I will be honest and say that I  had neither heard of nor tasted  fava beans until I married Ray.  I was introduced to the Mothers Day tradition in this Italian family of picking, preparing and eating a lovely helping of beans with oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.  It only took one taste and I was hooked.  We look forward to the harvest of the fava bean as spring comes to an end and the summer season begins.

The beans are planted the end of November and are ready to harvest on Mothers Day.  They don’t all ripen at one time and several harvests can be made from the patch-lucky us!   They grow a bit over 4 feet tall and it is  fun to wade through the bean patch on a warm spring day and fill your bucket with the long soft pods.

Once picked, find a comfortable chair and table and plan to sit for a while as you remove the beans from the pods. Put a large pot of water on the stove and bring to a simmer.  The beans are firm and are a beautiful shade of spring green.  Once podded, the outer skin needs to be removed before they are eaten.  To do this, pour the podded fava beans into the simmering water allowing the water to come to a rolling boil.  Once the outer skin turns darker green and begins to wrinkle a bit in the water (maybe 5 minutes) pour into a colander and rinse with cold water.  Allow to cool until you can handle them.  This step is often hard for us to wait for because we want to complete the process as we know how delicious the final product is!  Once cool the outer skin can be removed revealing the deliciousness inside.  Simply pinch one end of the outer shell and the bean within will slip out into the waiting bowl.

Though there are many ways to prepare a fava bean we have a tendency to do the same recipe each and every year.  We fill the bowl with favas, pour our favorite olive oil and vinegar, salt and pepper to taste, mix gently and DIG IN!!

The fava beans are ripe before the fruit stand opens and though we distribute the bulk of them to a local restaurant  please come by if you would like to enjoy a walk in the garden, pick a bucketful  and learn the secret we have known for years.

Visit the link below for a great history of Fava Beans as well as some great recipes.
Fava Beans: A Little Spring On Your Plate

The “art” of grafting is learned through trial and error and those that graft must be long on patience. Of course the “art” of any craft takes time and the desire to make it the best before it is presented to the public.  The perfection of a craft is really the true definition of a labor of love.  Another way to convey that message  is the old fashioned saying  “the proof is in the pudding”.

The grafts that were successful this year were a combination of increasing the varieties most requested by our customers as well as some new/traditional selections researched by Ray to add to the current list.  There are not many things in life  better than a tree-ripened,  picked from orchard from which the fruit was grown, peach- smelling, chin- dripping peach.  They are the best eaten ripe, made into cobbler, made into home made jam, canned as whole fruit,  dried, or included in your favorite recipe.  The traditional flavor of a ripe peach is a blast from the past and a welcome to the future for  those that haven’t tasted them yet.

Erickson Ranch has, over the years has  extended the varieties of peaches we offer.   Our earliest peach, the Regina, ripens with the Blenheim apricots with our opening  on June 23rd.   Bare with us as our website  harvest calendar is revamped  to reflect the varieties of white and yellow peaches as well as nectarines we grow and sell.

This quote is taken directly from my, on the office shelf, Websters Dictionary ( with the exception of the Farmers Vacation, which was my addition!)  A  farming vacation is certainly an example, in my opinion, of an oxymoron.  In the world of a farmer is is a positive phrase to say the least.  We rarely take a vacation away from the ranch not only due to the work required for maintenance  but because we actually love the beauty that is our home business.  We are blessed to have our home in the midst of a beautiful setting.  Its beauty is never lost because it changes with the seasons.  Each time you walk out the front door, take a moment to  sit on the rocking chair and take in the view, smell and sounds we realize what a bounty of beauty we are privileged to be a part of.

Recently the Farmer and I took a 24 hour vacation from the ranch and it was the best short trip we have taken in some time.  We drove up the North Coast towards Bodega Bay and beyond.  Though our day started later than  intended we could  not have picked a more spectacular day.  The weather was absolutely perfect.

Coleman Beach above Bodega Bay

You may ask yourselves,  “What type of vacation can anyone take in 24 hours?”  I realize  it often takes at least that much time just  to unwind and begin to enjoy your “vacation?”  Not the farmer.   When the opportunity presents itself,  it must be taken advantage of.  We were able to step away from the business that is our lifestyle and have a renewed perspective and appreciation for our chosen line of work.  Vacation, in whatever form it is described, is a chance to remove oneself from the day to day routine and formulate a refreshing outlook on what  routine has become and learn to appreciate it.

