Sweet as sugar... or a pluot

I like sweets. A lot. If there is a reasonable amount of sugar in it, odds are, I will enjoy it. One type of food I really love is fruit. On a visit to Kingsburg Orchards in Kingsburg, Calif., I discovered a new favorite: the pluot.

No, I am not making this up. Kingsburg Orchards grows nearly 3,000 varieties of fruits. These include apricots, kiwis, peaches, pears, nectarines, plums and pluots. The pluot is a hybrid of a plum and apricot. There are different variations of this fruit, depending on the parent varieties used. The ones I tasted were incredible! Very sweet and juicy. One thing that intrigued the group was the way they were grown.

Nuts...about agriculture

I've been told I have a quirky personality. And, I might be a little nuts. But, as I continue my internship and exploring the world around me, I'm not just nuts. I'm nuts about agriculture.

While in California, the whole "being nuts" got to my head when we learning more about nut production in the industry. Almonds and pistachios were the two kinds we focused on -- and California is the only state in the U.S. that grows them! In the past 10 years, almonds and pistachios increased in production from 500,000 tons to 2 billion tons. That is quite a jump in the market!

Meeting market needs 7,000 acres at a time

Don is showing us an onion he pulled out of the field.

Many consumers underestimate the demands that agriculturalists meet on a daily basis. It isn't just a matter of making the highest dollar.

Farmers and ranchers must meet the market needs while providing the best care for their crops and animals. They typically choose between production methods like organic or inorganic, conventionally stalled or free range and other variations. However, one farmer in Helm, Calif. isn't just picking one way to grow his crops. He has chosen to follow the market demands when planting his 7,000 acres.

These are some grapes used in making Gallo wine.

Don Cameron is the general manager at Terranova Ranch, Inc. This ranch is run with 75 employees and 150 laborers to gross $20 million a year. That is not accomplished by pure size. Don is savvy about agricultural production. He doesn't just know how to grow crops, but he has the brains of a businessman when selecting his markets.

Helm is within the San Joaquin Valley -- dry, arid lands with little water to be found. On average, California receives 7 inches of rain per year. That is a tough opponent for any farmer! However, because of irrigation practices, the state is powerful in agricultural production.

Word of the Day: Cluster

This past week was very exciting! Because it was so exciting, I will be splitting up my adventures into more than one post. I had the privilege to travel with the AFA Student Advisory Team to Fresno, Calif. for our June meeting and industry visits from June 8-11. Not only was this my first time in California, but it was our team's first traveling meeting to learn about different methods of agricultural production and to mingle with supporters of our organization.

Each of us enjoyed learning more about California's diverse agriculture practices, like pistachios!
I am pictured second in from the left.

Every evening after our meetings, we share our "word of the day" to compile our thoughts and share it with the group. Unfortunately, we were unable to express our last word of the day on Tuesday because some of the team had to catch early flights across the country. Therefore, this is the perfect opportunity to share my word of the day and introduce a string of different posts about my California experiences.

My word of the day is cluster.