A BIG THANK YOU TO OUR CUSTOMERS

     It was  sort of a joke to say our farming was faith based.  Most of our crops were on the light side all of 2022.  We thought we might be looking at negative numbers for the year.  Now that we can look at the figures for the whole year, we see that we did make some money.  So a big thank you to all our faithful and wonderful customers 💑.  In all honesty,  it is you who make it possible for  us to continue farming.  So let the new year begin.  🌈  💝

 

       The days are getting longer.  Let's hope the chickens have taken note.  The egg farmer has not had enough eggs to sell for over 2 months, yet he continues to feed and care for those chickens. 🐔 He is a kind and considerate farmer.  Let's hope the chickens reward him for his care and consideration while they seemed to be taking a long winter vacation. Think eggs:  🥚🥚🥚🥚

 

        With an outlook of 10 days of on and off rain 🌦 we are happy and at the same time a little  worried.  Around the farm, we see water standing in big and small puddles and in other places we see rivulets making their way to the creek below our farm. We have captured water in buckets and barrels for washing tools and watering a few plants near the farm stand.  In the past, I only collected rain water in February or March.  But nowadays I can't know for sure that there will be rain in those months. Our farm pond is overflowing and we hope the rocks keep the erosion in control. In the eucalyptus grove near the creek, one tall old tree uprooted it self.  The attempt to move it out of the grove was abandoned when tractor tires immediately began to sink.  That task will have to wait till the ground stabilizes.

       We are sometimes confused by the weather mother nature has been handing out lately.  The loquat tree has bloomed for the second time since its 2022 crop was harvested in May 2022.  Every time it gets cold for a while then warms up, the tree thinks it is time to bloom.   I expect this will happen one or two more times before the normal harvest time in late May.

 

        The farm stand is still open with regular season hours.  We have a few very good items.  Satsuma mandarins, Asian pears, hoshigaki and honey.  Fuyu persimmons are out of season now.  The ones we have are very soft.  Some people like using them in smoothies, or on their cereal.  They can also be substituted for the soft hachiya persimmon if you want to use them in baking.

REGULAR  SEASON HOURS:

TUESDAY THRU SATURDAY  10:00  TO  6:00

                            SUNDAY      11:00 TO 5:00

CLOSED ON MONDAYS

 Here is what we have at the Farm Stand from Otow Orchard:

Hoshigaki:  These are whole dried persimmons.  They were hand massages while they dried over a period of four to 8 weeks. Some are firm, others are soft and moist.  All are coated with naturally formed white persimmon sugar.  No sugar added and no preservatives used.  You may purchase these at our farm stand or order them using our  mail order form .

Satsuma Mandarins:  Easy to peel, sweet and juicy.  Very few seeds this year. 

Kiwi:  Fuzzy brown fruit with green interior and strawberry like flavor.  At this time they are firm and tart.

Okusankichi Asian Pears:  Generally large crisp and juicy.  Refreshingly sweet. A good keeper for winter enjoyment.

Maru:  Brown fleshed persimmon.  Sweet if pollinated. Can be eaten hard or soft.  These are often partially sweet.

Vodka Persimmons:  These are Hyakume or Maru persimmons that did not pollinate.  We have sweetened them with vodka. They may be eaten firm or soft.

Hachiya: Sold out  😢

Gyombo: Sold out  😞

Fuyu persimmons: Only very soft ones are available.

Frozen persimmon pulp:  Sold out

Red pomegranates:  Deep red arils. (Limited supply.  Many cracked ones.)

Honey 🍯 from bees 🐝 at Otow Orchard. Bee pollen from bees 🐝 at Otow Orchard 

⚘ Calendula  Salve and Lip Balm 

Walnuts:  English (limited supply)

Dried fruit: jujube, fuyu persimmons, and figs.

 

Here is what we have from other producers:

Top O' the Hill Apiary in Granite Bay: Honey🍯. Top of the Hill Apiary also has bees wax 🐝.

La Bella Vito Farm in Loomis is bringing us fresh🥚 eggs from pastured 🐔🐔chickens (Limited supply. Please call ahead.)

Tudsbury Orchard  in Loomis:  Satsuma mandarins in the bag.

Lupi Farm in Granite Bay (no spray): Meyer Lemons: These are fragrant and tasty lemons.  They are a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange.   They are favored because they are lower in acdidity and  sweeter than the regular lemon.