JrK Division of Agricultural Sciences UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA • • • YOU WANT a California Farm EDWARD A. YEARY *s* RICULTURAL CIRCULAR 556 I f you're thinking about farming for a living in California, you'll do well to get as many facts as possible about the state's agriculture before you make any committments. You'll find that agriculture in California is quite different from that in most other states. You'll find that you will be faced with vital decisions that must be made before you can start farming; that making the correct decisions can make the dif- ference between success or a failure that could be ruinous. Reading this circular will help, but may raise more questions in your mind than it answers. As you will learn, a publication the size of this one can give only the highlights of a very complex subject. So you would also benefit from reading other material of a more localized and specialized nature. (See page 27 for suggestions.) You will also benefit from talking with people who have knowledge and experience in localized areas or specialized phases of farming, marketing, banking, and the like. Nor can this or any other one publication give you facts about costs, expected returns, interest rates, or other factors involving money. As this is written (1970) that situation is changing so rapidly that any such statements made here could be completely wrong a month hence. So read this to get the over-all picture. But before taking any final, decisive action make sure the information you have: • Applies to you local area ; • Applies to the type of farming you want to carry on ; • Is up-to-date, and accurate. This circular replaces Circular 474, "Agriculture in California/' by Arthur Shultis, and draws heavily from information contained in the former publication. The author is a statewide farm advisor specializing in farm management, working out of the San Joaquin Valley Research and Extension Center, at Parlier. Information was provided by a great many people whose help is hereby acknowledged with thanks. APRIL 1971 XXow does one go about describing California's agri- culture when it includes: $220 million worth of grapes — about 90 per cent of all grapes grown in the U. S. Over $7 million worth of garlic — all of the garlic grown in the country. About $1.75 billion worth of livestock and products. Apple and pear orchards at over 3,000 feet elevation in what are known as "foothills." Date orchards 100 feet below sea level. Farms along the north coast where the rainfall may reach 60 inches a year and the sale of timber from the land can add income. Farms in areas averaging about five inches of rainfall a year. Some years no rain falls at all and shade trees are a necessary luxury. Over $4 billion in farm income from about 250 dif- ferent commercially grown crops. A climate that fosters the growing of both citrus (and other subtropicals), and deciduous fruits (that require winter chilling) . A climate that many insects and disease pathogens find beneficial for reproduction purposes. It's a big order, but it's worth a try. §r- >■-.,« FIRST, CONSIDER THE GEOGRAPHY.. »|Sifff f V: IT INCLUDES A LITTLE OF EVERYTHING Relief map of California as divided into * convenient regions for discussion in this publi- cation. The actual regions are nowhere near A as distinct as these lines might indicate. > > n^ 6 m [4] California is over 700 miles long and about 200 miles wide. It has roughly 8 million acres of irrigated, harvested land — an area about half again as large as the entire state of Massachussetts. Counting ALL of the cropland harvested or grazed — including the rangeland — we come up with a figure approaching 37 million acres or an area about the size of the entire state of Michigan. The state's highest point (Mt. Whitney) reaches almost 14,500 feet elevation; its lowest point (in Death Valley) is about 280 feet below sea level. There is no agri- culture at either place but there is a lot at various elevations in between. Because of such extremes in topography, weather conditions, soils, available water, and other factors it is necessary to divide the state into geographical areas that can be examined separately. Little generalizing can be done about California's agriculture. 1. The North Coast This region is noted for its beautiful scenery, excellent recreational facilities, and spectacular redwood groves. Lumber- ing is the major industry with agricul- ture running a somewhat poor second. Because most of the area is either roll- ing, hilly, or mountainous, farming must underlying rock. They are likely to be rather shallow, except in the Russian River Valley toward the southern part of the region. Farming enterprises in the region are mainly concerned with livestock. Beef cattle and sheep ranches depend largely on owned range; dairying is important -. MT. WHITNEY A LEVEL , 4 ■PACIFIC OCEAN COASTAL VALLEY CENTRAL VALLEY <- ^^^ DEATH VALLEY *,; Schematic cross-section of California at about the latitude of the white line, showing major geographic features of the state. be confined to the valleys and the narrow shelf along some parts of the coastline. The climate varies widely with eleva- tion and distance from the Pacific Ocean. Rainfall is relatively heavy throughout the area during the winter months, but summers can be dry enough so that irri- gation is required for some crops. The soils are mostly residual soils, formed in place by decomposition of the in some areas; fruit orchards and vine- yards can be found in the deeper soils of the Russian River Valley in Mendocino County. Nearly all of the grapes grown in this region are used for wine, being of the varieties from which the wines themselves may be named, making them especially sought after. Opportunities are (at this writing) rather limited for starting new farms in [5] the region. The agricultural potential of the area as a whole has been fully de- veloped for a long time. Like many other parts of California, however, the scenery and recreational facilities make this region fairly popular as a site for second homes and retirement projects which compete with farmers for the available land, so price might be a major consideration. 