Agriculture

Dry farming draws interest of small growers in Central Valley

By Edward Ortiz - Updated: Thursday, May 16 2013 - 7:47 am

A centuries-old farming technique called dry farming - once the order of the day in the Central Valley - is once again drawing the interest of some of the region's farmers.

California short on key state water workers, officials say

By Jon Ortiz - Updated: Thursday, May 16 2013 - 9:29 am

California officials say the state cannot retain enough trained workers to efficiently run and maintain its complex water delivery system, a problem that has consequences for cities and farms statewide.

Fruit trees double as art in tasty urban project

By Patricia Leigh Brown - Updated: Sunday, May 12 2013 - 7:36 am

Fruit looms large in the California psyche. Since the 1800s, dewy images of oranges, lemons and other fruits have been a lure for seekers of the state's postcard essence, symbols of fertile land, felicitous climate and the possibilities of pleasure.

The reds and the greens will combine at annual tractor event

By Edward Ortiz - Updated: Sunday, May 12 2013 - 2:30 pm

In the world of vintage tractor collectors, you're either faithful to the red, or your fidelity bleeds green.

Free session to look at saving family farms

By Mark Glover - Updated: Wednesday, May 8 2013 - 8:12 am

Sacramento-based Downey Brand, which bills itself as the largest law firm in the Central Valley, and the WestMark Group strategic consulting firm will host another in a year-long series of programs on preserving the multi-generational family farm on May 16.

Honeybee woes are costly for Valley almond growers

By Edward Ortiz - Updated: Sunday, May 5 2013 - 4:04 pm

Every January the world's biggest honeybee migration begins, as beekeepers around the country make their way to California with millions of hives to pollinate the state's vast almond orchards.

Study suggests honeybee collapse has many culprits

By Erika Bolstad - Updated: Friday, May 3 2013 - 3:26 am

It’s one of the most perplexing environmental mysteries of recent years: Why are honeybees dying, and what can be done to stop a catastrophic agricultural disaster with far-reaching economic and environmental consequences in the United States and beyond?