Out of the blue

Los Angeles Times reporter Jerry Hirsch filed a story for today's paper that it seems he pulled out of the blue. Hirsch reported that California farmers are increasingly growing blueberries, a crop that a decade ago was not produced commercially in the Golden State.

"As little as three years ago, the number of acres planted in blueberries in the state was so small that it didn't register with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Today there are an estimated 4,000 acres of commercial blueberries in the San Joaquin Valley, Central Coast and Ventura," the article says.

Most would agree that a lot of the credit goes to Manuel Jimenez, the small-scale farm advisor in Tulare County. Back in 2001 he already had 30 varieties growing at the UC Kearney Research and Extension Center. His annual blueberry field day continues to be among the best-attended events at the research center.

For his article, Hirsch interviewed UC Cooperative Extension farm advisor Ben Faber of Ventura County.

"There's some real money to be made (in blueberries)," Faber is quoted.

At the end of the article, Hirsh included comments from Faber about the benefits of locally grown blueberries and the challenges associated with producing them.

"What they ship here from South America can't compare to what comes out of a berry patch in Ventura just 24 hours earlier," he is quoted.

California farmers, he said, are finding that blueberries can be a "persnickety crop."

"There is a learning curve," Faber is quoted. "Farmers have to understand that you can't treat it like a lemon."

Blueberries

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