The Blossom Trail is in full bloom and Fresno County Farm Bureau CEO Ryan Jacobsen says now is the time to take advantage of the beauty that many travel hundreds, if not thousands of miles, to see.
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"We got tens of millions of trees blooming here in the Valley right now. It's the largest pollination event on earth with all the different things going on, so it's absolutely amazing. Typically you have a more spread-out, exaggerated type of bloom, but this year it's been all everything at one given time," he said.
Unseasonably warm temperatures meant early blooms, but it's next week's cooldown that has growers taking action to protect their crop.
Jacobsen says, "These blossoms are extraordinarily delicate and not only that, we have the small fruit that's already been set beneath it that's sensitive to those cold temps."
Growers are preparing for the potential of below-freezing temperatures in portions of rural Fresno County, next week.
Jacobsen says protecting his almond orchard is far different from using the large fans citrus growers use.
He says, "Our only method of protection comes from groundwater. We can put groundwater in the field, which releases that heat and buys us 1 - 3 degrees."
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He says that may not seem like a lot, but it can be the difference to take temperatures above that 32-degree marker, adding it will vary by individual field.
Because of our dry winter, fields are more susceptible to be impacted by cold temperatures.
As for what's blooming, the trail does more than attract visitors to Eastern Fresno County.
Jacobsen says, "We get to enjoy the beauty right now, but for the Valley and Valley farmers, it's economic activity. This is this year's crop that's in preparation."