La Barranca Ranch, LLC

With the recent heat...lots of excellent tomatoes coming in. We are actually going to peak in production something like mid October this year (vs. typical Mid/Late August peak). Up until the last 5 days or so it has been unseasonably cool this year. You can get yours at our thursday afternnoon market (East Ventura, Kimball and the 126) or our Saturday morning market in Old Town Camarillo.

Tomorrow (saturday) I will be at the Old Town Camarillo farmers market with a full table of tomatoes! I had 5 bins last week...13 this week, so things are looking good! Come by for some great tomatoes!

And here are a couple of pictures of the walk in produce cooler I built in my garage. Saved a bunch of dollars by building it myself. Never fear, I will not subject them to temps below 70...

Just a heads up that I will be at the Kimball Rd Ventura Farmers market tomorrow (3:00 to 7:00, basically at the 126 and Kimball at the ventura waterpark). I am just starting to get heavy production and things are starting to look interesting! I will be going back into the Camarillo Saturday morning market starting Aug the 6th (on ventura rd, north of the big Catholic Church). ... Hope to see you all soon...

This yellow oxheart variety is "Golden King of Siberia". The signature Oxheart shape is what makes it fun...I haven't grown yet, but there are lots of people who think this tomato is among the best. I guess we will know shortly. Like most lighter colored tomatoes, expect a lighter, less earthy flavor. Probably a little fruity in flavor early in the season, with more intense flavor coming when summer heat arrives.

Sorry for the lack of updates, been a busy few months. Things are well underway on the farm with four 100' rows planted. I am hoping to about double production this year...we'll see how that goes! We have also added four new varieties to the mix. The first is "Cherokee Purple". It is a dark tomato much like "Black Krim" and "Paul Robeson" which we already grow. People keep asking for it...so I am growing the three purples. ... The second is a yellow oxhart variety called "Golden King of Siberia". Oxheart tomatoes are shaped like an actual heart...kind of has a point on the bottom. It's almost turnip shaped. I haven't grown it, but the reviews are great. I will get a photo of it in the photos section. May be a novelty...may be great, we'll see. Third is "Indigo Blue Beauty". It is a true blue tomato meaning the shoulders (top) of the fruit are almost blueberry colored. They add a lot of color to a plate. Last, but not least is "Yellow Brandywine". This is a relative to "Pink Brandywine" but produces...wait for it...yellow tomatoes. I havebeen growing two orange beefsteak varieties, this will be our first true yellow beefsteak. Thanks for all the support!

Put in my last row for 2015 on Friday. It's 100' and 41 plants...oops, just gave away my plant spacing! Unless we get a cold fall winter, these should be producing in about 2 months...

We are in a second farmers market! Starting tomorrow, we will be attending the Camarillo Hospice Farmers Market in Old Town Camarillo. It is Saturdays 8:00 to 12:00 in the middle of Old Town. This is a really nice market with everything from produce to baked goods to craft items. Here is the webpage:... http://www.camarillohospice.org/farmersmarket.html Please stop by if you are feeling the need for some great tomatoes!

For anyone who is interested in a delivery of tomatoes, we will be doing drop-offs this weekend. Here are details: Cost: 3 dollars per pound (minimum 5 lbs) Delivery Area: Simi Valley, Conejo Valley and Camarillo Varieties: You name it or we can build you a sampler.... It will be cash on delivery, so we will have to work out a delivery window so that we can connect. If there is enough interest this may become a "regular thing" but lots of details to work out. Anyhow...if you are interested in a drop-off of the best tomatoes you have ever had, IM me or call me on my cell phone (805-341-6248) and we can work out details. Mike

This was our table set up for the farmer's market last Thursday. Not bad for day one!

We now have fruit for sale! Heirloom tomatoes in a variety of colors, all top quality. These things are really beautiful!!! We will be starting out at the East Ventura Farmer's Market. It is Thursday's 3 PM to 7 PM at 901 S. Kimball road near the county center in Ventura (Victoria area). Here is their Facebook page for more info. ... https://www.facebook.com/EastandWestVenturaFarmersMarket Hope to see you there! As we get into additional markets, we will post more info.

First a trickle...then a flood. We received our certification from the county of Ventura last week. Hopefully we will be ready to sell fruit in about 2 weeks!

Tomatoes coming soon!