Agriculture

Three connected agricultural properties straddling the border of San Benito and Santa Clara counties were recently purchased by conservation organizations, ensuring the lands totaling more than 600 acres will remain an active link in a vital regional ecosystem.  The Peninsula Open Space Trust on Oct....

The Amah Mutsun Land Trust this week announced that by the end of 2025, it will acquire a 50-acre property near the intersection of Highways 129 and 101 in San Juan Bautista—marking the first time the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band has regained full access...

On a normal Friday afternoon, the farmers market in downtown Watsonville—which draws vendors and customers from Hollister, Gilroy and beyond—is a bustling, joyous event, with gaggles of children playing in a bounce house and families happily in long lines to purchase fresh produce and...

Every Saturday, scores of people make the drive to Pinnacle Farms market in San Juan Bautista to buy fresh, organically grown produce. Owners Phil and Katherine Foster began farming in San Benito County in 1968. Today they grow certified organic fruit and vegetables on 295...

In the rolling hills south of Hollister, the Miller family have transformed a former walnut farm into an eclectic “destination bakery” that reflects their philosophy of giving new life to old structures and traditions. The heart of Suncoast Organic Farms is a century-old barn that...

Praise be to the gods of pizza and pasta, and wine. Fridays and Saturdays have already become legend at Little Uvas and DeRose Vineyards on Fitzgerald Avenue in San Martin, where the hospitality flows like wine, and the woodfired pizza oven turns out pies...

It’s that time of year when cherries are ripening and families from throughout the region enjoy a stroll through the orchards selecting their favorite types. At Fairhaven Orchards in Hollister, the Rajkovich family owned business has operated for more than 75 years and proudly continues...

Thousands of local residents and visitors enjoyed a sunny weekend in celebration of the 91st San Benito County Saddle Horse Show & Rodeo.  The three-day rodeo took place at Bolado Park Event Center in Tres Pinos, and featured a full slate of popular local traditions,...

More than 50 community entries—including a herd of cattle, marching bands, floats, horsemen and horsewomen (some in the Vaquero tradition), 2025 Miss San Benito Rodeo, wagons and many community groups—marched through downtown Hollister June 21 to kick off this year’s San Benito County Rodeo. The...

As vineyard manager at the 7,000-acre Paicines Ranch in San Benito County, Kelly Mulville has a rather significant task: he’s trying to practice organic, regenerative farming on 25 acres of vines while surrounded by hundreds of acres of vineyards being conventionally farmed.  “Our underlying philosophy...