2. The Central Coast One school of thought holds that this region will, in the not-too-distant future, become one huge metropolis as the coastal cities expand to the point where there is no open space between them. As of 1970, however, there are still over 5 million acres of agricultural land in this region which extends from northern Sonoma County to San Luis Obispo County, but housing developments and new freeways are devouring open land at a somewhat frightening rate. The climate is relatively cool and is influenced by both the Pacific Ocean and Coast Range mountains. Considerable fog may be expected along the ocean but with warmer, drier weather prevailing farther inland. Less rain falls here than in the North Coast. The soils, in this less mountainous area, tend to be deeper than those in Region 1, and variety of crops. Agriculture fore diversified, ill support a greater in the region is there- but its extent is limited not only by the slope of the land, but by available open space not coveted by the cities. Examples of the diversification to be found are: Dairying in Sonoma and Marin counties; table wine grapes and some prunes in Napa County; pears and walnuts in Lake County; apples near Sebastopol; dry, white wine grapes and sugar beets in eastern Alameda County. Farther south, can be found small fruits and wine grapes in the Santa Clara Val- This shows about as well as one picture can, the diversified nature of farming in the Central Coast area, near Hollister. -\^r .v % * . >▼ • " . Celery, near Salinas. Much of it is picked headquarters and put through vacuum coolers frigerated cars. ley: late apples around Watsonville; let- tuce, celery, strawberries, sugar beets, and beans in the Salinas Valley. A nar- row strip along the ocean, south of San Francisco^ produces commercial quan- tities of cool-climate crops such as arti- chokes, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts. Slightly farther inland are produced cut flowers, planeloads of which are shipped to eastern markets. Livestock and poultry enterprises are scattered throughout the entire region. Opportunities for new commercial farming here are limited and are getting even more limited. Because the area is liberally sprinkled with cities and large towns having con- siderable industry, opportunities do exist for owning a small, part-time farm to supplement income derived from employ- ment elsewhere. But this can be a very risky enterprise, considering the com- petition from full-size, full-time, highly mechanized farms in the same area; whether your property is taxed as farm- land or a suburban homesite could make quite a difference. Additional local, up-to-date informa- tion is readily available in a great many agencies throughout the area and should be obtained before any final decisions are made. and packaged in the field (left), then rushed to to remove field heat (right) before loading on re- 3. The South Coast Just where northern California ends and southern California begins is not as clear along the coast as it is farther in- land, but this discussion will assume Region 3 to have as its northern border an imaginary line extending in an east- erly direction from Morro Bay, in San Luis Obispo County. The southern bound- ary would be the border with Mexico. The region would extend inland from 30 to 70 miles and the eastern boundary would run roughly along the crests of the mountain ranges that separate the coastal plain from the interior desert. There is reason to believe that much of this region also will become one huge metropolis and (smog permitting) the view from an airplane flying over much of the area today would add credence to this belief. But a trip through the region by automobile will reveal a considerable amount of agricultural land being used or developed. Vegetables and flower seed are pro- duced in abundance in the Santa Maria and Santa Ynez valleys. Around Santa Barbara one major crop is lemons. Vege- tables take over again in the Ventura- Oxnard district and continue to be im- portant all the rest of the way south, [7] along the coast. Farther inland, oranges, avocados, and some walnuts are grown. There is considerable wealth in and around the city of Santa Barbara, a con- dition that probably contributes to the large number of horse ranches in the area. These ranches vary from five to 5,000 acres on which are raised thor- oughbreds, quarter horses, trotters, and working saddle horses. Some operations are run in conjunction with cattle ranches; sales of young geldings and fillies are held often; stud fees will go as high as $10,000 per live foal. Many of these ranches are simply sidelines for prosperous owners who made their money from other than agricultural enterprises, but their combined operations help to make California second only to Kentucky in the raising of riding horses. Farther south in this region agriculture is not only competing with housing de- velopments and freeways for space, but also with aerospace industries, and re- tirement villages complete with golf courses. Santa Ana, for instance, once a quiet, beautifully laid out, ideal resi- dential town, now finds itself a booming, expanding city that has completely over- grown the berry and vegetable farms that formed its outskirts a few years ago. Salubrious weather is one of the main reasons for the tremendous increase in population that has taken place in the region over the past few years. The climate is warm; rainfall is light; even winters tend to be warm to the point where deciduous fruits that require win- ter chilling do not do well and special varieties that require less chilling had to be developed for commercial production. Opportunities for large-scale farming in the area are extremely limited except by organizations with huge amounts of capital. Land prices are among the highest in the country, due to reasons outlined above, and would seldom be justified on the basis of probable earn- ings from agricultural uses. 4. The Sacramento Valley Note on the map on page 4 that the whole northern two-thirds of the state consists of mountains surrounding a level area. This level area is known as the Central Valley and extends from Red- ding, in Shasta County, south to Bakers- field, in Kern County. The two main rivers draining the area are the Sacra- mento which flows south from Mt. Shasta, and the San Joaquin (pronounced Wau- keen) which flows north from near Fresno. These two rivers, which join near Pittsburg, and flow into the Pacific Ocean through San Francisco Bay. lend their Freeways and housing developments are forcing the removal of citrus and avocado trees in the South Coast. Much of this acreage is being replaced by plantings in the southern San Joaquin Valley. The University's plant breeders are con- stantly working to develop better varieties. Here, sunflowers on the Davis Campus experi- mental plots. names to the two valleys that make up the Central