Community

With most people staying close to home during the pandemic, looking for things to do and ways to stay safe, local nurseries have seen an uptick in customers. Stay-at-home orders have prompted many to find new hobbies—and gardening has been a popular choice. Sierra Azul...

WATSONVILLE—California’s strawberry season is coming to a close. While sales remained strong throughout the summer, growers have seen production dip slightly. Carolyn O’Donnell, communications director for the California Strawberry Commission (CSC), said that after the season’s initial hardships, things eventually leveled off and demand actually...

With the theme “Cowboy Up and Wind Down,” the 2017 Salinas Valley Fair brought thousands of visitors to South County and featured the annual Junior Livestock Auction, which raked in $2.1 million from the sale of 950 animals.

WATSONVILLE—A new exhibit at the Agricultural History Project (AHP) has been set up to give visitors a glimpse into the dairy industry in Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Benito counties. Dozens of early-day milk bottles make up the bulk of the display, but numerous butter...

Strawberry season in the Pajaro Valley is in full swing, and experts are reporting that demand has steadily increased despite a difficult kickoff. As the Covid-19 pandemic hit the California region in mid-March, strawberry producers initially saw a spike in sales. But it was soon...

WATSONVILLE—A buggy that once transported people along the streets of San Jose in the 1880s and ‘90s is now on display at the Agricultural History Project, restored and with a fresh coat of paint. Hassan Zamani, who has volunteered with the AHP for two years,...

WATSONVILLE—In December, the Pajaro Valley Water Management Agency (PVWMA) Board of Directors approved a $1.2 million water conservation program aimed at further bolstering the efforts already in place by farmers. PVWMA is partnering with the Resource Conservation District of Santa Cruz County (RCD) and the...

SACRAMENTO—A bill that would increase protections for California’s farmworkers during hazardous smoky conditions created by seasonal wildfires is making its way through the state legislature. Assembly Bill 73, also known as the Farmworker Wildfire Smoke Protections Act, recently passed the Assembly Committee on Labor and...

Santa Cruz County Supervisor Zach Friend tonight will host a tele-town hall from 6-7pm with guest Tom AmRhein to talk about the Santa Cruz County Farm Bureau’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic. AmRhein, the former president of the Farm Bureau and the current chair of...

Israel Morales Sr. of JV Farms Organic in Soledad will receive the Organic Farmer of the Year Award at the Organic Trade Association’s Leadership Awards on Sept. 11. in Baltimore, Md.