Warm weather along California's Central Coast has sped up harvesting of artichokes there. With harvesting still transitioning to growing areas elsewhere in the state, supplies have been light.“It's been a real up and down season for us,” noted Dale Huss of Ocean Mist Farms. “The weather has been warmer than normal, and that created a gap in production.” Temperatures higher than normal, especially at night, sped up the crop in the Salinas area. As a result, harvesting ended sooner than usual. With normal timing, the end of the season in Salinas would be closer to the beginning of harvesting in Oxnard, but the quick end to the first harvest has made for a gap in production.
“We have a gap in supply, but other growing areas will pick up in about a week and the gaps will begin to fill in,” said Huss. “We'll start harvesting out of Oxnard next week, and that production looks strong. Supplies are light right now, but we expect to have plenty of volume by November, in time for the Thanksgiving pull.”