Pie Ranch

The topic of public education is heavy on our minds these days as we try to safely reopen schools. We'd like to take this opportunity during Black History Month to bring some light to an often forgotten piece of California's public school history: the forced segregation of schools and the fight to bring justice and equal education to children of color in our state. The first photo above is of the two segregated schools (Visalia Colored School on the left and Visalia High Scho...ol on the right) in Visalia, CA during the 1850s. From the ACLU of Northern California and the Gold Chains project: "Edmond Wysinger, a part-time laborer and preacher, always stressed the value of a good education. But his children were forced to attend the substandard Visalia Colored School, located in the barn of a Black farmer. Across town, a new school was being built, but only white children would be allowed to attend. Wysinger refused to accept this blatant inequality. He tried to enroll his son Arthur in the all-white Visalia High School, but school officials told him that 'colored' students weren’t welcome. Wysinger sued the Visalia School District but lost his case in Tulare County court. Undeterred, he appealed to the California Supreme Court and won in a decision that would impact black public school students for generations. Arthur Wysinger was the first black child admitted to Visalia High School. The case was also used as legal precedent in briefs filed with the United States Supreme Court in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education." Each week during Black History Month we are highlighting a piece of history from the @aclu_norcal Gold Chains project. Please click the link in our bio to learn more.

Our very own @Brisa de Año Ranch was awarded the New Farmer of the Year award by the Community Alliance of Family Farms! Join @CAFF Family Farms at the 2021 Small Farm Conference to celebrate this achievement. https://www.caff.org/2021conferenceschedule/ Brisa de Año Ranch is the first incubator farm at Pie Ranch’s Cascade Regenerator Project, an effort to bring land access to new women farmers and farmers of color who work to grow regeneratively on the coast. Here’s what CA...FF has to say about their pick for New Farmer of the Year: If the adaptability that these three farmers demonstrated during 2020 is any indication of their future, you can bet Brisa de Año is here to stay. When the market shutdowns of COVID-19 struck this small, organic, cooperatively run farm in Pescadero, Cole, Cristóbal & Verónica hustled to pivot their business and ramp up their CSA while collaborating with emergency food networks to help feed families in need. Just when things were looking up, California’s worst ever wildfire season showed up at their farm’s door step. As the fires still raged and firefighters prioritized urban centers, they took matters into their own hands, building fire breaks with their tractors and reassembling melted irrigation. But through cooperation, determination and community, they pulled through. Only weeks later they were sharing their hard-learned lessons with fellow farmers on webinars, even meeting with policymakers to guide future wildfire prevention programs for rural areas. For a farm that just wrapped up its third season, we can’t wait to see what’s next. Join us, Brisa de Año and CAFF on February 28th to celebrate this awesome achievement! #smallfarms #regenerativeagriculture #familyfarms #organicfarming

Mifflin Wistar Gibbs (1823-1915) was an activist, entrepreneur and civil rights leader in San Francisco who fought back against California's racist laws against Black people and eventually led a migration of hundreds of African Americans out of San Francisco to Victoria, BC. From the ACLU of Northern California's Gold Chains Project: "Gibbs was a frequent critic of the discriminatory treatment of Blacks in the so-called 'free' state. He co-founded Mirror of the Times, the fir...st Black newspaper on the Pacific Coast, and used it as a pulpit to wage a campaign against restrictive 'Black laws.' Under its slogan, 'Truth Crushed To The Earth Will Rise Again,' the Mirror denounced testimony exclusion laws that prevented Blacks from testifying against whites in civil or criminal cases. It demanded an end to the poll tax on Black businesses, citing its unfairness when Blacks were banned from voting. A passionate anti-slavery activist, Gibbs helped raise funds for fugitive slave Archy Lee’s legal defense. In 1858, a bill was introduced in the legislature to ban Black people from moving to the state. And to require free Black residents and mulattoes to register with the county to prove their residency. It failed to pass. It did however leave a bitter taste for Blacks. Gibbs joined hundreds of families who turned their backs on California racism and headed for British Columbia in the hopes of finding a more welcoming reception. Gibbs made a fortune in dry goods, coal, and real estate. After the Civil War, Gibbs, who had always refused to let racism limit his prospects, moved back to the United States to Arkansas, where he became the first Black elected municipal judge in the country." Throughout Black History Month, we are sharing stories and images from The Gold Chains project, an effort by the ACLU of Northern California to expose the often overlooked history of slavery within the state. Learn more at the link in our bio or check out @aclunorcal

Our hearts are full... of veggies! Our farmstand is brimming with goodies. For Valentine’s Day weekend, we will feature special chocolate cakes and bouquets with locally harvested flowers! Come by and get some sweetness!

