Steven Knudsen/On the Farm | Posted: Sunday, December 17, 2006 12:00 am
When searching for that perfect gift for your family this season, instead of fighting the crowds at the local department stores, you should check out local agricultural businesses.
Did you know that the Central Coast is home to hundreds of family farms that produce specialized, value-added products perfect for gift giving?
From lavender to freshen your home to locally grown luffa sponges to alpaca wool flies, ag businesses on the Central Coast have something for everyone.
Several local farms offer baked goods, fruit preserves, nuts, honey and olive oil. How about an elegant orchid or an exotic plant?
The Central Coast is teeming with sure-to-be-welcomed gifts for even the most difficult-to-buy-for person on your list. Here are a few suggestions to make your holiday shopping a little easier:
Alpacas at Crossroads Ranch
Nothing makes a brook trout go crazy like a hand-tied, all-natural fly made from hand-dyed alpaca roving. These flies are great for the fly fisherman in your family. The hand-tied flies are sold individually or by the box at Crossroads Ranch.
Crossroads Ranch also features imported items as well as U.S. fiber-artists/ knit and felted items, including hats, gloves, scarves, sofa pillow covers, sofa throws, sweaters, yarn, roving and rugs 7 all made from alpaca.
Warmer than wool and soft like cashmere, alpaca products make wonderful gifts.
The Wallace family, ranch owners and operators, breed and raise a full range of white to black huacaya alpacas and work to promote natural-fiber production in the area.
Alpacas at Crossroads Ranch is located in Paso Robles. Appointments can be made 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.
The Luffa Farm
These are not your run-of-the-mill hard, abrasive luffas. Grown naturally in the Central Coast sunshine from specially selected heirloom seeds, these hand-selected “spongesC are sublimely soft and luxurious.
Perfect for the bath, these sponges last for months and are machine-washable. A luffa sponge makes an excellent all-natural gift for that person on your list who desires a little more pampering in her 7 or his 7 life.
The Luffa Farm is located on the Nipomo Mesa and operated by the Coon family. The Luffa Farm Store is open to the public 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday and filled with many other pampering gifts, including bath salts and teas, soaps, lotions, masks and wraps, all aimed at aiding your relaxation.
For more information, go to www.theluffafarm.com.
Green Acres Lavender Farm
For the cook in your family, Green Acres Lavender Farm has a tin of 100-percent organic Provence culinary lavender. Culinary lavender adds a wonderful flavor to any dish, sweet or savory, and tastes as good as it smells.
The farm has a vanilla bean and lavender sugar mixture that is an excellent addition to any dessert and makes an amazing vanilla-lavender ice cream.
The farm is the largest lavender grower and distiller in San Luis Obispo County, with more than 12,000 plants. When the lavender blooms in the spring, the hills of the ranch are completely covered with deep purple and the air is perfumed with the smell of lavender.
The focus at the farm is the production of Grosso lavender because of its oil-producing characteristics and its exceptional match to the climate of the Central Coast.
The farm offers tours and operates a small farm store along with an online outlet. You can experience all that lavender has to offer by visiting Green Acres Lavender Farm.
For more information, go to www.greenacreslavenderfarm. com
Linn/s Farm Fruit Bin Farm Store
Another fine selection for those on your gift list this year is a jar of olallieberry preserve made from Central Coast vine-ripened olallieberries.
Handcrafted by the Linn family since 1977, olallieberry preserve is great on a bagel, on toast or on top of ice cream.
The Linn family works quickly from the harvest of the fresh berries to the kitchen, where they hand-stir the ingredients and carefully hand-pour each jar to maximize the flavor of this more-fruit, less-sugar preserve.
The Linns offer a vast collection of specialty foods and gifts, such as fruit pies, chicken pot pies, dried fruit teas, wines and an array of other delicacies.
Most of them are available to customers throughout the United States either by Linn/s mail-order catalog or on the Web site at www.linnsfruitbin.com.
Orchids of Los Osos
An orchid from Orchids of Los Osos makes a wonderful holiday gift.
For the last 30 years, Orchids of Los Osos has grown orchids for wholesale and individual resale. The farm/s 40,000-square-foot greenhouse is located on 9 acres in Los Osos Valley.
Cut orchid flowers are for sale as well as potted orchids of all sizes and colors. Orchid supplies, including fertilizer and books, also are available.
For more information, visit the Web site at www.orchids oflososos.com.
Green Valley Flower and Herb
Accent your front door or decorate your table with a beautiful wreath from Green Valley Flower and Herb.
The Bassetti family has operated Green Valley Flower and Herb since 1977. It/s a wholesale manufacturer of all-season wreaths and centerpieces, and the company/s products can be found in the Linn/s holiday catalog (see above).
These are just a few of the many agricultural businesses and specialized items that you can find on the Central Coast.
For more ideas on places to visit, go to the Central Coast Agricultural tourism Web page at www.agadventures.org or stop by the San Luis Obispo County Farm Bureau office to pick up an Ag Adventures map.
You can also visit the Central Coast Grown Web page, www.centralcoastgrown.org, to find additional businesses for holiday gift ideas.
Supporting these agricultural businesses is essential to preserving our rural lands in San Luis Obispo County. By you purchasing their products, these local businesses are able to stay in operation.
Family farms are extremely important to the county, and it is up to all of us to help keep them going strong.
Happy holidays.
Steven Knudsen is outreach coordinator for the San Luis Obispo County Farm Bureau. He can be reached at 543-3654 or steven@slofarmbureau.org
Dec. 17, 2006