GET READY FOR PEACHES

Our early peach varieties are finished.  There is a little break in our peach harvest.  By the end of June we will be harvesting middle season peaches: Flavorcrest, Red Haven, and Regina.  We hope to have white peaches after the fourth of July.

      Meanwhile Santa Rosa plums are starting to ripen.  With them come a delicious fragrance in our fruit stand on harvest days. Santa Rosas have tartness in their skin that is overwhelmed by its flavor, fragrance and sweetness. There is a reason this one of the most popular heirloom varieties.  These red plums start off with amber flesh, and as they mature the skin turns dark purple and the flesh becomes redder, all the while developing more juicy flavor and sweetness.

     Now and then we will have the breba crop of figs.  This is a small early crop of figs.  Both the black mission and brown turkey varieties are coming into the farm stand.  If you miss out on these early figs, they will be back at the end of July for their second crop of the summer.

      This is a good year for apricots on our orchard.  There is both Royal Blenheim and Patterson apricots. Both are good for eating, baking and making jam.

A future tractor driver.

       Hoshigaki, dried persimmons, are available in the farm stand.  On warm days you may need to ask for them.  We have to keep them in a cool place so they don't melt.  Hot weather makes shipping Hoshigaki through mail order a bit risky.  For mail order, it's best to call us for a discussion of the possibilities.

Peaches are great!

 

HOURS:

Tues. through Sat.      10:00  am to 6:00 pm           

 

          Sunday         11 am to 5 pm

Closed on Mondays

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

🍑 Peaches:  Flavorcrest, Red Haven, Regina. These are yellow freestone peaches.

Apricots:  Royal Blenheim apricots are an heirloom variety known for their great sweet tart flavor.  Patterson apricots have a delicate sweet flavor and hold their color and shape when cooking.  

Santa Rosa plums:  These plums are known for their amazing flavor and fragrance.  They are sweet tart and as the season goes on they become red fleshed, juicy and sweet

Hoshigaki:  Tender and moist dried persimmons with naturally formed dusting of fruit sugars on the surface.  These were hand massaged and  dried slowly for 4 to 8 weeks.

Loquat:  These small orange fruit are sweet with peach-like texture.

Eureka Lemons: deep yellow skin and tart juicy flesh.  🍋 Best  lemons to bring out the brightness desired in  lemonade and lemon meringue pie.

Valencia Oranges:  Juicing oranges, also good for just peeling and eating.

Vegetables:    Asian cucumbers, Summer squash.

Honey 🍯 from bees 🐝 at Otow Orchard.

Bee pollen from bees 🐝 at Otow Orchard

⚘ Calendula Salve and Lip Balm

Here is what we have from other producers:

WoodRose Country Garden in Granite Bay: 🥗 zucchini, crookneck squash, cabbage, Anaheim chiles, tomatoes 🍅, cucumbers, beans, eggplant, potatoes, white onions, basil, 🌿rosemary, Greek oregano, and thyme.  She will be adding more to her offerings this summer.

Sunnyslope Farm: Yellow freestone Flavorcrest peaches

Top O' the Hill Apiary in Granite Bay: Comb honey  can be used in tea, coffee, yogurt, oatmeal, ice cream, fruit salads and on toast or bagels.  Top of the Hill Apiary also has Bees wax 🐝, and Honey.

Nastase Honey Farm in Lincoln:  This Honey 🍯 is unfiltered and raw. 

Two Feather Farm in Granite Bay:  🐔🥚  Eggs.  Egg production is slowing down.  The hens think it is getting too warm.  🌞

Jams 🍑 from the Good Stuff. We currently have Peach Cardamon, Chili Apricot, Pepper Pomegranate, Fig Orange Brandy, and Chili Blackberry.

 

 

TIME TO MAKE JAM

     Santa Rosa Plums came on quickly.  Now is the time to make plum jam.  Santa Rosa, with their fabulous balance of sweet and tart, and wonderful fragrance, make an especially delicious jam.  
      I use 5 pounds of Santa Rosa plums and a box of pectin to make a batch of jam.  I often need to boil the jam a little longer (3 to 7 min) than recommended since our fruit usually has more  juice than expected.  The skins make it a deep magenta color.

      Peaches are now coming into the farm stand with a little more reliability.  Red Haven, Regina and Flavorcrest are three yellow freestone varieties that we are currently harvesting.  At this point we often advise customers to leave them on the counter for a day so they can mature and develop more flavor and juice. 

