Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Tour de Farm Series #2

Raquel and I continued our farm tours today, visiting another of our San Diego favorites.  I have been buying carrots from this farm for the last few months, they are the torpedo-shaped Nantes-style ones I love.  We arrived just in time to find the workers cleaning and boxing the carrots that will be found at the markets this weekend~

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While I love their carrots, the specialty of this farm is the strawberry.  This is the third generation of the farm, so they know what they are doing~

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They are picked “late” so that the berries are very red and juicy; no problem selling these; they are picked and boxed and carefully shaded from the sun after they are picked~

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Rows and rows of raised-bed strawberries, grown on the black film to keep the dirt off, prevent rot, and grab the heat~

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The best strawberries are grown on a slope, like the best grapes; this was an impressive planting; at the bottom of the slope here we have beets and spring onions~

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Couldn’t resist a tractor shot, the large wheels are nonetheless thin enough to make it down the rows~

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Making our way around the farm, towards the end I spied the real prize of the day; can you see it here, framed by the rear-view mirror?

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Perched on a rusted door, a magnificent hawk of some kind; looks like a red tail but it had a brown tail; perhaps a juvenile?~

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Our tour guide had never seen it before, and it was not a pet and not tied down; it changed orientation on the door to show it’s wing span and tail nicely~

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Looking, looking, intently~

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Magnificent creature, and I thrilled to get within a few yards of it~

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Soon we were off to the next farm, passing by a sweet little flower & vegetable stand with an honor system (“put the money in the box and leave the basket”) as well as a nifty little sign; this puts me in the mood for summer~

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Our second farm tour fell through, so we drove around a bit until we saw a gigantic chicken on a rooftop; S T O P ~~

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Turns out it is on top of a guitar store, but next door was a great little restaurant~

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The wall décor was eclectic, photos of Bobby Kennedy, Robert Duval; Bob Hope, and…..Bozo?  Oh yeah, it’s Bob Bell….aka Bozo the Clown.  Raquel and I both agreed that this face was actually kinda scary to us as children~

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I figured out the theme before Raquel did; Sponge Bob décor, photos of Bobs and Roberts and even London Bobbies fill the walls; what else would you expect at Bobby’s Hideaway?

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This one was lost on us; Southpark?  The waitress said some people visit for years before they figure out the walls.

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Next week we are going further afield to visit yet another favorite farm.  Lots of other great stuff to show and tell you about before then; this has been a very busy week so sorry, not a lot of posts!

9 comments:

  1. Fun stuff!
    The strawberries are amazing!
    ~Lynne
    [w/L]

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  2. I love your farm series, Andrea! You get so many great shots, the hawk, so regal! The strawberries are grown with such care, and it shows in the harvest.

    Xoxo
    Karena
    Art by Karena

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  3. I can't believe the size of the strawberries. Do they taste as good as they look? The hawk is magnificent.............just happens to be the mascot of my football team! Such regal birds.
    Bisous

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  4. Although I am not a viewer the last Bobby is from Fox's King of the Hill.

    My mouth is watering thinking about our French strawberries. :)

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  5. Hi Andrea, Your first farm is indeed an exceptional farm. You can tell by the way the Nantes carrots grow that their soil is very healthy. We are still harvesting our carrots from last year because we have covered them with large bales of straw.

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  6. Andrea, this was a fun trip, we have the honor system here in Maine.
    There are Veggie tables by the road with a money box. Seems to work.
    That Hawk was gorgeous. He must have escaped from some Arab that lives
    around there.

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  7. Loving your posts! Did you go to Chino's farm in Rancho Santa Fe? A favorite of chefs all over California!

    xx kelley

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  8. Since you're in the San Diego area you should head North on the 5 to the Carlsbad Flower Fields. Acres and acres of Ranunculus flowers growing on the hillside overlooking the ocean. They also grow strawberries and have a very sweet nursery. The photo opportunities won't disappoint! Enjoyed this post very much!

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  9. Oh that glorious hawk! We have them near our home in Phoenix, I love watching them but I've never been that close. You have a great lens on your camera!
    Can't believe how long the chocolate took to get to you. Well,glad it made it anyway. I like the fig :)

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