The first Cranberries of the season are here! Cranberries are incredibly good for you and are not just for enjoying during the holiday season. Eaten fresh, frozen or dried, cranberries are high in vitamin C, fiber and vitamin E and packed with antioxidants.

The staple Fairtrade Fruit, this week is all about Bananas! The U.S. is the largest importer of bananas and the demand for Organic Bananas only continues to grow. Here at Earl’s we support a better banana: we offer superior flavor, in-house conditioning to order, and daily photos so you can make the right choice. Meet Coliman Bananas, a family business.

Bouchey Farms is a third generation farm located in Wapato, Washington in Yakima Valley. They specialize in red, gold and russet potatoes and Russian Banana, Amarosa, Purple Pelisse and French fingerlings.

Over 99% of the grapes grown commercially in the United States are from California.  Grapes are grown in the 450 mile long by 50 mile wide area between Sacramento and the San Joaquin Valley regions and in the Coachella Valley in Riverside County.  Deep purple Thomcords, red seedless Sparkle, and green Stella Bella are just a few of the seasons highlights.

The first of the locally grown California Bartlett pears have arrived. In our opinion, we at Earl’s feel that California Bartlett’s are some of the best pears in the world. Pears ripen from the inside out and have a fragrant aroma, but how do you know when your pear is ripe?

California melons are at the peak of flavor! California melon season begins around Memorial Day. Picking a ripe melon is very difficult and is not an exact science. Melons ripen on the vine and do not get any sweeter once picked although texture and flavor can improve. 

Organic corn is difficult to grow because of a major pest, the corn earworm. Patrick Johnston, owner of Dwelley Farms, shares their secret for keeping the corn earworm away!

Earl’s long relationship with Burkart begin over 20 years ago. Picked at optimum maturity with the highest sugar levels, Burkart stone fruit has outstanding flavor and is a real crowd pleaser! Richard Burkart grows high-quality organic stone fruit on 65 acres near Dinuba along the northern border of Tulare County about four hours south of San Francisco.

Temperatures over the past week reached over 100 degrees in many growing regions including Salinas, Watsonville and Bakersfield and up to 115 in Yolo County and Chico. The heat affects our food production, putting not only the plants and fruit at risk but the people harvesting our food.