Theme: Almond Festival

February 27, 2017

Sunday, February 26th was a perfect day for the Capay-Valley-wide almond festival.  Almonds are the first big orchard crop to bloom every year.  The flowers are insect pollinated, but the native pollinators and honey bees do not like cold or wet weather!  Hopefully the bees were out in force on Sunday, along with all the visitors admiring the blossoms.  Full Belly Farmers plus scores of Capay Valley volunteers sold 430 pizzas made to order, plus all kinds of other sandwiches and drinks, all as a fundraiser for the Rumsey Improvement Association.

One Hundred and Two Almond Festivals!

Here in the Capay Valley we take our traditions seriously. February, first coined as Almond Festival month in 1915 is no exception. It starts as the almond trees begin their month long blooming period, when the valley is dotted with pink and white puffy blossoms on dark trunks along the hillsides and valley floor. Some of the orchards date back to the early 1900’s – planted by farming settlers who often dry-farmed in the hills. Their gnarled twisted trunks are testimony to a struggling history of farming on the rugged hot hills. In more recent years many new plantings have sprouted up on the rich Valley soil, comprising over 2,000 acres.

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Here in the Capay Valley we take our traditions quite seriously – with no messing around. February, first coined as Almond Festival month in 1915 is no exception. Starting in the beginning of the month, as the almond trees begin their month long blooming period, the valley is dotted with pink and white puffy blossoms on dark trunks all along the hillsides and valley floor. Some of these orchards date back to the early 1900’s – planted by farming settlers who often dry farmed in the hills. Their gnarled twisted trunks are testimony to a struggling history of farming on the rugged hot hills. In more recent years many new plantings have sprouted up on the rich valley soil, comprising over 2,000 acres of this much-heralded nut, with many new varieties and more modern farming techniques.

The real tradition of the Almond month begins in the third week of February when the Almond Queen Pageant is held in Yolo County’s only Grange Hall – the Guinda Grange. This hall, dating back to 1910, provides a perfect home for the annual dinner and competition among a group of the valley’s finest high school seniors. These young women are judged on scholastic prowess, community involvement, an interview session and their crowning moment – a speech to the dinner’s attendees. In the speech they answer a series of questions that often revolve around the rural theme of growing up in the valley and how their lives may have been shaped by the agricultural flavor of the area. Over 250 locals pack into the Grange Hall for the evening of farm food and speeches and all are anxious to see who that year’s winner will be. Tears and clapping abound as each one of the woman present their practiced speeches, and family members watch on in pride. The crowning of the Queen is a special moment in all of their lives, though it is less about the actual “crown” and more about celebrating each young woman as an individual. The Queens prestigious duty is to reign over the valley’s Almond Festival the next weekend.

Hannah Muller, second generation Full Belly Farmer, was crowned the 2010 Almond Queen.  [Read more…]