With the season  underway for only two weeks and the  weather cooperating the crops are beginning to fill the fruit shed.  Unfortunately, our opening has been without the wonderful Blenheim Apricot.  The weather was not on our side this year.   The peaches, thank you Lord,  have certainly filled the void and taken the lead.  We are now on the 3rd variety, and as the season progresses  each variety brings it’s special attributes.

The ” you pick” raised beds have provided a bounty that is  without a doubt, not only beautiful but also delicious.  The beets, carrots, onions, garlic, chard, lettuce and soon basil as well as flowers, quickly fill the picker’s baskets. Come bring the family, friends and enjoy the ranch.

The new season of jams and jellies are underway  using  the local commercial kitchen in Suisun, CA ” The Shared Spoon”.   We are fortunate to harvest the fruit at  peak  ripeness, allowing us to make  jams with less sugar bringing out the true flavor of the fruit.

We are marketing at two certified farmers markets, “Totally Local” organized by the Green Valley Agricultural Conservancy (totallylocal@gvagconservancy.org) and the Benicia Main Street Certified Farmers Market (info@beniciamainstreet.org) .

As the day closes we stand outside and watch the fruit bats come from under the creek bridge on the border of  the ranch.    The bats  forage in the orchard as they do what is natural and eat the “critters” that can do damage  the young fruit in the orchards.  Their job is without a doubt very helpful as they feed on the insects that can damage the young fruit.

The farmer’s life, this time of year, is in full swing.  We look forward to either seeing you or hearing from you.

Visit us at www.ericksonranch.com , www.suisunvalley.com, info@ericksonranch.com

I do believe the slow season for the small farmer does not quite fit the category of ” slow”  that most of us  have become accustomed to.   We are  in the  winter transition.

You may ask, “What is the winter transition”?   Once Mother Nature decides the growing season is complete,  the rejuvination season begins.  It may not seem like a season to those that don’t farm,  but winter is an essential part that completes the season of growing.

The current  fruits and vegetables cannot tolerate the upcoming chill that winter brings and therefore become dormant or complete their annual life cycle.   Winter is upon us and the seasons renew themselves.

During the Winter we certainly enjoy the holidays of  Thanksgiving and Christmas.  To us,  these are family traditions, and from our perspective, farming is a family event.   To gather with loved ones is by far the only way  to celebrate the true meaning of these holidays.   Once the holidays have been celebrated the business of farming continues.

Pruning ,  preparing the fields/gardens for the next season,  repairing equipment,  ordering trees and seeds for 2011, making new u-pick beds,  working on a business plan,  marketing the business and  planning  for the future are  bits and pieces of  the  ”slow”  season as our family  business moves forward.

Despite the cold,  foggy,  damp weather the narcissus push themselves out of the soil and present their lovely blossems for us to enjoy as we work the fields for the upcoming season.  The next beauty of our seasonal landscape  are the daffodils.  Their sun-bright blossoms never fail to make  the orchards alive with their beauty.  Their requests are few and their presence is anticipated without a doubt. 

The season may seem bleak as we are awaiting the warmth of spring and eventually summer.   The farmer awaits the upcoming spring and is ready to plant the seedlings for the anticipated growth of the warmth of the summer sun.  Mother Nature guides the farming family as they prepare for the arrival of those that make the “out of the way” trip to Erickson Ranch and Suisun Valley for the home grown produce that are brought in from our fields to your table.

We have been in the agriculture business for 4 generations and I can say, without a doubt, not a year has gone by that we have been  ”dogless’.  We reccently  lost, Tigger,  the best lost and found  pup a family could ask for.

Tigger, a brindle pit bull mix, became part of our family 15 years ago, when someone decided to drop him on our rural back road during the cold of winter.  Having never owned a  a pit bull , I must admit   like many,  my fear came not from personal experience but  from “pit bull” horror stories.

