It Is Important to Be Aware of Harvest Equipment In Action –
A tub was being raised up to empty 7 tons of cooked mint slugs onto a field.
The ground had a slight rise to it. And then around 8:30 a.m. a worst case
scenario happened
Help Arrived And There Were more Questions Than Answers –
The tub fell over twisting the truck frame with it. Tulelake Irrigation District
sent a crane over to help. Question one was where to position the crane?
Question two was how to separate tub and truck?
The Task At hand Is Not To Make Things Worse –
Due to fire conditions the two couldn’t cut apart with a torch. The crane
was moved for better leverage. Another truck with a powerful wench arrived.
The worst case scenario would be someone getting injured.
Safety First In A Basic Farming Principal –
A second large crane arrives. The two cranes allow control of tub movement
in multiple directions. It took 2 cranes and 2 winches to put the tub on
its own feet. Just another day farming where no got hurt. Thank you!
Tulelake Potatoes
Tule Lake Basin potatoes are famous around the world. An acquaintance of Anders emailed, in the late 2000’s, that a Chilean potato shed office computer’s screen-saver displayed a anderstomlinson.com/tule-lake/ Tulelake potato harvest image. It is indeed a small world and potatoes have become an integral part of the global food supply. It is the world’s fourth-largest food crop, following maize, wheat and rice.
Tulelake Grain
Grain is cut by the header and kernels are separated and up to 5 tons stored in the combine. Chaff is sent flying out the back. These harvest photos are from the 2005. On average a grain crop may take four months from planting to harvest.
Tulelake wheat and barley have the best yield per acre in the western United States.
Tulelake Mint
The Tule Lake Basin is one of two places in California where peppermint is grown. Tulelake Peppermint is well known for its consistent flavor and excellent quality. Warm days, cool nights, rich volcanic soil and talented farmers all factor into the production quality.
Tulelake Alfalfa
Tule Lake Basin alfalfa is known for its excellent nutritional value. There are over 60,000 acres of hay, alfalfa and grass varieties, in the Upper Klamath Basin. Haying, on average, takes place from June 1 through Oct. 15. Of course, harvest timing is is related to weather conditions throughout the season.
Tulelake Onions
The last crop to be harvested in the Tule Lake Basin is usually onions. As late as mid-November trucks with Tulelake onions can be a daily parade down Hwy. 97 to Hwy. 5 south. Drivers take their trailers to Sacramento. There, drivers coming from Gilroy trade trailers and take the onions south for processing.
Tulelake Horseradish
Tulelake is known as the “Horseradish Capital of the World” and accounts for a third or more of the nation’s production. Some local fields have been in continuous horseradish production for 25 years. Horseradish has been cultivated for at least 3,000 years.
©2014 Anders Tomlinson, all rights reserved.