Valley. The floor of the Sacramento Valley is flat; the soil is (in most places) deep and fertile and will support a great many different farm enterprises. At one time, Yolo County, in the southern end of this valley, used the slogan, "Anything that grows, grows well in Yolo County."' This was only a slight exaggeration of the truth for different parts of this area pro- duce such diverse crops as subtropical fruits, vegetables, grains, deciduous fruits and nuts that require winter chill- ing, livestock of many types — even grass seed. Nor is agriculture confined to the valley floor — livestock and dairying op- erations, together with pear and apple orchards are scattered along the foothills of the Sierra Nevada to an elevation of about 3,000 feet. The climate of the region is less af- fected by the ocean influence than that of Region 1, so summers are hotter and winters are colder. The surrounding mountains receive enough rainfall, how- ever, so that water for irrigation is easily available in most places. In fact, some of the water that falls as rain on this north- ern part of the state is being caught, [9 stored, and transported in canals to the drier southland. (See page 21.) Opportunities for new or improved farming operations still exist here but the prospective buyer should be warned of certain areas where the soil is very shal- low and of such poor quality that many crops cannot be grown on it successfully. The foothill regions, being scenic, and marginal for agriculture, are being pro- moted as retirement sites and recreational areas so it would not be surprising to see what agriculture they now support dwin- dle out completely. 5. The San Joaquin Valley An imaginary line drawn due east from the confluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers, near Pittsburg, would be as good a way as any to indi- cate the boundary between the two val- leys named for the rivers. Actually, the two deltas merge into one and form an area that is extremely rich agriculturally, produces fruits for the early shipping deal, and a wide variety of vegetable and field crops. Some of the islands making up the delta of the San Joaquin have soil that is so "peaty" it will burn and smok- ing is forbidden in large areas. This is a major asparagus-producing section. The climate in the San Joaquin Val- ley tends to be hotter than that of the Sacramento and considerably less rain falls during the year. A few grain crops can be dry-farmed, but irrigation is the rule for nearly everything grown in the valley. Most of the soils on the valley floor are deep and rich and will support a wide variety of crops. However, soil problems do exist in some local areas but most of these problems are correctable. This is the largest agricultural region in California and is extremely diverse as to farm enterprises. As of 1970, cotton and grapes (table, wine, raisin, and can- ning) are two of the leading crops. Some new land is being developed for citrus, (Continued on page 12) :. . , .,.. •■.■■■■ ' ' ' :/ ■ ' North of the Lost Hills Area | the West Side looks like this where water is lacking. THE WEST SID^ Huge developments like this almond planting in the Berrenda Mesa Water District were ma %mmm-. '.':■■■ South of Blackwell's Corner 1 some land has other than agri- cultural development. U IMPORTANT AREA DSSI ble by completion of the California Aqueduct and its complex system of lateral canals. ::.... , •' • •., - ... '- • mm I almond, and olive plantings. Lettuce, broccoli, tomatoes, and other vegetable crops are also beginning to attract atten- tion here. At this writing, interest is being shown in the raising of sesame in the San Joaquin Valley. Sesame seed is highly valued for the manufacture of cooking oil but the seed pods tend to shatter very easily making mechanical harvesting almost impossible at the present and the cost of labor to harvest by hand is con- siderable. The primary limitation on farming opportunities in the San Joaquin Valley is the amount of capital available. A secondary consideration, but an impor- tant one, is the availability of irrigation water at a cost that would make growing a crop feasible. Considerable new land is being developed, but not all of it will be suitable for farming without a very large investment in preparation and the tend- ency in this region seems to be toward large-scale operations that can be af- forded only by organizations with tre- mendous capital to invest. Any discussion of the San Joaquin Val- ley would be incomplete without special mention of that part of the valley lying west of Highway 99. This area is some- times referred to as the "west side," in- dicating it's geographical relationship to the rest of the valley, and sometimes as the "West Side," indicating that it is a distinct geographical entity in its own right. The West Side, as discussed here extends roughly from Firebaugh on the north, to Maricopa on the south and em- braces parts of Fresno, Kings, and Kern counties. Until the 1940's most of the land along the West Side was semidesert; the nat- ural vegetation was mostly stunted sage- brush and tumbleweed and a habitat for jack rabbits. Much of the land was owned or leased by railroad and oil interests; much of it still is. However, with the availability of water brought in from the north by the Cali- fornia Aqueduct and the introduction of heavy-duty machinery for reclaiming ing land, the West Side is (as of 1970) being developed for agricultural pur- poses very fast and furiously to the ex- tent that it is altering the outlook for agriculture in other parts of the state too. This land, when developed properly, is extremely rich and produces some unbe- lievable yields. But most of the new de- velopments are being done on a large scale, so while the rewards are great, the capital investment needed can only be afforded by those with almost unlimited resources or credit. This, in turn, is forcing farmers in other parts of the state to compete or get out — not a pleas- ant choice. Anyone contemplating farming in the West Side area would be wise to walk carefully and carry a big pocketbook. 