For the small farmer in business, vacation, as most folks understand it,  has it’s own definition.  Farming  is an  attachment  to the land  that is difficult to explain.  Even though it seems to be the off season in farming,  it is actually a very busy time as preparation takes place for the opening of the fruit stand to the public.  If your were to drive by the ranch today you would see the beautiful fruit trees in blossom, the daffodils are completing their spectacular two and a half week bloom, mustard is growing between the rows and the Closed for the Season, Call for Jam sign will greet you at the driveway.  Mother Nature has been dry this winter season and as we all know that is a mixed blessing.  Yes we need the rain and it will come sooner or later.  The dryness has been a  benefit  to us,  but that is of course, not always the case.  Last winter we had a late wet spring that devastated our Blenheim apricot crop and set the season off kilter from the start.  This year the trees are in bloom, the pruning has been completed and the necessary spraying has been on schedule to prevent the brown rot that can easily destroy a stone fruit crop.

Sunshine in the winter!

Ray in a field of grafted young peach trees

The job moves ever onward and there is never a dull moment.   March is here and the job of planting the seeds for the hoop-house is underway.  With Mother Nature on our side and and overabundance of  TLC  the  germinated seedlings required by germinate the seedlings will soon be ready for transplanting in the soil.  The ordering of seeds for planting throughout the season is a never ending project this time of year.  So many catalogs, so little time.  Some self-restraint and self-control must be exercised when turning each beautiful page.  Sometimes the dog-eared pages of the catalogs far outnumber the plants and seeds we have room to plant.

With all the field work that takes place  to prepare for the upcoming season, it goes without saying that the marketing aspect is equally important.  Marketing and promotion of a business is an ever and constant changing process.  We have come to realize we need to be an expert as Webmaster, Facebook as well as a marketing wiz!!!  The realization has become very clear to us that we are , at best,  mediocre at all three and are very fortunate to have folks that are providing their expertise in those areas to make our business “well-rounded” so to speak.  Our thanks and gratitude go to Tracy Ellison  Facebook- Aficionado, web designer and graphic designer,  Jose and Lyla Diaz  www.diaz-communications.com and  Carolyn Higgins www.fortunemarketing.com

The season is progressing on schedule and we are looking forward to seeing you all this summer.  New changes and suprises have been taking place over the winter that we are very excited about.  Change is always good for a small business.  As the Blenheim apricots ripen for their display in late June we anticipate our opening.

Our Heidi

It seems as though a bit over a year ago I was writing about the loss of , Tigger, our beloved brindle pit bull mix.  I am now going to tell the story about Heidi, our  Rottweiler/black lab mix.  We put her to sleep last week after a long,  happy,  ranch dog life.  We had the pleasure of having her for 16 years and what an addition she was to our lives.

Let me tell you a bit about Heidi,  our young families first dog.  Actually she is credited with being the  starting point of  the Hierarchy of the Erickson Ranch Dogs.   When our children were in grammar school it seemed to me a good idea to include a dog in the farm.    Erickson Ranch just wasn’t complete without a dog!  Made perfect sense to me.

One day after school, I packed up the kids and off to the pound we went.   We made our way up and down the aisles of the animal shelter as each dog made an effort for our attention.  What a difficult task,  for we wanted to take each and every pup home with us.  The decision came down to two completely different dogs.  One was a terrier mix and the other was our Heidi.  We will never forget the  beautiful two year old, Heidi,  sitting in the pen and looking at us with those big brown eyes asking, “Please give me a chance to be part of your family and be with those two young kids”.  She appeared quite calm and was a bit over weight and of course my thinking was that she would be a calm “lab-type” dog.  Well not quite!

As we put on the pink leash,  into the truck she went bounded.   As soon as we got out of the shelter the calm affect changed to a renewed lease on life.  She was full of energy and on her way to a new  adventure with those two kids.  The kids and I were so thrilled to have a new pup and they  couldn’t wait to introduce her to their dad.  We dressed her up with a red bandanna and hid her behind them as I brought Ray into the back yard for introductions.  You must remember,  this was a surprise to Ray and perhaps not the best thing to do to a farmer at the end of a very long day.  Live and learn!!   He wasn’t quite as thrilled as we were and  his response was, “What the heck is that”?   Of course Heidi responded with a barking growl at this tall,  seemingly unfriendly person.  Oh No!  What had I done?

