Royal Tioga and M-206
Frederick and I arrived at a large office building situated in the middle of the farm, where the irrigation pipes were currently being maintained. It was a place that served as a hub for various farm operations, a maintenance shop for machinery, and a resting area for the workers. Chloe and Brandon were there as well.
“You’re changing the varieties right away? No way!”
Before I could even properly bring up the subject, Brandon raised his voice in protest.
“I’m just trying to hear him out.”
“We spent a fortune plowing the land and installing the irrigation system! What if something goes wrong after we switch the varieties? There’s no turning back once we do that!”
“I know. That’s why I’m listening to him.”
Brandon’s face turned as red as if he’d downed a bottle of wine, his nostrils flaring as he snapped at me.
“How much does it cost to change the varieties?”
“Hmm... If you replace everything, it would cost at least 2 million dollars. That’s a conservative estimate, so it could go higher.”
“Did you hear that! 2 million dollars! That’s about the same as our annual revenue!”
Frederick spoke calmly to the agitated Brandon.
“We earn much more than that.”
“Still, it’s a huge amount...”
At that moment, Chloe, who had been glaring at us with her arms crossed, shouted.
“Just shut up for a second! He’s not saying he’ll definitely do it; he’s just saying he’ll listen to the proposal!”
“You shut up, too!”
As the siblings started to bicker again, Frederick shouted with a stern expression.
“Enough!”
“......”
“......”
“This is my decision. And Brandon, you have the walnut orchard. You have no say over the cherry farm. Just as Chloe can’t tell you what to do with your walnut trees.”
“But still...”
“Shh...!”
Frederick furrowed his brow, and Brandon, who looked just like him, quietly shut his mouth and sat down. Once it became quiet, Frederick turned his head toward me.
I offered an awkward smile at his slightly apologetic expression and began to speak.
“Before I talk about the three varieties I mentioned earlier, let me explain why the Bing cherries currently grown at Harris Farm are problematic. First, the harvest period is late. They are harvested from late May to early June. The problem is that cherry prices are highest in early May due to scarcity. Once Bing cherries hit the market in large quantities, you can’t get a high price for them.”
“That’s true.”
“Second, there’s a lack of quality uniformity. There’s also a variance in sugar content.”
At this point, Chloe asked.
“But you said we could fix that with seasonal fertilizers and moisture management.”
“That’s right, you can. But there’s a limit to the variety itself. Basically, Bing cherries have a tendency to crack easily in the rain or in overly humid conditions.”
“Oh...”
“Third, the flesh is relatively soft, which makes them disadvantageous for long-distance transport and poor for cold storage, making it difficult to ship them far. As a result, they are mainly consumed within the U.S., and it’s hard to find a larger customer base, which keeps wholesale prices from rising.”
Frederick nodded in agreement. Since I was telling him exactly what he had felt while distributing Bing cherries all these years, it was bound to be persuasive.
“As I said before, proper fertilization and moisture control should come before replacing the varieties. That alone would be quite effective. But if you go beyond that and change the varieties, a whole new world will open up. That ‘new world’ refers to new consumers.”
“You mean more customers?”
“Exactly. The first variety is Coral Champagne, which you’re probably familiar with.”
“Yes, I know it well. Coral is the main variety in the Central Valley.”
“Right. This variety has a very early harvest time. You can harvest by mid-May, or late May at the latest, so being able to put them on the market first is a huge advantage. You know that in the early market, demand always exceeds supply, so prices are two to three times higher.”
“Of course, I know that well.”
“Also, the taste is soft and sweet with just the right amount of acidity, so customers love the fresh sensation. It’s great on its own, and it also pairs well with salads or desserts.”
Frederick nodded slightly, and I immediately moved on to the second one.
“The second is Royal Tioga. This one isn’t well-known, but Zaiger Genetics is promoting it for distribution to farms now as part of their breeding program.”
“Ah... right, I’ve heard of it!”
“But you ignored it, didn’t you?”
“Ahem... I wasn’t sure about it. I couldn’t be the one to lead the experiment.”
“That’s understandable. But Royal is a variety with clear advantages. It’s harvested slightly later than Coral, around early to mid-June. It’s harvested around the same time as Bing cherries, but the flesh is firm and the sugar content is high, so it’s strong in transport and has an edge in fresh distribution. The color is a vibrant red, so it looks great, too. It’s suitable for export, and the price range stays more stable compared to Coral. It even reaches 21 Brix in sugar content, making it the sweetest. Of course, that’s according to Zaiger’s explanation. Personally, I think it’s reliable.”
This Royal Tioga would later become a staple variety in the California cherry market, along with Royal Hazel and Royal Lynn.
“Oho...”
“The last one is Sweetheart, developed in Canada. It has the latest harvest time, in early July. So, if you sequence them from Coral to Royal Tioga to Sweetheart, you can stagger the harvest for nearly two months, from mid-May to early July. If the harvest period is extended, you don’t have to rush to hire workers all at once, and you have the advantage of continuous supply to the market. However, since its sugar content and flavor are less distinct than Coral or Royal, it’s a supplementary variety for risk diversification.”
“I see.”
I stopped talking and watched Frederick’s reaction. He was staring at the floor, deep in thought, and Brandon was watching his father intently. It was obvious he was hoping his father wouldn’t change the varieties.
“So, you’re saying growing all three at once is to minimize risk and maximize profit?”