6. The Desert The line of demarcation between desert and nondesert areas is much more dis- tinct to the highway traveler than it is on the map on page 4. Suddenly the vegetation is different; sagebrush, Joshua trees, cactus, agave and other typically "deserty"' plants are in evidence. Usually the soil color and texture change for these are rock and alkali deserts — not the huge sandy wastes characteristic of the Sahara. California's deserts, then, are areas of very low rainfall and sparse, stunted nat- ural vegetation. They may vary in eleva- tion from below sea level to thousands of feet above. Some years ago the idea that all one had to do was get water to this desert- land and it would bloom and produce profusely got rather wide circulation. Water, of course, is the key to agriculture in the desert areas, but there is much more to it than that. Desert soils are usually heavily alka- line; need to have their salts leached down below the root zone and often re- quire massive applications of soil amend- [12] merits before successful crops can he pro- duced. This can he an expensive opera- tion. Desert climates can he blistering hot in the summer and freezing cold in win- ter, depending a lot on elevation. Dust storms are fairly common here and the wind has been known to get strong enough to sandblast an automobile wind- shield to uselessness in a very short pe- riod of time. Thus plants, livestock, and people all need some protection against desert weather and farming in the area is an entirely different operation from farm- ing in (say) the San Joaquin Valley or the coastal plain. However, because off-season and some- what exotic, high-income crops can be grown in the desert, the rewards can be high and opportunities for developing new land or improving old abound in the region. The prospective buyer should look carefully and get information from as many sources as possible. Not all des- ert land is farmable and mistakes here can be costly. Existing agriculture is confined to the area near Palmdale in what is known as the Antelope Valley; in the Coachella, Imperial, and Bard valleys of the low- elevation desert between the towns of Indio and El Centro. Alfalfa is the major crop in Antelope Valley; the Coachella Valley is noted for date and grapefruit production; diversified farming is car- ried on throughout the Imperial and Bard valleys, with emphasis on livestock, alfalfa, and off-season vegetables for the shipping deal. A few farms have been started in the area near Barstow but production ap- pears to be rather limited. Special mention should be made of the livestock feeding operations in the Impe- rial Valley. In 1969, about 50 feedlots in Imperial County with a capacity of al- most half a million head of cattle ac- eounted for nearly one-quarter of the state's capacity. Also during 1969 about 100,000 head of feeder lambs were pastured on alfalfa during the winter months. 7. The Mountains Above 3,000 feet elevation the grow- ing season is so short, the land so steep, and the soil so shallow that agriculture is pretty much confined to small, moun- tain valleys in which some hay is grown and livestock pastured. The exceptions to this are the Tulelake Area near the Oregon border (some veg- etable and field crops), and a relatively flat plateau north of Weed. Some stockmen truck their animals to mountain meadows for grazing during the summer months, then back down to the valley for the winter. A few pear and apple orchards can be found up to about 5,000 feet but these are not competive with valley orchards. In some places, farm income can be supplemented by the sale of timber from the land, but agricultural opportunities are limited and a farmer in the region would probably do well to seek at least part-time employment in one of the small towns that dot the region. BUT NO MATTER WHERE YOU FARM [13] CONSIDER THESE POINTS Farming in California for a living can be a cold-blooded business that will put you in competition with some wealthy neighbors or even with large, diversified organizations that have practically un- limited funds to work with. So if you have sa\cd up a few thousand dollars and want to ". . . retire to a few acres in the country, raise a few chickens . . ." and expect to live on that income, you better think it over carefully. You could lose everything very rapidly. This is especially true if you have had no farming experience. You don't just ". . . raise a few chickens" anymore — you raise thousands of them in a highly mechanized plant that requires a lot of capital to build. You do if you're going to raise poultry in a competitive market. Not only poultry raising, but just about every other agricultural enterprise in Cal- ifornia is highly mechanized or is rap- idly becoming so. And machinery costs a lot of money. The increase in farm size goes hand-in- hand with the increase in mechanization. Experience has shown that as a rule only large units can be farmed efficiently. The days of the "Family farm," that is four people making a living on 60 acres, are almost surely numbered. So the first point is, if you're going to farm for a living in California you will benefit by having some farming experi- ence in your background and an ade- quate supply of capital (or credit) at your bank. Consider also that even if you have some farming experience, farming in Cal- ifornia will probably be quite different from farming in any other state. Here are a few differences picked at random: Because of normally mild winters found in most of the state it is not neces- sary to "build out" the freezing weather from poultry housing and in some coun- ties sheep can be sheared twice a year. Under some conditions, as many as eight cuttings of alfalfa can be harvested in one year. The irrigation water a valley farmer applies to his pasture may have origi- nated 400 miles away. Or it may have come from his own well that is nearly 1,000 feet deep. This makes it expensive. Few farms in California are more than a mile from paved roads and most un- surfaced roads in agricultural areas are passable the year around. This is handy but makes for high taxes. The second point may very well be, what kind of a farm do you want? What does past experience best suit you for and (part of the same question) where do you want to live? Obviously, if you want to raise avo- cados you can't live along the north J ' coast, or even in the Sacramento Valley. Deciduous fruits don't do very well in the desert; cotton does well in the San Joaquin Valley or the desert but none is raised much north of Merced or south of the Tehachapi Mountains on the coastal plain. Some crops could probably be grown in places where, up to now, they have never been planted. The crop might do well, but because of location the grower might have trouble getting it harvested and marketed. So choice of farm type and location -. are closely tied together. No matter where you locate or what type of farm you establish, you will prob- ably need electric power to do many