Being born and raised in Minonk means that somewhere along the line you
had to have absorbed a fair share of the towns dust and lots of the
rich loam of Woodford County. This came through your eyes, your nose,
skin and mouth! I have spaded circular forms for corncribs, pitched
peas, snapped sweet corn, detasseled hybrid corn and washed away the
grit and dust of riding a combine. Admittedly, my agriculture
credentials are weak, but here in suburban Southern California it is
"de rigueur" to landscape our homes thoroughly. The lots are moderately
small and meant to be easily maintained. Well, almost!! Eleven years
ago we planted a well-intentioned grape vine placed so it could be
trained to cover our backyard gazebo. We said mantras and prayers that
the tiny "fragile" plant would survive in our hardpan clayed soil and
eventually wrap around the post and intertwine through the latticed
roof. Big mistake!
Grapes are Biblically linked to fertility and procreation and are very hearty.
Now, every April I sharpen my clippers, mount a step ladder and start
the spring/summer excising of all those little green clusters in order
to keep the birds and critters from sampling the fruit because they
make a mess of both the supple grape and also the digested ones. The
deck, table and chairs become stained. By June, I slow down and halt
the process because the Doves and other little birds are nesting in the
branches. We love the courtship and birth of our avian friends. The
strong new vines and very large leaves provide a safe haven except for
the crows that know everything.
Now it's fairly safe to enjoy our leafy "bower" for reading, relaxing and crossword puzzles because all the grapes are gone.
By
September/October, the birds are gone and the leaves are dropping. It
is time to start the decapitation process. I did my research and know
how to do this; frankly you just cut all this years growth from the
main trunk and old vines. The remaining dead leaves and vines, some as
long as 10 feet are enough to fill a couple of "Green Waste" trash
containers.
I, like most all
So. Californians, hire gardeners to mow, edge and clean up the leaves
which unfortunately means the use of leaf blowers and then most of the
dirt is just redistributed.
I try to minimize this detail by informing the "gardeners" to use
rakes, HA! One can only ponder whether these workers are legal
immigrants. Most home owners are too busy commuting to work on crowded
freeways, sailing weekends, golfing, biking, tanning plus earning
enough money to sent their kids to USC, Stanford, UCLA and Berkeley to
spent time behind a mower.
Historically,
California has had several influxes of "not always wanted but necessary
emigrant immigrant interlopers". There were Asian railroad workers,
military personnel in training and awaiting transfer to Pacific
theatres during war times and the gold rush, grapes and the1930
depression plus dust storms throughout the great planes. One story
deals with the introduction of grapes during the 49er gold rush. Not
only did Levi Strauss profit but also entrepreneurs found a real market
for grapes to supply fresh fruit to the "paners" and wine for the gold
rush community. The more recent 30's were symbolic for the plight of
the dust bowl farmers who lost everything and headed west to
California. John Steinbeck's fictional story, "The Grapes of Wrath" was
considered epic and made into a classic movie.
Of course, in today's society of writers and researchers, many feel
much of his story could not have happened! DAH? Who cares, it's just
plain great reading.
Trivia
time: These notes came from the AGMRC Resource Center. Viticulture, (or
grape growing) notes Spanish Franciscan Friars originally brought the
vines to California in 1769 for producing Sacramental wines. California
accounts for 99% of all US grapes and these vineyards cover over 80,000
acres.
The dominant "table
grape" is the Thompson Seedless created by the Scottish immigrant
William Thompson in 1876 and is used for fresh fruit, wine and raisons.
China is the leading producer of fresh market grapes worldwide, Turkey
is a distant second. The estimated per person consumption of table
fresh grapes by Americans was 7.5 lbs in 2003. They are marketed mainly
between May through December.
So,
in conclusion, remember that California is much more than trendy
fashions, beach bunnies, Disneyland, Hollywood, expensive homes, sport
cars, the beautiful Pacific Ocean and fabulous weather. We are also a
state that depends on farmers and farm workers. (So there!)