Agriculture in Ca

California Agriculture Here are the facts I learned: -While orange is the most popular color, carrots also come in yellow, white, red, and purple. -A Californian cow produces 6-7 gallons of milk each day. It takes about 10 pounds of milk to produce one pound of cheese. -California provides the only successful growing area in the U.S. for pistachios which require a warm temperature zone. -The Honey Bee is the only insect that produces food eaten by humans. -Rice Feilds in California are flooded with water then seeded by aircraft because it is the most efficient method of planting. -More than half the supply of raisins are withen 50 miles of FRESNO. -Montery Jack Cheese was developed in Montery California in 1882 by David Jacks a Scostman. -In 1923 Anaheim horculrurist Rudolph Boysen crossbred a raspberry, blackberry and a loganberry plant thus creating the Boysenberry. -In 1885 Judge James Harvey Logan of Santa Cruz California introduced the loganberry, a cross between the red raspberry and a California black berry. -In 1893, the U.S. Supreme Court rendered an Opinion that Tomatoes are really vegtables.They were WRONG. Tomatoes are really Fruits. - In 1905, a California Prune grower had 500 monkeys pick his crop. The monkeys not only picked all the fruit - they also ATE IT! - California's Avocado industery began in the 1920's when a postman named Rudolph Hass discovered what came to be known as the Hass Avocado in his LA Habra backyard. - California is the nation's #2 grower of Cotton. Cotton is also the state's #1 agricultural export commodity. Here are the questions and answers: Q: California farmers once tried to grow this crop (normally associated with Hawaii), but soon discoveredthat it requires alternating wet and dry seasons. Unreliable rains and chilly winter nights contibuted to this plant finding California a nice place to visit but not quite home. A: PINEAPPLE Q: Growing thos crop was making California farmers buggy. That's beacause in order for this crop to thrive, a particular insect not native to California is necesarry for pollination. Since California didn't want to import these particular bugs, the farmers weren't able to grow this crop. A: COCOA Q: This crop oncew flourished in California, but the insurmountable obstacle was the absence of American machinery cable of seperating it's falx-like fibers, which are used on making fabrics and cordage. A: RAMIE Q: This crop's demise came about on part because it was too time consuming. This plant required intensive soil cultovation and weeding extensive patience and labor, well- ordered pruning,plus a warmer, ranier subtropical climate than California could provide. A: TEA Q: While this crop is popular with chefs, California's climate proved less that ideal for it to flourish in quantities large enough to be cometitive with other nations. A: GINGER Q: While many people start their day with a fresh cup of this crop, it was doomed to fail because its bushes require rainfall much heavier than a typical California summer season. Cold, heat and dry winds also con tribute to this crop's demise. A: COFFEE Q: When most people think of this product they usually think of Asia, but Mulgerry trees were planted on Riverside and elsewhere around 1870. The idea was to feed the leaves from the Mulberruy tree to silkworms, which would then create this end product. The idea failed in large part due to lack of irrigation facilities. A: SILK Q: This popular fruit was once grown commercially in California's rich soil. However, our climate was too dry, and the nights too cold to produce enough of the crop to compete with Latin American countries. A: BANANAS Q: This tasty crop was planted in Santa Barbara and the Santa Clara Valley during the 1870s with little success. Claus Spreckles began planting sugar beets as a subsitute for this tropical crop and by 1910 California was a leading producer of sugar beets. A: SUGAR CANE