chores. This is no big problem in Califor- nia for nearly all farms in the state are j served by a local power company. Nor is transportation for either people or crops lacking in most parts of the state. In addition to California's excel- lent system of roads and highways, plane, train, and water-borne transportation are seldom far away. Ship canals, turn- [14] Permanently installed sprinklers — a tremendous expense will probably pay off in saved labor for moving the pipes around. around, and loading facilities for ocean- going ships make Sacramento and Stock- ton seaport towns. The need for electric power and the availability of transportation facilities only point up the fact that California's agriculture has for some years been highly mechanized and is, becoming more so all the time. In 1964 California had almost 10 per cent of all the wheel tractors in the U. S. and nearly half of the crawler-type tractors. Any horses found on California farms will be riding horses or strictly for show. This, in turn, points up the large capital outlay usually required to farm in the state. Add to the other changes taking place in California the fact that farms are get- ting larger and the farm population is getting smaller. In the last 30 years the number of farms having fewer than 50 acres has gone down considerably while the number of farms having from 100 to over 1,000 acres has increased. In the same period the farm population has dropped 60 per cent. A continuation of this trend appears likely — not a very promising outlook for the farmer with limited capital. What about leasing? The person who feels he has everything required to farm successfully in Cali- fornia except the capital, might want to look into a leasing arrangement. As of 1968, about 12 per cent of all California farms were operated by tenants. To learn what is available, start with a realtor (farm broker, land agent, what- ever he calls himself) who will know how to proceed. The leasing agreement itself should be looked over by your attorney before you sign but many mutually bene- ficial arrangements are made this way. [15] 1 w** Practically all California farms are served by electric power. Huge distribution systems like this are common. But not all California farms will produce grain sorghum like this plus an oil well to bring in something extra. RANDOM THOUGHTS ON CALIFORNIA FARMING Every mile of new freeway takes about 13.5 acres of farmland out of production and the state is building many. Regardless of medical findings, San Joaquin Delta farmers have good reasons to think care- fully about their smoking habit. PEAT LAN DO HOI B * ! ;: n ' ... .. - . .. ~ ; CONSIDER THE TYPE OF FARM... Few crops are grown in the United States that are not grown commercially somewhere in California. This includes well over 200 different commodities, ex- clusive of nursery crops and forest prod- ucts. Fruit and nut crops. Over 50 dif- ferent fruits are grown in the state but many fruit farms specialize in just one kind. A pear grower may have a few peach, plum, or apricot trees for his own use, and he may have a kitchen garden, but he's not likely to diversify very much. Orchards require considerable time and money to establish. Quite often they must be graded or contoured; planted; an irrigation system must be put in. Then the trees must be pruned, trained, sprayed, and tended for about five years before they have a chance to return some- thing on the investment. Sometimes orchards can be inter- cropped while they are young, but this practice can slow down development of the trees and is not often recommended. Once established, an orchard has an expected life of from 15 to 75 years, de- pending on the fruit. Anyone buying or starting a fruit farm should get all the information he can on local conditions, expected market for his fruit, etc. before making what is likely to be a lifetime in- vestment. At this writing, considerable amounts of thought and money are being ex- pended to develop ways of mechanizing fruit farms — especially the harvesting operation. This involves trials with new varieties of dwarf trees; special pruning and training techniques; different tree spacings; new concepts in engineering. The fruit orchard of the future may be quite different from those of today and a potential fruit grower should consider this before investing in a farm. Obviously, a fruit farm cannot be switched easily from one commodity to another so the farmer finds himself at the mercy of damaging weather or low prices for his crop if the market is glutted. The New varieties of dwarf fruit trees — apples on the left and peaches on the right — planted close together will be easy and cheap to harvest and yield as much as big varieties spaced farther apart. H?-^rH*> mm [17 Contrast the typical foothill pear orchard (left), near Auburn with the typical valley prune orchard, near Marysville. tendency is, therefore, toward formation of growers' associations, marketing agreements, etc. — another consideration for the prospective newcomer. Field crops, on the other hand, pro- vide the grower with much more flexi- bility than do fruit crops. Land planted to barley one year can be put in safflower the next year and even the same machin- ery can be used for most operations. Over 50 different field crops are grown in the state — some for both feed and seed. California's normally long, dry summers help to make it the leading seed-produc- ing state in the country. Some grains, notably barley, are dry-farmed but most field crops depend on irrigation for suc- cess and an increasing number of farms are going to sprinkler-type irrigating equipment. Rice, one of the major field crops pro- duced in California, is grown chiefly in the Sacramento Valley where water is most plentiful; cotton currently occupies considerable acreage in the San Joaquin Valley and in parts of the desert. Vegetable crops. California is the Number 1 state in the country in produc- tion of over a dozen vegetable crops and [18 the Number 2 state in production of half a dozen others. This is due in large meas- ure to the high quality of the produce, time of marketing, and specialization. The result is that most vegetable farms are large-scale operations, highly mecha- nized for efficiency, operated by compa- nies with considerable capital — often on rented land. Vegetables for processing are nearly always grown under contract with a processor. There was a time when income could be derived from a small roadside stand at which fresh fruits and vegetables were offered for sale. The state's