Focus on Agriculture

GREENFIELD — New farmworker housing units recently opened with a ribbon-cutting ceremony, directly before a farmworker vaccine clinic at the same site in Greenfield. The first two buildings at the Third St. Apartments, located at the intersection of Walnut Avenue and Third Street, will eventually...

SALINAS — As the decennial redistricting process wrapped up last month, the concern from The World’s Salad Bowl started to mount. Local politicians, regional business giants and other community leaders asked how a plan to pair the international agricultural hub with the Silicon Valley...

SOLEDAD — CRU Winery in Soledad is partnering with Valley Farm Management and the Blue Zones Project Monterey County to offer a late summer hiking series. Hosted monthly, participants will hike through the stunning and sustainably farmed Paraiso Vineyard before ending with a wine tasting...

GREENFIELD — Lavender Creek, a family-run lavender farm and growing wellness brand near Greenfield in South Monterey County, has transformed its first Lavender Wellness Experience at the farm into a growing series of community workshops that bring calm and comfort directly to seniors and...

GREENFIELD — Scheid Family Wines has successfully obtained the Bee Friendly Farming Certification for its estate White Flower Vineyard, a prestigious designation that underscores the Greenfield winery’s commitment to sustainability and environmental stewardship. This certification, awarded by Pollinator Partnership, recognizes Scheid’s efforts to promote bee...

Salinas Valley was initially spared the worst of the damage as storms battered California last month. But then the Salinas River overflowed its banks Jan. 10, breaching berms and levees. Over the ensuing hours and days, thousands of acres of some of the country’s most...

SALINAS VALLEY — University of California Santa Cruz’s CITRIS Initiative for Drone Education and Research (CIDER) along with several partners has received a $1 million, 15-month planning grant to support regional drone education and workforce development from the James Irvine Foundation. The funds will be...

SALINAS VALLEY — Salinas Valley Fair activities will begin this week with the virtual junior livestock auction set for Saturday, May 8. Like last year, Covid-19 pandemic health guidelines have caused an online format and an earlier scheduling than the traditional mid-May fair dates. Youth from...

Cesar Mendoza had been a participant in Food, What?!, an organization that brings the youth of Santa Cruz County into the world of farming, food production and cooking.

SALINAS VALLEY — In an effort to increase groundwater recharge and storage while reducing flooding, four local agencies and nonprofits collaborating on the Multi-benefit Land Repurposing Program are seeking public input about known areas of flooding and recharge. A public survey is now open and...