The California citrus season has been challenging with the crop size being down anywhere from 10 to 20 percent due to thrip issues on most citrus items. “Fortunately, thrip hasn’t been as widespread as previously thought,” says Krista Beckstead with Mountain View Fruit Sales. “However, sizing is a concern as both oranges and lemons will peak heavily on the larger side of the spectrum through the end of the season.” Mandarins are seeing a more normal sizing pattern.
For Mountain View Fruit Sales, citrus harvest started back in November with their Rascal branded mandarins. The season continues with Brilliant branded Cara Cara, grapefruit, lemons, and Meyer Lemons wrapping up the season in May. The Simply Grown Organic Mandarins will start in February and are available into April. Mandarins could peak in February and wind down to an earlier end than last season. “All in all, we fully anticipate this citrus season to end earlier than normal.”
Earlier start for stone fruit
Stone fruit is another key item for Mountain View. “Last year was a considerably later start to the season for us due to all the cold weather that came through in the beginning of the year,” commented Beckstead. “This year, we are slated to start about seven days ahead of last year,” she added. The season’s start date will largely depend on the weather and Beckstead is hopeful Mother Nature will be kind in the upcoming months that are crucial for the blooms. “Currently, we are seeing the blooms pop open on the trees.”
Water situation
The California stone fruit season kicks off with apricots, typically at the end of April and continues through the middle or end of June, depending on crop size, weather, etc. “So far, the growing conditions have been good. We had surface water available all last year, which is great for the health of our orchards,” commented Beckstead. While November and December were dry, California is getting closer to the rain levels that would call it a normal year, which is positive. “There is a lot of weather still to navigate, but we are excited for the upcoming season. We are coming off a couple good years for the growers and have been able to pick up more land for our portfolio, so we are happy with our continued growth and future endeavors.” Mountain View is currently meeting with their retail partners to set up programs that meet their needs. “We are filled with hope and anticipation for a bountiful harvest and have another successful year of delivering the best quality fruit at the right time to our partners.”
For more information:
Krista Beckstead
Mountain View Fruit Sales
Tel: (+1) 206-612-9247
kbeckstead@mvfruit.com
www.mvfruit.com