vast network of freeways has pretty much put an end to that practice and those few stands still in operation at this writing are rapidly being by-passed. A few family-size vege- table farms still operate near large metro- politan centers and sell their produce locally, but the vast majority of vegetable growers ship their produce east by the carload or sell to processors by the truck- load. Livestock raising. Many people refer to any type of farming operation in the west as a "ranch." The purist calls an operation a "ranch" only if its pri- mary source of income is from the raising of livestock — cattle, sheep, horses, or (oc- casionally) goats. Cattle and sheep ranches require a relatively large investment in land, build- ings, equipment, and livestock. The natu- ral growth of grass in California is quite seasonal, so the livestock operator usually must have enough land in addition to grazing land to raise his own supple- mental feed. Many ranchers graze their foothill ranges during winter, truck their livestock to higher ground in the sum- mer and graze them on public land in the national forests. But this requires a per- mit based on past operation that might not be easy to acquire. Because the quality of ranges will vary and so will the investment needed to get into livestock raising in different parts of the state, good, up-to-date information should be sought locally before investing. Some diversified farms in the valleys may keep small numbers of livestock to utilize surplus grain, grain stubble, or other crop residue, but in such cases the primary income is not from livestock. Such farms can usually make more prof- itable use of their land by putting it in higher-income crops — using the pasture on which they graze the livestock as a rotation crop. Poultry. People in their 60's can re- member the time when it was actually possible to ". . . buy a couple of acres in the country, retire, and raise chickens.*' A good many people did just that. No more. To survive today, poultrymen must count their flocks in the thousands; feed the birds specially prepared rations using complex, expensive machinery to deliver the feed. All of this takes large invest- ments, in equipment and housing, consid- erable knowledge, and eternal vigilance against the incidence of disease in the flock. Both the chances of disease and fluctuating prices also add to the high risks involved in a poultry enterprise. Poultry raising can still be done on relatively small acreage, but the ranch should be located far enough from any town to avoid the problems associated with urbanization. Manure disposal is also becoming an increasingly difficult problem for poultrymen. Dairying. There are very few true dairy farms in California. The trend is toward separating the dairy enterprise from any other farming enterprise and operating what are called dry-lot dairies. Here the cows become simply machines for the production of milk: feed is This commercial egg-production plant in San Diego County counts its flocks in the thousands. (Photo by S. D. County Dept. of Agr.) m. wit ■ ^v ....--"' ,; ' , brought in from the surrounding coun- try and the milk hauled by refrigerated tank truck to distributors who will sell it fresh, or to plants that manufacture butter, cheese, dried milk, etc. This too is usually big business with from 200 to over 1,000 cows being milked daily in multiple-unit parlors. A high degree of mechanization is neces- sary, adding to the expense of the opera- tion. Because of excellent roads and the availability of good trucking facilities, the tendency is for dairies to move away from urban centers. Dairy operators have, in fact, been pressured into such moves because of high taxes near the cities and because they can get closer to the feed supply. Starting a dairy from scratch is tre- mendously expensive. Under California's Milk-pooling Plan a dairyman must have a quota or share of the pool in order to sell fluid market milk. Such a quota would have to be purchased from its present owner and would be an expense in addition to the cost of land, buildings, machinery, and animals. Many California dairies are operated on a rental basis under either a cash rent or suitable share arrangement. Dairying is carried on in many locali- ties throughout the state and reliable local information should be obtained be- fore getting into such an endeavor. Specialty crops, that can be and are grown to some extent in California range from flower seeds (asters to zinnias), cut flowers (for shipment to eastern cities), pistachios and macadamia nuts, to Chi- nese cabbage and edible pea pods. There are many others. Most of these crops are grown on rela- tively small plots and few, if any farmers could derive a satisfactory income from such specialty crops alone. They would almost have to be part of a larger farm enterprise. The catfish farm pictured below is so arranged that the ponds can be drained and planted to grain dur- ing years when this seems advisable. As of 1970, catfish farming is still a specialty crop in California. Grain isn't. As of 1970 a considerable number of sunflower plants are being grown for windbreaks between plots of row crops. The sunflower seed is sold for bird feed or for the current fad of eating out of hand. Specialty crops grown in California include field-grown roses in this planting near Bakers- field, and catfish in this enterprise in eastern Stanislaus County (one of the few in the state). ' ; -' K : » • '-' \ [20] BE SURE TO GET INFORMATION ABOUT . . . Water. Roughly two-thirds of all of the precipitation that falls on California as rain or snow falls on the northern one- third of the state. This is more water than is needed in the region. One-third of the precipitation falls on the southern two- thirds of the state where there is a much greater need for water. Both the federal and state governments are working on this problem and a num- ber of huge projects for transferring water from the north to the south, via dams, canals, pipelines, and pumping plants are under way. Some are com- pleted. But all of this transportation of water has an effect on its cost and on its quality (the amount of dissolved minerals it may carry) . Thus bringing water from north- ern California clear to the West Side of Fresno County has created problems for farmers because mineral content of the transported water is so different from that pumped out of local wells. Check the water situation carefully before investing. Available labor. Many crops grown in California can be tended by a few people (perhaps the farmer and his fam- ily) during most of the year. But some operations that must be performed within a narrow span of time require a big build-up in the labor force for a month or so. Make sure that labor and any equip- ment needed by the workers is likely to be available at the crucial time. The market. A relatively new crop of scientists called bioelimatologists are finding that certain crops could be grown in places where they have never been tried before. For instance, because cold air flows downhill and settles in low places, many side-hill locations tend to be frost-free and would probably support warm-weather crops — or crops that can't WATER . . for irrigation Some is caught and stored on the farm Some is pumped from y/elis 1,000 feet deep ''■■*?