The giant geometric pattern carved into a hillside at Point Reyes Vineyards was indeed designed by a near-supernatural force: Chris Hulls. Last week, the mysterious agro-glyph appeared in the field, prompting speculation about alien visitors. But the connected loops and rectangles are just part of a planting project, according to the tech entrepreneur and founder of the Point Reyes Good Luck Fund who purchased the winery on Highway 1 with a small group of investor friends. “This is an image that has been in my head since I was a kid,” he wrote last week. It’s the logo of his Life360 app, and he described it as “a nod to something familiar, and also just a way of thinking about the winding paths people take through life and how time unfolds.” When trees are planted, “it will look like a grove.”
This is the spring that thinks it must be summer. After the hot spell that sent plants into an early avalanche of bloom, seed collection is underway at Larner Seeds in Bolinas. The early surge of seeds means that interns may be hired to help, said Eli Likover, the nursery’s general manager. “The ranunculus is ready. Claytonia is ready. Limnanthes is ready,” he said. Is it too late to germinate wildflowers? Not necessarily, especially with the recent rains. A rule of thumb: The later the blooming period, the later you can sow seeds. There’s still time for species like grand linanthus, desert bluebells and bird’s-eyes gilia. If timed right, the advantage of a late sow is that seedlings arrive just as slugs begin to vanish.
Crops are finishing up faster than expected at Marin Roots Farm in Hicks Valley. Pea shoots are being picked now, whereas they usually last until Mother’s Day, and harvesting is underway for green garlic and onions. “We are trying to pivot with this warm early weather. Things are getting pushed faster,” said co-owner Moira Kuhn. The warming soil means that summer crops can get started. Squash seeds are being planted, and tomato seedlings are in the ground. The unseasonable weather has also brought more insects to the farm’s 15 acres. This is a challenge, because the organic farm doesn’t use pesticides. “We just have to try to get through it and hope that the damage won’t be too much,” Kuhn said.