Eggs every day! Our farmstand is stocked regularly with eggs from Antonio & Sons Farms located just across the street and next to Año Nuevo. He raises his flock on a big green pasture in the ocean air and uses only organic feed. Egg abundance is another sign of the days getting longer!

We know the Christmas tree feels a little out of season at this late date, but wanted to share a photo of just 50 of the 20,000 organic produce boxes we compiled as part of our Food Hub program last year! We continue to work every week putting together these boxes with the help of @freshapproachbayarea and our other community partners. To all those who make this important project happen, thank you.

Until 1863, it was unlawful for a person of color to testify against a white person in the state of California. California's first Colored Convention, attempting to overturn this law, was held in 1855. Read about this monumental effort below with a blurb we borrowed from the Gold Chains project, a documentation effort by the ACLU of Northern California to uncover our state's history of slavery. "The first Colored Convention in California was held at St. Andrews AME Church in ...Sacramento in 1855. Abolitionists and church leaders who had participated in earlier conventions on the East Coast led the proceedings. They called for the abolishment of slavery, voting rights for black men, and the repeal of testimony exclusion laws that made it illegal for black and Native Californians to testify in court against whites. Delegates represented a wide swath of black leadership, including prominent writers, newspaper editors, organizers, and entrepreneurs. The convention leadership established an executive committee to raise funds for their lobbying efforts. Progress was slow. California’s Legislature ignored petitions to repeal the testimony exclusion laws and enabled anti-black racism and slavery to flourish in the free state. In 1863, the Legislature finally overturned the ban on black testimony after an eight-year campaign by Colored Convention delegates. The Convention met for the last time in California in 1865, and would serve as an inspiration for later civil rights movements." Throughout Black History Month, we will be sharing information and profiles from the Gold Chains project. Click the link in our bio to learn more. @aclu_norcal #aclu #blackhistorymonth

At the end of the shortest day of the year, we’re thinking about spring and themes of reemergence for our farm. As the days get longer, we know we have lots of work ahead of us, with both farm work, rebuilding, and land restoration projects on the horizon. Today we’re sharing a couple ways to help us carry on our farm and food hub programs in the new year. If you check out our last post, one of our goals is to use a wood chipper to aid us in continuing to transform the landsc...ape in a positive way post fire. Another aim is to keep our food hub program going strong. Pictured is a weekly food hub pack out at Pie Ranch earlier this month. Shout out to Minh, our amazing intern! If you want to learn more about our winter appeal details are under the Regeneration + Emergence Campaign link in our bio and on our website. As always we’re thankful to everyone who’s been a part of all the work we’ve done in this year of transformations. #pieranch #reemergence #wintersolstice

A reminder that it’s not too late to contribute and help us rent a wood chipper to aid with our land restoration projects: https://www.pieranch.org/take-action

Our Farmstand continues to remain safely open with one family inside at a time to get your seasonal pies, veggies, whole-grain flour and preserves. This season we have 20 unique preserves featuring our organic crops! And our online shop is always open. We have Pumpkin, Apple Streusel, and Pecan pies till the end of year and are offering a Christmas special pie-order for the 23-24th (link above), and thanks to @companionbakeshop there are even some gluten-free options. Order s...oon, form closes Saturday at midnight. https://forms.gle/x2d9rRoJr6XEaNm47 We will be closed Dec 25-26, and again January 1st. #pieranch #organicfarmstand #holidaysonthefarm

One piece of the puzzle in trying to create sustainable regional food networks is growing grain. This is our jammu wheat. Each year we plant these tiny wheat berries from our saved seed. The jammu we grow is not only farmed and harvested here, it’s also winnowed and milled right on the farm. This heirloom grain will be used to make our baked goods, and it’s one of the reasons that the pies and pastries we offer are truly farm-to-table.