       It will be just a tease.  We had a few figs for sale last weekend.  The early crop (burber) of figs got burned in that late frost we had.  Only a few escaped and are now maturing.  Look for the next crop of figs to appear in late July or August.

      We are selling hoshigaki from last season.  It is available at the farm stand as strips or whole pieces.   Give us a call if you want to order by mail so we can discuss the possibilities.  We are hesitant to ship mail orders due to the heat. (916) 791-1656

HOURS:

Tues through Sat   10 am to 6 pm

Sun.                       11 am to 5 pm

Closed on Mondays

Here is what we have at the Farm Stand from Otow Orchard:
Santa Rosa Plums: Dark skin with yellow flesh. Sweet-tart taste with intense flavor and fragrance
Red Beaut Plums: Red skin, yellow flesh, juicy, mildly sweet flavor
Frontier Plums: Dark skin, sweet, red flesh.
Flavorcrest Peach:  Yellow freestone
Regina Peach:  Yellow freestone
Red Haven peach: Yellow freestone with a distinct flavor
Jade Nectarine:  White flesh
Figs: Black Mission (limited supply)
Valencia Orange:  Sweet and juicy
Eureka Lemons:  Tart
Hoshigaki:  whole and strips
Honey from bees at Otow Orchard
Calendula Salve and Lip Balm
Summer Squash
Asian cucumbers
Asian eggplant
Tomato plants

Here is what we have from other producers:
Yellow Peaches from Sunnyslope Farm (conventionally grown)
Honey from Nastase Honey Farm in Lincoln

Orange Blossom Honey from our bee keeper
Eggs from Two Feather Farm in Granite Bay
Jams from the Good Stuff. We currently have Plum (Santa Rosa), Peach Cardamon, Chili Apricot, Pepper Pomegranate, Fig Orange Brandy, Chili Blackberry, and Quince Marmalade

SMALLER PEACH HARVEST

Summer is in full swing.. At least weatherwise.
Our harvest has been extremely small.  Some days we have peaches and on others we ration them and still run out.  PLEASE CALL AHEAD if you are traveling a distance for peaches.  The plums have been very good. Can't get them like this at the store.  All the fruit set on the trees have been lacking this year.  Must be the climate change that some say we are not experiencing.  The blossoms didn't all come on at once as they usually do. Rather blooming came in stages over time.  Naturally it seemed to rain every time new blossoms opened up.  We attribute that to the lack of chill hours during the dormant season. Farming is certainly "faith-based".  There are too many factors that all the man-made chemicals in the world can't control or remedy.  Tomatoes are just coming on.  Many home gardeners beat us to the table with their own home grown.  Zucchini and Asian cucumbers are doing great.  Who could imagine that cucumbers could be so good.  Thankfully Veronica battles the wild blackberry vines and I don't have to.  Lisa still brings us her eggs though the hot weather is not good for the chickens. Fred finished up his leafy greens and now has potatoes and onions.  His garden plot behind the shed looks abandoned, but by the end of the month he'll be getting it ready for his next winter garden.  Anatoliy has been bringing his honey.  I can't imagine his bees being very happy in our orchard as dry as it is.
With drip irrigation the beauty and serenity of the orchard is gone but we all need to do our part so there's water for everybody.
Posted by Tosh
Official Statement: We have NO pick-your-own activities.
 May to January Hours:
Tu to Sat:   10 am to 6 pm
Sun:            10 am to 5 pm
Closed on Mondays

Here's what we have in the farm stand from Otow Orchard:
Yellow Freestone Peaches:  Delight, Suncrest, Frost, Gene Elberta
White Peaches:  Sugar Lady, Babcock, Nectar, Silver Logan
Plums:  Santa Rosa, Frontier, Satsuma, Burgundy, Eldorado, Black Amber, Laroda, Red Ace, 
             Red Roy,
Pluot:  Dapple Dandy
Wild Blackberries
Hoshigaki (dried persimmons) No longer available though Mail Order.
Herbs:  basil, dill, rosemary, mint
Calendula Salve
Honey from Otow Orchard
Vegetables: Zucchini, Yellow squash, Asian cucumbers, Lemon cucumbers, Okra, Japanese eggplant, sweet peppers, hot peppers, Tomatoes, Sungold cherry tomatoes, Long beans

This is what we have from other producers:

Yellow peaches from Sunnyslope Farm   
White peaches from Sunnyslope Farm
Jams from The Good Stuff
Onions and Potatoes from BarleyOats Farm
Eggs from Two Feather Farm

PEACHES AND WILD BLACKBERRIES

        For the time being, the orchard is giving us peaches.  We are getting Red Haven and Flavorcrest. These are both yellow freestone peaches.  We anticipate a few white peaches will be coming in soon. 
        It is also plum season.  The famous Santa Rosa plum is now available.  These plum have real flavor!  They are sweet, tart and fragrant.   Just full of flavor and juice.  The sweetness and flavor overwhelm the tartness.  Kids and adults can't stop eating them once they have tried them.  We are starting to harvest Satsuma plums.  These are sweet and red fleshed.   A few Frontier plums and Burgandy plums are also available.
       Wild Blackberries happen only once a year.  Wild blackberries are a challenge to  harvest.  They are carefully selected from among thorny vines on what seems to be the hottest days of the year (even when you start at 6 AM).  And only the dark ones ready to lose their shine will be sweet.  Hope you can appreciate the time and skill needed to pick even one
basket of blackberries. The reward is great.

      Otow Orchard vegetables are arriving. We are getting zucchini, cucumbers, beans, okra, peppers, cherry tomatoes, and eggplant.  In the herb department you can request basil, dill, mint, and rosemary.

 May to January Hours:
Tu to Sat:   10 am to 6 pm
Sun:            10 am to 5 pm
Closed on Mondays

Here's what we have in the farm stand from Otow Orchard:
Yellow Freestone Peaches:  Red Haven, Flavorcrest, Regina, Frost
Plums:  Santa Rosa, Frontier, Satsuma, Burgandy
Figs:  Black Mission
Apricots:  Royal Blenheim, Patterson
Wild Blackberries
Hoshigaki (dried persimmons) No longer available though Mail Order.
Herbs:  basil, dill, rosemary, mint
Calendula Salve
Honey from Otow Orchard
Vegetables: Zucchini, Yellow squash, Asian cucumbers, Lemon cucumbers, Yellow wax beans, Kentucky wonder green beans, Okra, Japanese eggplant, sweet peppers, and Sungold cherry tomatoes

This is what we have from other producers:

Yellow peaches from Sunnyslope Farm
White peaches from Sunnyslope Farm
Santa Rosa plums from Pleasant Hill Farm
Red onions from Lovejoy Farm
Jams from The Good Stuff
Eggs from Two Feather Farm
Honey (wildflower) from Top O' The Hill Apiary 

WELCOME TO SUMMER

Welcome to summer.  While the temperature is letting us know that summer is here, we also see the arrival of some early peaches and wonderfully fragrant Santa Rosa plums. The harvest has begun and we see that the the crop of peaches and plums is light.  Call for an update if you are looking for a large quantity of fruit.  We are currently harvesting a few yellow freestone peaches, and plums.
         As you know, you can't always trust the information you find on the internet.  Every day we get phone calls asking if we allow people to pick their own fruit.  We have to tell them "NO, we are NOT a pick your own orchard."  Our harvesters are very skilled, respectful of our operation, covered by insurance, and have families to support.  That said, you are going to get the best product if you let them do what they have been well trained to do.  Besides, it is hot, dusty and weedy out in our orchard.  You are still welcome to go for a walk.
     With the warm weather, BarleyOats winter vegetable farm is taking a break.  Otow Orchard vegetables are arriving. Mostly zucchini! Gradually we are getting Asian cucumbers, beans and okra.  In the herb department you can request dill, oregano, and rosemary.

 May to January Hours:
Tu to Sat:   10 am to 6 pm
Sun:            10 am to 5 pm
Closed on Mondays

Here's what we have in the farm stand from Otow Orchard:
Peaches : yellow freestone
Plums:  Santa Rosa, Frontier
Pluots:  Flavor Supreme
Valencia oranges

Hoshigaki (dried persimmons) No longer available though Mail Order.
Herbs:  oregano, dill, rosemary, mint
Calendula Salve
Otow Orchard Honey
Vegetables: summer squash, Asian cucumbers

This is what we have from other producers:

Blueberries from Sunnyslope Farm
Yellow peaches from Sunnyslope Farm
Jams from The Good Stuff
Eggs from Two Feather Farm
Honey (wildflower) from Top O' The Hill Apiary