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D.E. Boldt, a 5th Generation Family Farm
There are very few things more satisfying in the heat of Sacramento’s summer than biting into a sweet, juicy peach. Then when you take a moment to appreciate the time and effort that went into producing it, the peach gets even tastier! The Co-op’s long history of supporting local growers gives our shoppers the opportunity to get to know the people and stories behind our food. We source our stone fruit from several different farms, but the bulk of it comes from D.E. Boldt in Parlier, southeast of Fresno. This family farm is now in its fifth generation and grows 50 different varieties of peaches, plums, nectarines, and a few crosses: pluots, a white fleshed necta-plum and even a fuzzy pea-cot-um.
In 1913, Reinhold Ewy along with his mother and siblings spent a week in a horse and buggy looking for a farm to buy and toured a number of parcels for sale, but none of them felt quite right. His realtor was reluctant to show him a piece of land growing tall weeds, but when Reinhold saw it, he was delighted! He knew that if the land was fertile enough to grow those weeds, it would be able to grow anything.
Generations later, the family can attest to how prolific the land has been! Reinhold’s great granddaughter, Dorothy Boldt loves the sun on her cheeks and her hands in the rich earth. She has gotten comfortable in the rhythms of life on a small family farm where seasons blend into generations. On the farm, the old stands with the new and the family is touched daily by a continuity between the past and the future.
Dorothy’s sons Nick, Peter and Alex have gone back to run the farm. While their peers have secured corporate jobs, they are spending lunches with Dorothy and their dad David to learn what it takes to meet the daily challenges of caring for the fruit trees on 130 acres of land. Their hope is to chart the vision for remaining sustainable and successfully passing the farm on to the next generation.
Last summer we saw dozens of different varieties of stone fruit from D.E. Boldt and sold thousands of pounds. We’re now in the heat of summer and new varieties are coming every week!
Recently, the D.E. Boldt family joined us on the Co-op Scoop podcast to talk about the history of their farm, how they harvest stone fruit, what growing organic means to them and how they are adapting to the future of farming in the face of climate change and the water shortage.
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