Who Knew?

So....I'm doing a bit of research for our Big County Fair Christmas tree this year.  I'm looking at products grown in our county (you'll see why at a later date) and I was amazed at the variety of food grown here in my region.

Wanna' know what we produce?  Here's the Top 10 list in order with the most profitable being first.

1.  grapes

We grow table grapes, of course, and then the Thompson Seedless that make such excellent raisins.

In fact, my small town is know as the Raisin Capital of the World!

2.  almonds

I've noticed as I drive between our small towns a lot more almond groves then when I was a kid.

3.  poultry

And by poultry, I mean chicken and turkey.

My BIL's family even had a huge turkey ranch down in the southwestern part of our county.

4.  milk

Which includes

cheese

and

ice cream, of course.

5.  tomatoes

Not only do we grow fresh tomatoes that are at your grocery store, but that includes

salsa

and

catsup

and

spaghetti sauce.

6.  cattle and calves

Guess that milk needs to be produced by all those cattle and calves.  Now this "crop" isn't one I see very often in my travels, but I have the More Creative Bee lives in the foothills and when I drive up to see her, that's when I'll see a lot of cattle grazing on this hillsides.

7.  cotton

Ever heard of San Joaquin pima cotton?  I can remember Lands' End featuring it in a catalog a few years back.  Apparently is a very high quality cotton.  Again, who knew?

8.  pistachios

Love pistachios, do not love how torn up my thumb can get from trying to crack those shells. But at least the effort helps keep you from eating too many of them.

9.  peaches

My very favorite summer fruit!  I love finding the peaches the size of a baseball,  (I hate to say it, but we do sometimes buy them at Costco instead of a local farmer's market) just giving them a little wash, and then eating them like an apple.  The juice just drips down your chin and they are so sweet and delicious.  One of my favorite books about our part of the country is Epitaph for a Peach by David Mas Masumoto.  (yes, he and his family and farm have been featured in Martha Stewart Living magazine among others) where he writes about trying to save the delicious heirloom peach varieties his family grew on their farm.

10.  plums

I have to admit - they are good, but not my favorite summer fruit.  But I do like prunes dried plums a lot!

So...now you know (and so do I) the variety of things we produce for our country and the world.  And that's just the Top 10!  Plus I found out we are the #1 agricultural county in all of California too!

I'm feeling kind of proud –

(Not that I have ever been a farmer)

Proud to come from a region that provides so much.

Now what grows in your part of the country?  Or what is produced there?  Aren't we lucky to live in a country that can make and grow so many marvelous things?

Thanks for buzzing by!

So nice to see you've visited here for a bit.
And....I should really invite you over for dinner, shouldn't I!
Hope I didn't make you too hungry!

P.S.  You'll see why these are all useful when I show you our fair theme tree this year.