farming after careers in the restaurant world. Tracey was managing chef at Frontera, a Rick Bayless restaurant in downtown Chicago, where she helped …

Winter Work: How Farmers Finish up the Year

By Heidi Lewis on

What does winter weather mean for you? A change in work wardrobe from grey to black? From seersucker to faux fur? Maybe a change in your bike commute? We contacted two of the farmers we work with to …

How Do I Love Bee?

By Heidi Lewis on

Farmer-Beekeepers Count the Ways Honey from bees is quite the miracle. Why does it taste so good? And why does it have so many healing properties? Many scientists have studied the organization of …

It Takes a Village: California Town Saves Heirloom Apple

By FruitGuys Staff on

The Gravenstein Apple is dear to many apple lovers for its tart taste and superior juice, sauce, and pie abilities, but it is especially dear to the residents of Sebastopol, CA (Sonoma County) where …

Swords into Ploughs

By Heidi Lewis on

It’s quiet at Kokopelli organic berry farm except for the occasional proud exultation of a laying hen. Farmer Dr. Shepherd Bliss loves it that way; the quiet gives him peace after his own …

Profile: Chaffin Family Orchards

By Heidi Lewis on

Oroville, CA - Oroville is a gold rush town in Butte County, CA.  Oro means gold in Spanish, and during the Gold Rush prospectors stampeded over the area in a greedy frenzy.   When Del Chaffin came to …

Lifetime Contribution to Sonoma County Agriculture

By FruitGuys Staff on

Congratulations to longtime friend and farmer Lee Walker. Lee is being awarded the “Lifetime Contribution to Sonoma County Agriculture” by the 2008 Sonoma Harvest Fair. The Harvest Fair is an annual …

Profile: Johnson Orchards, Ukiah (Mendocino County) CA

By Heidi Lewis on

Nestled in the Ukiah Valley, sandwiched between the famous Napa Valley and the redwoods of Mendocino County, is Johnson Orchards, a family farm for more than a century and home to some of the tastiest …

Farm Profile: Lehman’s Orchard (Michigan)

By Heidi Lewis on

Steve Lecklider wasn't always a farmer. He was a professional clarinet musician playing classical music in South Bend, Indiana. Now he runs Lehman's Orchard with his parents, both retired teachers. …

Sonoma County Unique August 28, 2006

By Chris Mittelstaedt on

This time of year, I like to write about Lee Walker and his family farm. Lee's grandfather (Arthur Upp) planted the first Gravenstein apple orchard on the property in 1912, and the apples we have in …

Finding the Good Stuff, August 15, 2005

By FruitGuys Staff on

A majority of the fruit grown in the U.S. comes from California. Much of that is within 300 miles of the Bay Area. If you are willing to dig a bit, some of the most exciting and unique small farms …

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