He proved me wrong by a long shot.  Tigger  became an instant best friend to our children who were both in grammar school at the time.   In the beginning we had to leave Tigger tied up in the old barn until we got to “know” him well enough to bring home.  I will never forget his mournful cry when he was separated from the children.  Quickly he proved himself and became the next member of the Erickson family.

Tigger had an uncanny ability to be our protector as well as extremely gentle at the same time.  As I think about “Tig” so many fond memories are brought to mind.  I’d like to share just a few.

When Grandma Rosie was very frail toward the end of her life, Tigger became her guardian angel. Nobody asked him to take on thie job, he just felt compelled to.  The beginning of  Rosie’s day started  with a stroll to get  mail  at the end of the road.  You must understand this event took a bit longer every day as Rosie’s steps became slower and slower with time.  I have a wonderful picture in my mind of Tigger sitting halfway up the road , his eyes intently focused on Rosie as she made her daily trek to retrieve the  mail.  No matter how long it took, he waited for her return.  Once she was halfway down the road, he walked with her back to the house, knowing all was well and she was safety inside.  When Grandma could no longer walk up the road, Tigger often sat at her side on the porch and kept an ever watchful eye on her.

Long time customers have shared storied with us about greeting Rosie while she sat on the porch with Tigger. His  intentions were made very clear to the visitor that there was definitely a line they couldn’t cross .  He never made a move from her side but simply growled with a look in his eye that made it clear he was in charge of Rosie.  No offense was taken and the visitors accepted this as part of  his job.

Our wonderful Tigger was certainly the “MAN” of the farm. We have “accumulated” many dogs over the years, all females as it came to be.  Each time we got a new addition to the Ranch Dogs, the pecking order of the group  had to occur.  We made many a visit to the vet as the  canine hierarchy was established.  Never once in the process did Tigger feel compelled to  find disagreement with any of  the ladies.  Actually I guess he felt no reason for such silliness as he was the MAN.  He was in charge of his ladies and there were no questions asked.

Speaking of being the MAN,  Tigger took on the responsibility of being in charge whenever Ray was away from the Ranch.  He made it very clear to customers coming to the stand that they better stay in line because he was now the boss.  No one gave Tigger that job either but he happily took it on.  He would bark with a very intimidating  voice as he was walking up to you with his tail high in the air and wagging .  On the other had he was as gentle as he could possibly be.  I’ll never forget his love for little children as seen many a time when he would put his very large head directly in a baby filled stroller.   He’d give them a gentle sniff and go about his business all to the utter delight of the child.

“Varmint hunting” as Ray would call it was perfected by Tigger.   Many a pipe end has been chewed to shreds as Tigger attempted to get at a squirrel, opossum, rat or skunk.  When Tigger was on the trail of a critter, he would let us know by giving us an alert bark.  It didn’t matter how far away he was from the barn, we could always hear that distinct bark that was clearly interpreted as , “Ray come quick I found a varmint, help me get it out of the pipe!!!”  Not only did Ray have to check out the commotion so did all the other dogs.  Tigger provided an endless source of entertainment in the hunting department.

As Tigger became ill, he never gave up his “job” as the protector of his family.  As difficult as it was for him to get up and bark toward the end of his long and happy life, he never ceased to do that when he felt he needed keep us safe.   Tears come to my eyes as I write about my beloved Tigger.  He has provided a place in my heart and soul that will always make me feel warm though a bit empty.  I know many folks can share the memories of their  dogs and can tell  similar stories to Tigger.  Those are lucky and very happy dogs for certain.  These doggone canines carve a part into our lives that make them family and evoke pure love without a doubt.

As I finish my story I am fortunate to be able to look out of my office window at the beautiful fall colors of the peach leaves as they complete their release from the trees that make a wonderful setting for Tigger.  He is buried in this lovely setting.  As I look out on this beauty my  memories of him are with me each and every day.  We will certainly never have another Tigger but I am forever thankful that he was such a beautiful part of  our family for so many years.