FALL HARVEST

How quickly November is progressing.  Soon it will be Thanksgiving.  Time to gather with family and friends.

Tosh and I are now putting in our long days and nights making hoshigaki and organizing mail order requests.  The farm stand is closed on Mondays but I still find myself there tending the dried persimmons.   You may contact us for on-farm pick-up orders by calling (916) 791-1656 or email at otoworchard@yahoo.com.  For mail orders please use our mail order form.  Mail order shipments usually begin in December. 

The trees have noticed the change in night time temperatures.  Many of the persimmon trees are displaying vibrant orange, yellow, purple and red leaves. Nice time for a walk in the orchard.

 

 

 

Please note:  We will be closed on Thanksgiving Day.  Regular hours will resume  on Friday Nov. 24, 2023.

HOURS:

Tues through Sat  10:00 am to 6 pm 

Sunday  11:00 am to 5:00 pm

CLOSED ON MONDAYS 

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

Hoshigaki:  These are whole dried persimmons.  They were hand massaged while they dried over a period of four to eight 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. We began peeling persimmons in October.  The early hoshigaki is available. You may contact us for on-farm pick-up orders. (916) 791-1656 or email at otowochard@yahoo.com.  For mail orders please use our mail order form . Mail order shipments do not usually begin until December.

Apples: 

        Fuji: Known for being sweet juicy and always crisp.

        Reinete Simerenko:  a green sweet-tart apple with great flavor. I call it a cider apple.

        Granny Smith:  A green sweet tart apple.  Popular pie apple.  Special characteristic is that it stays white after being cut, it does not turn brown after being cut.

        Arkansas Black:  Amazingly deep red black apple. I call it the "Sleeping Beauty " apple.  Sweet and very firm.

European Pears:

        Comice :  Large, juicy, sweet pear when ripe.  Wait for the skin to turn slightly yellow. Similar to a Bartlett pear.

Asian Pears:  

    Shinko:  Large round pear with brown skin.  Very sweet, crisp, and juicy, a good keeper.

    Olympic: Large, dark brown, round Asian pear.  It has a good crunch and the flavor is intense. It is juicy and very sweet.  Can be used for pies and cobblers.

    Okusankichi:  Large winter Asian pear.  It is a good keeper.  It is sweet with a hint of tartness.  Juicy and crisp. 

Persimmons:

    Hachiya:  Tall acorn-shaped persimmon.  It is astringent until soft and jelly-like. It becomes very sweet soft and delicate. Fresh eating right out of its skin or often used for baking cookies and pudding. Used for making hoshigaki.

    Gyombo:  Tall Acorn-shaped persimmon with grooves down the four sides of the fruit.  Like the Hachiya persimmon, it is astringent until soft and jelly-like.  It becomes very soft, juicy, and sweet.

    Fuyu:  Apple type persimmon. Can be eaten hard and crisp.  These are always sweet and a favorite among our customers and future customers. At this time of year they are hard and crisp.  Later in the season or if held for a period of time they will become more orange-red and the flesh will become tender and sweeter. Used for fresh eating and in salads. Currently being sold by the bag and the box.

    Maru, Chocolate, and Nagamaru:  These are the brown fleshed persimmons.  Back in April when the trees were in bloom, the bees were  buzzing.  If the flower was fully pollinated, seeds would form and give off ethylene gas  to make the flesh brown and sweet.  The problem arises when a flower is only partially pollinated and less than half of the seeds form.  This fruit will be only partially sweet.  It's always a risk.  We recommend cutting the fruit and eating only the brown, sweet flesh. Some varieties will sweeten as they soften.

    Hyakume:  This is another brown fleshed persimmon. Often referred to as cinnamon.  When pollinated, Hyakume will be naturally sweet.  When partially pollinated or when it has no pollination, Hyakume will be astringent.  We use the one we think are mostly astringent to make Vodka persimmons. Persimmons treated with vodka are always sweet. Their flesh may be brown or yellow.

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

⚘ Calendula  Salve and Lip Balm:  Wonderfully thick salve for healing dry skin, bug bites and scrapes.  Currently out of stock.

 
Cherry Tomatoes:  We are still getting a few Sun Gold cherry tomatoes.  It won't be for long.   The days are getting too short and cold. Limited supply. 

Chili Peppers:   Aji Amareto, Buena Mulata, Jalapenos, ---All limited supply.

Tomatillos:   These look like small green tomatoes in a paper shell.  They can be cooked or eaten raw. You can add them to salads or make them into green salsa.

Sweet Peppers: Green, yellow and purple varieties.

Winter Squash:

    Red Kuri, Black Futsu:  Known as a Japanese pumpkins.  These varieties have sweet, thick dry flesh. They can be steamed, baked, roasted, sauteed or added to soups and stews.

    Butternut Squash:    One of the most popular winter squashes because of its generous flesh.  The seeds are contained in the bulbous end and the neck is all flesh.   It has a sweet nutty flavor.  Is can be roasted, steamed, baked  and chopped into soups, stews, casseroles and curries.  Flavor can be savory or sweetened with syrup and butter.  

Quince:  This fruit is firm and seldom eaten raw.  It has a pleasing fragrance which can be preserved by making sauce, jams, jelly, adding it to  apple dishes, and pairing it with pork.  It is a great source for pectin.  Quince must be cooked and cored. It is famously used to make Quince sauce or Doulce de Membrillo, and Quince candy.  For Thanksgiving it is a tradition in our family to add quince to the cranberry sauce. Wow.

Pomegranates:  Sweet White Pomegranates and tart red Wonderful Pomegranates.

English Walnuts:  In the shell.  You have to crack them.

Here is what we have from other producers:

WoodRose Country Garden  in Granite Bay, organic practices:

    Eggplant, beans, colorful bell peppers, garlic and arugula.

    Seasoning:  basil, rosemary, oregano, thyme, fresh garlic

    Cherry tomatoes.

    Winter squash:  Pink Banana Squash,

Top O' the Hill Apiary in Granite Bay:   Bees wax 🐝. 

Sunnyslope Farm Conventional practices, Garanite Bay, CA:  Fuji Apples.

La Bella Vito Farm in Loomis is bringing us fresh🥚 eggs from pastured 🐔🐔chickens. Production is low.  As days get shorter the chickens go through molting. This is the process of loosing old feathers and regrowing new feathers.  During this period, egg laying decreases and chickens concentrate on storing nutrients for the next season.

Kijani Farm in Granite Bay, organic practices:

    Sweet 100 cherry tomatoes

     Kabocha, Japanese winter squash (pumpkin).  Butternut winter squash

Mihara Farm  conventional farming in Newcastle, CA:  Kiwi, Hachiya persimmons.

Stoney Point Farm, Organic certified, Loomis, CA:  Hachiya persimmons.

Placer County Master Gardeners:   2024 Gardening Guide and Calendar.  Provides helpful hints throughout your gardening year.

Lupi Farm  in Granite Bay, no spray:  Quince.