It wasn’t to long before Ray and Heidi were fast friends.  We soon learned about Heidi.  She loved to run and I mean RUN!!!  It was almost as though she needed to get her “wiggles” out each and every day.  She was certainly meant to be a ranch dog.   We lived in Fairfield at the time and  the ideal beginning of her day was to climb into the truck with Ray and off to her  “job” at the ranch she went.   She could run and run and run and run.  The other outstanding trait of this pound pup was her strong will and I mean STRONG WILL!!!

Several stories come to mind amongst many that we could tell.  Not soon after we settled into life with Heidi,  our son Ross and I decided to take her for a long walk in town.  Of course she was on the leash but once we got to the local school we “let her go”.  That was perhaps not the best idea as she began that “run” thing I mentioned earlier.  She ran like a bolt of lightening in a diagonal pattern across the  school ground.  She also exhibited that ” strong will”  I made reference to.  Her free spirit and strong will became one at that moment  and she quickly became a spot in the distance.  Ross was off full- speed ahead to capture her as I was made  a feeble attempt to call her back.  He quickly gained on her but she ran through traffic on a very busy street and his effort came to an end.  She finally ran her wiggles out in the nearby neighborhood.  We were happy to get her home as she was exhausted from her  “Bolt”!

She was an independent sort and when she wanted to be somewhere she made it very clear.   Heidi liked to be under our computer desk amongst the cords and of course our feet.  I wonder if it provided her the safe feeling of being protected  from the back and able to peer out from the front.  Needless to say, Kristen our daughter, tells  of  many a time doing homework with Heidi.  It is not as though Heidi was invited to be there during homework but she decided it was time for her to get in the cave. She did not wait politely for an opening under the desk but rather bulldozed her way in and made herself very comfortable because she wanted to.  Kristen would scoot out from the desk and allow Heidi to make herself comfortable for the duration and then complete the homework.

Heidi and Tigger became fast friends and were trouble from the get-go.  Though he was the Protector and the Man of the Erickson Ranch Canines, he realized she was the Alpha- Female and these two companions created adventure after adventure.    They would be sitting in the sunshine one moment and the next moment they were off.  They must have looked at each other and said, “Okay,  the humans aren’t looking,  lets make  our get away”.  Many a time they were gone for hours  on a foray that we will never be able to imagine.  Upon their return they were exhausted and slept many an hour to re-energize for the next short vacation.

Heidi was never the cuddly lap dog that curls up on the couch at the end of a long day.  She was an independent soul and made it clear to all other dogs  that she was most certainly the Alpha Female.  We have had more that one vet visit because Heidi had need to make it clear that she was in charge and don’t mess with her.    Animals are amazing and they certainly establish their pecking order.  Once our dogs (and cats) all realized Heidi was at the top of the food chain all was well with the dogs at the Ranch.

It seems strange to not see her on the front porch in her special spot.  Old habits die hard and each time we walk up the steps to the front door we automatically look to the right to be sure she is okay,  settled in for the night, has enough water and the heating pad in positioned under her during  the night.

As I look out my office window  I see her final adventure spot next to her beloved Tigger.  They are running free at their Big Ranch in doggie heaven.  We miss her terribly.

Dogs do make life on a Ranch!

Though we have been here for many years we are always pleased to hear, “We have passed this place for years and decided it was time to come down the road .  It is quite the adventurous spirit that drives down the lane to find out what is at the other end.  We can guarantee it will be well worth the visit whether it be a bite of the freshest fruit of the day or a walk in the u-pick garden to fill their basket with garden goodies or pick a fresh bouquet of flowers.

The start of the 2011 growing season was a bit difficult due to the Blenheim Apricot crop failure. With that said, it was a wonderful season.   The peaches were abundant, the flowers were beautiful, the raised beds were prolific and we were happy to greet all the  new faces and families.

We thank you all and  look forward to next season with a  wish that each and everyone of you to have a  Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year!!