“Exactly. A ratio of about 3:5:2? The strategy is to make Royal Tioga 50% of the crop and lead with a premium variety to maximize revenue.”
In truth, from my perspective, it would be best if Frederick invested boldly and completely changed the nature of the farm. I knew that would mean a massive increase in income for me. However, because the burden on Frederick would be too great, I hadn’t pushed it too aggressively.
“Hmm... Staggering the harvest time would certainly reduce climate risk and labor pressure. Above all, it would be much more stable against price fluctuations than relying solely on the Bing cherry variety.”
“That’s correct.”
“And what about you? If we change the varieties like this, there must be some benefits for making wine, right?”
“Anything would be better than Bing cherries, but if you’re looking for the most suitable one, I’d say it’s Royal Tioga. Well, you can decide that later.”
Frederick moistened his lips with his tongue. What was revealed in his eyes wasn’t hesitation, but intense desire.
“...In theory, it’s perfect.”
“It’s not just perfect in theory. Coral and Sweetheart have been proven in real-world cases, not just theory. It’s in the UC Davis research data, and there are already successful farms in other regions. However, if we introduce Royal Tioga and try it first, we could become the most profitable farm in Brentwood.”
Frederick bit his lip and gave a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.
“So, all of this will cost an additional 2 million dollars?”
“Well... there are several ways to go about it.”
“But it will take at least 5 years, right?”
“That’s true. And this is where it gets important... If you’re going to change the varieties, I recommend topworking (grafting) rather than buying saplings.”
“Topworking...? Hmm...”
“If you bring in saplings to grow from scratch for 5 years, there’s no income for 5 years.”
“That’s what I’m worried about, too. But it’s the most stable method.”
“True. In the case of Coral or Sweetheart, they are already being grown elsewhere, so you can get 2-3 year old saplings. They’re a bit expensive, though... But if you do that, the 5-year period can be shortened to about 3 years. The problem is, as I said, it’s very expensive. You’d really have to consider over 2 million dollars.”
“In that sense, grafting is definitely cheaper.”
Frederick, who had farmed for a long time, had naturally experienced grafting, so the conversation wasn’t difficult.
“With topworking, I can’t guarantee it, but it should be possible at about one-ninth to one-eighth the cost of buying saplings. Maybe 250,000 dollars at most, 400,000 dollars? And the better part is that the first commercial harvest is a year earlier. It’s 3 years faster than planting new saplings.”
The reason the cost difference was so large was that buying branches was much cheaper than buying saplings. Even adding labor costs and royalties, it would cost at most 1,500 dollars per acre, so 300,000 dollars would be enough to cover all 200 acres.
“See! It’s possible to do it much cheaper!”
Chloe jumped up and shouted at Brandon as if she had won. Brandon turned his head away as if he didn’t want to hear it.
On the other hand, Frederick’s mouth watered because he could completely replace the farm’s varieties in a short period without a major loss in revenue.
“It would be different from buying scions (branches) from a nursery, wouldn’t it, with Zaiger Genetics?”
“Right. You’d have to sign a trial cultivation contract with Zaiger Genetics. There would be license and contract fees, but it would be cheaper than buying scions from a nursery.”
“Hmm... So, if we use topworking, we can change all 200 acres for around 300,000 dollars?”
“Exactly. But topworking has the disadvantage that failures occur occasionally and there is a risk of pests, so you have to pay close attention.”
“Wouldn’t Chloe work hard at that?”
At Frederick’s words, Chloe’s eyes wavered slightly, but she soon straightened her shoulders with confidence.
“Just leave it to me.”
“...... Well, anyway, since it takes 2-3 years to generate commercial revenue, it seems best to change it over 3 years.”
“I don’t intend to change it all at once, either.”
“Still, one piece of good news is that since this is the first large-scale introduction of the variety to Zaiger Genetics, maybe we can negotiate the price?”
“Haha, you... I can’t believe a twenty-year-old is saying things like this. ... Fine. I’ll check if we can get the saplings. I’ll look into Zaiger, too.”
I hadn’t expected him to decide right then and there, so I asked with a curious expression.
“You can take your time to decide. Or is it because of that Mr. William Hartford?”
At the mention of William, Chloe frowned deeply.
“Is that pig asking to combine our cherries again?”
“You know him well?”
“Of course. William’s Hartford Farms keeps driving down the unit price with their volume. But the quality isn’t that good. Our cherries are better. So he keeps trying to mix our cherries with his to put them on the market.”
I looked at Frederick.
“Is that so?”
“That’s right. I distribute our farm’s cherries separately, and because of that, retailers sometimes pay a little more for our cherries. From William’s perspective, our farm must be an eyesore. That’s why he’s pushing like that.”
“Ah... so that’s why...”
I had wondered why they looked so sour when talking about William, and it seemed there was a reason.
“Knowing that your father is working this hard, you haven’t been paying attention to the cherry farm?”
Chloe’s eyes wavered, and she said in a small voice.
“No, I know, but... there’s nothing I can do... and cherries are Dad’s thing...”
“Ha, I can understand why you were considering selling the farm, sir.”
Frederick looked touched.
“As expected, you understand my heart. How many times have I said things like this? Whenever I tell them these things, they just get angry, and when I ask them to help with the work, they always make excuses.”
“Tsk tsk tsk...”
The two siblings turned their heads away as the conversation turned against them.
“Anyway, I’m rooting for you, sir.”
“You’re much better than my own children. Sigh...”
Frederick shook his head as he looked at his children, who had quietly turned away.