Agriculture

Squeals of laughter and the scent of hay filled the air as children raced through the corn maze, picked out pumpkins nearly as big as they were, and enjoyed rides at the annual fall festival at Swank Farms—a beloved South Valley tradition marking the...

As vineyard manager at the 7,000-acre Paicines Ranch in San Benito County, Kelly Mulville has a rather significant task: he’s trying to practice organic, regenerative farming on 25 acres of vines while surrounded by hundreds of acres of vineyards being conventionally farmed.  “Our underlying philosophy...

On a normal Friday afternoon, the farmers market in downtown Watsonville—which draws vendors and customers from Hollister, Gilroy and beyond—is a bustling, joyous event, with gaggles of children playing in a bounce house and families happily in long lines to purchase fresh produce and...

Projected costs of the massive Anderson Dam reconstruction project in Morgan Hill have risen to approximately $2.3 billion, according to a report prepared by engineers for the Santa Clara Valley Water District. Two years ago, the cost of the dam project—required for earthquake protection and...

Proprietor Billoo Rataul stands tall and proud as he surveys the vineyard land that gently slopes to the banks of Machado Creek outside Morgan Hill. Born and raised in northeast India, he grew up near jungles where beasts still roamed, and his childhood imagination...

The San Benito County Saddle Horse Show & Rodeo kicked off rodeo week on June 22 with the annual rodeo parade in downtown Hollister.  The procession began with a traditional cattle drive down the middle of San Benito Street, featuring dozens of steers, longhorn cattle...

Although farm and food production workers were considered essential workers during the pandemic, many of California's food employers endangered those workers, violating Cal/OSHA's Covid-19 guidelines more often than most industries, a new report said. The California Institute for Rural Studies’ report said farm and food...

The County of Santa Clara has launched a program that will allow ranchers and livestock owners to access restricted areas during wildfires and other emergencies to feed their animals, check their health and, if necessary, evacuate them. The County has granted more than 40 Livestock...

Sunday's dry spell helped the greater Bay Area briefly recover from a powerful storm on New Year's weekend, but a Pineapple Express on the way will soak the region mid-week, forecasters said Monday. Mop-up efforts to bail out flooded basements and clear mudslides from roadways...

I recently went out to visit another winery in San Benito County, where the wineries and the wines share a similar place in the world of California regions—we had a history of being leaders in winemaking going back to the 19th century, we are...