Please chip-in for the chipper...As part of our efforts to properly restore Pie Ranch and build a resilient future for this land, we are asking for your help in renting this amazingly capable wood chipper. This tool will be a major support to us in turning all this wood debris into wonderful, useful wood chips and mulch. Please consider chipping in however you can to help us move along on the road to land renewal. https://www.pieranch.org/take-action

It feels like fall at Pie Ranch! There are lots of crops in season, including apples, pears, and grains. Plus, pumpkins are here, and they’re locally and sustainably grown #pieranch #organicpumpkins #supportlocalfarms

We grew ten different types of peppers this year, including padron, shishito, poblano, cayenne, purple beauty, and more! It was incredible to see all the shapes and colors, and sample the flavors of these heirloom varieties. The shishito’s got a special preparation and were smoked and turned into tasty preserves. We’re excited to try this with some different dishes. What would you pair with our smoked shishito jelly?

Check out this new video from our farm educator Ash about composting at home! https://youtu.be/UqfgjMPTy-Y

https://youtu.be/ghOkLYU7kAM Check out this awesome video that Off the Grid made when they came to visit and deliver meals to fire crews! We are so grateful to CAL FIRE CZU San Mateo-Santa Cruz Unit for all their hard work, as well as our friends and neighbors on site.

We know climate change is responsible, in part, for increased wildfire frequency and intensity on our California coastline. The fire in August affected many of us on the Coastside, including all of the community here at Pie Ranch. Join the coast community on October 15th at 6pm for an upcoming, interactive workshop with the county of San Mateo and the City of Half Moon Bay on how to reduce the emissions (for example pollution from driving and powering our homes) that lead to ...climate change. By attending you’ll enter a raffle to receive a gift card to a local restaurant or grocery store! Do you live in Half Moon Bay, Montara, Moss Beach, Princeton By-the-Sea, El Granada, Miramar, La Honda, San Gregorio, or Pescadero? Register at the link in our bio, and also check out other upcoming workshops from San Mateo County including a climate workshop with Heirs to Our Oceans on October 17th, and workshop for Senior Coastsiders Combating Climate Change on October 21st. This is an opportunity to make your voice heard and stand up for the future of our coastline! Photo by Kara Capaldo Register here: https://bit.ly/HMBClimateWorkshop

Pie Ranch is happy to feature the Vargas Family of Half Moon Bay and the other amazing folks who helped feed our staff, neighbors and firefighters for weeks after the wildfire began. Namely, Alicia Vargas and her nephew Justin broke through barricades to bring hot lunches, supplies, and staff into Pie and Cascade. We are forever grateful and uplifted by such caring actions!

It’s been rather heavy, accepting the loss of the historic Steele house on Pie Ranch farm to the recent fires that blazed through our coastal community. The house held many wonderful family moments, celebrations, mind meldings, books, letters, tears, and laughter. Although the house is gone, stories and the memories of times spent there live on. Here is a memory sent by a second year Pie Ranch apprentice, Yany Wu Feng. So many people from all walks of life have come and gon...e, stayed and left, remained and persevered in this little historic house; so many memories have been made and impacted in little or big way in the lives of those who remember it: the ups and downs, the good and bad, the happy and sad, the legacy that's been formed and held by all who shares a piece of memory of this precious farmhouse at Pie Ranch. This is a fond memory of mine two years ago inside the farmhouse, sharing a bountiful lunch with one of the most amazing groups of people I know. We stayed orderly in line around the enclosure of the house, excited for our meal after a hard working morning. Youths, staff members, farm apprentices, directors, community members all gathered and shared precious moments together by this little farmhouse, which has provided more than just space and shelter, it's gifted us memories that have shaped our life journey. I'll forever remember this place that has impacted me in many ways. I've grown over the years around it, and I'll carry a piece of it with me as I continue my journey. With much gratitude, Yany"

We got our new water tanks by Pájaro Valley Irrigation! Our crops will soon have water again!