■;:%£% Some is transported from hundreds of miles away To make the most of expensive irrigation water some tolerances before being planted. fields must be graded to very fine withstand a freeze. But it would be eco- nomically unsound to plant certain areas if what was produced couldn't be sold, or if the transportation or other market- ing factors ate up all the profit. So one big question is, "Can I sell what I pro- duce?" Taxes. California land (even farm- land) is valuable and therefore relativelv high-priced. This fact, plus the "urban sprawl" caused by more and more people moving to the state, have caused some local governments to look with greedy eyes at farmland that might be subdi- vided for building sites. In some places farmland is assessed for tax purposes at the value it would bring if subdivided and the farmer ends up paying city taxes Nearly all of California's roads are passible the year around, like this terciary road in a remote part of Solano County. on land that cannot possibly justify such a high assessment unless it is subdivided. Service organizations. The increas- ing need for mechanization plus the high cost of machinery have resulted in estab- lishment of service companies who, for a fee, will bring in expensive equipment and do certain jobs for farmers for whom owning the machinery would be unwar- ranted. These organizations perform all sorts of services like inspecting a crop to see if it needs pest control measures; spraying or dusting it if it does; defoli- ating or picking cotton; operating tillage equipment. If these services are going to be needed, make sure they are available. The roads. There are few really bad roads in California and the state has more than its share of very good ones — a factor that makes for high taxes on both property and gasoline. So while there is little likelihood of a piece of property being inaccessible, even during winter, because of poor roads, there is a possibility of someone running a freeway through it if the present trend continues. The soil. In the central valleys most of the soils were built up of materials transported down from the surrounding mountains by the larger rivers. While these soils are, as a rule, fairly deep and fertile enough for many crops, there are exceptions. Hardpan layers, accumula- tions of alkali salts, and other factors can severely limit the usefulness of some of these valley soils. A considerable amount of this area has been gone over carefully by soil scientists who surveyed the territory and mapped the different soil types found there. Their published findings, called Soil Survey Re- ports, are usually available at farm ad- visor offices, libraries, etc., and can be consulted prior to purchase of land. Soils in the foothills and upland areas were mostly formed in place by decom- position of the underlying rock. They are usually shallow, relatively steep, and un- suitable for irrigation. Many of these areas have not been mapped for soil types yet, but local inquiry should prove helpful in determining the potential of any given farm's soil. In the desert and in certain parts of the west side of the San Joaquin Valley excesses of salts in the soil can be trou- blesome. This problem is rather closely associated with those of water supply and water quality so it is essential to get the best possible, local information on the soil-water situation before purchasing land in these areas. Some soils in undeveloped areas like this one near Mendota may have troublesome excesses of salts — an item to be checked. T ■> ; <■*■; 4 ^^*>A^ REMEMBER ... i4 A FARM_F< YOUR HOMI Not all California farm houses are like this (probably abandoned) one. Nor are very many as lux- urious as the one pictured here. \ i ~ **J ^ l,,, %^ ff&& JSM£M, *K Most will fall somewhere in between the extremes shown above. ALSO IN THE COUNTRY A farm is a lovely place to live and work during the pleas- ant parts of the year . . . . . . but a farm can be mighty dreary on a cold, rainy day during a winter storm. ;;,3»:- Some farms simply can't provide a living and must be abandoned like this poorly planned orchard. f**~" :-'€a* SO ASK YOURSELF THESE QUESTIONS Do you really want to farm? If you have never farmed before, this can be a vital consideration. A place of your own, where you step out the door and gather fresh fruits or vegetables can be very pleasant. Most farms are only a short distance from places where hunting or fishing can be done. California's excellent system of roads makes transportation to the near- est shopping center relatively easy. Most of the state is well covered by radio and television programs that offer news, en- tertainment, or education at the spin of a dial. Spring and fall can be beautiful in the country. Rut parts of the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys heat up to over 100° F during the summer and the desert region will hit 120° during the day and cool off to 102° at midnight. And a farm can be a very dreary place on a cold, windy, rainy, winter day. Looking out the win- dow at a few bare trees or vines, sur- rounded by a sea of mud can be quite depressing. The newer, more modern, and relatively expensive farm homes are equipped with adequate heating and cooling equipment to make them com- fortable during temperature extremes. So even if you are sure you want to farm, what effect will farm life have on your family? Has your managerial talent been tested? Even a relatively small, family- size farm must be operated in a business- like way to succeed in California. This means the farm must be well managed, well supervised. It can't be if the person who should be managing or supervising is so busy attending to details, or doing work he should hire done, that he doesn't have time for the job of management. Managerial ability