O’Neill: Harvest begins Sunday, and we’ll start in the dark before sun can touch the herb

Casey O’Neill is a farmer and owner of Happy Day Farms in Laytonville, Calif. The opinions expressed in this column do not necessarily reflect the views of The Mendocino Voice. If you’d like to write your own column for The Mendocino Voice, send your idea to info@mendovoice.com.

It has begun. The first day of harvest is one of the best days of the year, although it’s outdone by the last day of harvest. Tomorrow morning we’ll be in the garden by 5:30, clippers flashing in the light of the headlamps as we work our way down the row. As the day begins, the full totes flow from the garden to the barn where the branches are hung to dry. We leave them intact so that the water leaves slow the drying process down and wrap a cocoon around the flowers, sheltering them for their time-curing in totes until they are bucked off the stems and readied for market.