Sonoma Valley Harvest

We were awakened early this morning (it was still dark) by what sounded like rocks being dumped out of the back of a metal dump truck. The sound reverberated across the creek from the vineyard on the hill opposite us like a series of explosions. Although we never saw what it was, I expect it was less than quiet metal bins of grapes being hauled along bumpy roads. Most places now use lighter, quieter plastic bins like the white ones that can be seen stacked in the center left of today's picture.

Truckloads of these bins are a common sight around here this time of year as the harvest is now in full swing. We drove out past "winery row" on Highway 12 to have lunch at VJB Cellars, and visit the Figone olive oil tasting room, but VJB was full of tippling tourists, so we stopped at a burger place (a self styled a "gastro pub") in Kenwood Villiage and ate an excellent burger at a patio table with a view of the hills and the vineyards at their feet.

Both of us have been doing battle with the spiky plants in the garden. OilMan has spent days trying to destroy the mealy bugs that are decimating our "hens and chicks" succulents in the front of the house, and finally ran up against the ones that are growing under the giant agave there. He said he "bled all over his watch" when an agave attacked him as he tried to remove the succulents underneath it.

In my attempt to cut back the leucodendrons on our back slope, I cut off some dead fronds from some innocent (not!) cycads growing nearby. They have hook shaped spines that quickly hooked into my forearm as I attempted to throw them onto the compost pile. Somebody needs to give both of us elbow length leather gauntlets for Christmas….