is something that can be acquired, but not instantly, and a con- siderable amount is needed from the be- ginning in any California farm opera- tion. Do you have it? What is your record in financial dealings? It is quite likely that either in buying or improving a farm, or both, you will need to borrow money. And in- deed, borrowing money at a certain inter- est rate, then investing that money in something that returns a higher rate is sound business practice. But are you experienced enough in money matters to know a good invest- ment from a poor one, or perhaps more to the point, could you convince a bank that you are? Banks are much more will- ing to lend money to someone who has proved himself through past dealings than to newcomers. Did you look over the farm build- ings carefully? Many farm homes in California are excellent — fairly new, well built, heated, cooled, a pleasure to live in. Some would need work done on them. The same can be said for other farm buildings, barns, sheds, shelters, and the like. Would you and your family be happy in the existing dwelling? In what state of repair or disrepair are the other build- ings? What water rights go with the prop- erty? What mineral rights? Califor- nia isn't called the Golden State for noth- ing, and some farmland is underlain with "black gold" that could be worth drilling for. But don't count on either gold or oil as a prospective source of income — just make sure of your rights to such an in- come if one should develop. If the property includes a dam and lake that would lend themselves to recre- ational use, do you and your family want to put up with the problems attending use of your land (for a fee) by outsiders? Hunters, fishermen, boat owners, even picnickers can create many nuisances — even if they remain sober at all times. [26] AND Remember that the information you should have on any piece of property you consider should be authentic, up-to-date, and based on local knowledge or experi- ence. It won't always be possible to get all of the information you need in one place, so here are some suggested infor- mation sources: Check with local realtors specializing in farm properties. These people have ex- cellent information, but are, of course, in business to make sales commissions. It might not be a bad idea to double-check any statements the realtor makes no mat- ter how sincere you feel he may be. Weather or climatic information is available from the nearest office of the National Weather Service — an organi- zation that farmers have only recently begun to appreciate fully. The office of the University of Califor- nia Farm Advisor (called County Agent in most states), usually located in the county seat, will provide information of a general nature and publications on spe- cific problems, but cannot undertake to influence you one way or another on the purchase of a particular piece of land. Some general information is available at the office of the County Agricultural Commissioner (an office peculiar to California only) but the commissioner's primary concern is enforcement of the provisions of the state's Agricultural Code. A soil survey (if one has even been made) of the area can probably be con- sulted at the local public library; at the local office of the Soil Conservation Service (USDA) ; or at the Farm Ad- visor Office. The county assessor's office can pro- vide tax information. The local power company can tell you the average monthly cost of electricity for the farm. Most banks in farming communities employ one or more persons who spe- cialize in farm loans. One measure of the value of a piece of property is to find out how anxious the banks are to loan money on its purchase or improvement. Information on the availability of labor can be obtained from the local of- fice of the State Department of Em- ployment, the address of which is usu- ally given on a prominent green and white sign on each major road leading to the larger towns. Most towns and cities having popula- tions of 10,000 or more support Cham- bers of Commerce or similar organi- zations. Excellent local information is usually available in such offices. Here also can be obtained the names and ad- dresses of local cooperatives, processing plants, other businesses that can supply goods, services, and information. Many excellent papers, magazines, and journals covering various phases of agri- culture in California are published in the metropolitan centers of the state. Copies are quite often available in libraries in smaller farm communities and they may deal with such diverse subjects as poul- try, fruit growing or processing, live- stock raising, specialty crops. Several journals devoted to general farming prac- tices are available and many of the larger newspapers in farming centers put out weekend magazine supplements for a farm audience. Farm Advisor offices in most county seats will provide publications put out by the University of California Division of Agricultural Sciences (of which this is one) ; by the USDA; or by their own office, covering local conditions on most crops and enterprises. These can be ex- tremely helpful in obtaining information on many subjects. [27 SOURCES OF DATA BURLINGAME, BURT B. 1967. Commercial Crops in California. Calif. Agr. Exp. Sta. — Ext. Ser. Leaf 198. 1970. Facts About California Agriculture. Calif. Agr. Ext. Ser. AXT-46 (Rev) . Dean, G. W., G. A. King, H. O. Carter, and C. R. Shumway 1970. Projections of California Agriculture to 1980 and 2000. Cal. Agr. Exp. Sta. Bui. 847. Johnson. W. E., and G. W. Dean 1969. California Crop Trends: Yields, Acreages, and Production Areas. Calif. Agr. Exp. Sta. — Ext. Ser. Cir. 551. Parsons, P. S., and C. 0. McCorkle, Jr. 1969. A Statistical Picture of California's Agriculture. Calif. Agr. Exp. Sta. — Ext. Ser. Cir. 456 (Rev). Reed, A. D. 1969. Leasing Practices for California Agricultural Properties. Calif. Agr. Ext. Ser. AXT-309. Reed, A. D., and J. H. Snyder 1968. What You Should Know about Farm Leases. Calif. Agr. Exp. Sta. — Ext. Ser. Cir. 491 (Rev). Shultis, Arthur 1959. Agriculture in California. Calif. Agr. Exp. Sta. — Ext. Ser. Cir. 474. 1963. California Dairy Farm Management. Calif. Agr. Exp. Sta. — Ext. Ser. Cir. 417 (Rev). Co-operative Extension work in Agriculture and Home Economics, College of Agriculture, University of California, and United States Department of Agriculture co-operating. Distributed in furtherance of the Acts of Congress of May 8, and June 30, 1914. George B. Alcorn, Director, California Agricultural Extension Service. 15m-4,'71(P3472L)WP