#8

Waddell bluffs with shark ridden Ano Neuvo in the distance.

The early June storms pushed us in to the top ten snowiest winters on record.  Not too shabby.  As for water content, we sit at #13.  And as stated before, for June snowpack depth we are at #1.  This is what is allowing three North Lake resorts to plan on lift served skiing operations for the 4th of July weekend.  Kirkwood is the only on in the south who has announced operation plans with chairs 5 and 6 offering top to bottom skiing.  We'd been hoping they would spin 10, but you really can not complain to much when you can ski for the holiday.  2011/12 season passes are valid, or you can buy a lift ticket for $35.  At this point, still no word from Heavenly.  And please do not expect mid winter powder conditions.  Corn is best served with a cheap canned adult beverage.  Ride responsibly.  And if you just can't wait until July, Kirkwood is offering cat skiing.  $2500 for a day with up to 12 riders.  If you have the itch (and some coin to spend) they have a ride for you.  Or you can just self power and go out for a hike.

And that June Gloom.  Really, in Santa Cruz it has not been that bad.  The west side has been clearing to sun between 8am and 10am this past week.  The fog lingers a bit longer on the east side.  We see the fog bank trying to stay in place over the next few days, but the sun also is vying for position.  Basically, our weather is to stay the same as it has the last few days.  Of note, a greater chance of a sunny morning for Sunday.  Looks like morning fog through at least Tuesday.  The good news is a slight warming trend for the coast will put most locales in the low to mid 70s through next week, with Tuesday being the warmest, by a hair.  Nothing to hot expected in the near future, but if we evade the fog in the mornings, the middle of next week could offer up a few very pleasant days.  As long as that demon wind does not whip up too strong.

Just another West Cliff scene.

It has been a while since I gave a market report.  I think it has been worth the wait, because lots of goodies are coming into season.  We are still seeing peas, and fava beans have made a revival.  I harvested the last few pounds of ours on Thursday, as the plants were on their way out and I needed to make room for my cucumber, squash and bean seedlings.  Of course, all the old standbys are around like beets, kale, broccoli, cauliflower and the such.  Summer squash are beginning to show up with most zucchini and a few smaller yellow squash.  Stone fruit is starting to make some inroads with a variety of peaches, and some nectarines and plums.  And cucumbers.  Yes, local cucumbers are starting to show at our markets.  From a bit further away in the state, corn is becoming available, but prices are still pretty steep.  Also from the south we are starting to see cantaloupe and watermelons.  It sure is starting to look like summer at the market.  The only thing we are still waiting for is non hot house tomatoes.  It won't be too long.

Speaking of tomatoes, there has been some talk of another bad summer.  Some are even suggesting that the last two months have done a lot to damage to tomatoes.  I'd say that is the case for those at elevation, but not for us on the coastal level.  Even at 1000 feet, we had plenty of clod weather  this spring.  Combined with the wet and it is a perfect environment for bacterial speck, the disease that did a lot of damage last season.  If you think you may have a little of this, try a copper based spray.  And if you bought plants at Love Apple Farm, they have offered to replace any plants that got sick due to April's and May's weather.  That is more generous than the airlines.  In our backyard our plants are flourishing.  We grew from seed and picked up seedlings from LAF and New Natives.  We potted up the seedlings to develop their robust root system and put them in the ground between late March and lat May.  No fruit on the plants as of yet, but the Sungold already is about 3' tall with hundreds of flowers.  Give me a week of warm weather (say next week) and I expect to see fruit set.  We will need to watch that fog bank, as that is the biggest concern for us coastal growers again this season.  Pray for sun.

In short, more of the same through Tuesday.  A bit warmer each day through then.  Sun looks like to be the norm after that through the end of the week.  Daytime high temperatures hanging out in the low 70s.