Brokaw Ranch Company grows most of its avocados and subtropical fruits, as well as all of its citrus, in Santa Paula, California. Santa Paula’s close proximity to the ocean helps mitigate extreme high and low temperatures, making it an ideal location for avocado cultivation. The same holds true for guavas, lychees and passion fruit, which would not thrive in the more extreme hot and cold conditions of inland California.
Additionally, some of the avocados and all of the kiwis are grown in Soledad, California. Though slightly more inland, the area benefits from a steady, northern Monterey County ocean breeze, resulting in excellent-quality fruit.
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Our History
My parents, Ellen and Hank Brokaw, are icons in the California avocado industry. Starting in the nursery business in the 1950s, Brokaw Nursery became the first large-scale avocado tree producer during the 1970s “avocadoization” of California.
Through innovation in nursery production techniques and contributions to numerous production method and fruit variety patents, they brought their problem-solving spirit to growing fruit when they developed the Soledad Ranch in 1967.
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Growing Techniques
As ranchers, Brokaw Ranch Company is highly aware of limited growing space and water, as well as the need to meet a minimum productivity threshold to remain profitable. With this in mind, their approach to sustainability involves applying specific management strategies, specialized growing techniques, and skilled labor to maximize high-quality fruit production while minimizing acreage, water, and fertilizer inputs.
Some of the most innovative growing practices—such as dense plantings, girdling, and specialized pruning methods—have been developed in Chile. Over the past couple of decades, Brokaw Ranch Company has regularly hosted Chilean orchard consultants for ranch visits and has sent staff members to Chile for training.
These efforts have led to significant success in achieving both productivity and sustainability goals.
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MODERN AVOCADO FARMING TECHNIQUES
BROKAW RANCH COMPANY FRUITS
Brokaw Ranch Company farms in both Santa Paula, located in coastal Southern California, and Soledad, on California’s Central Coast. Unlike the inland San Joaquin Valley, both Santa Paula and Soledad are close to the ocean, benefiting from its mitigating effect on temperature extremes. As a result, both regions are ideal for subtropical tree fruit production.
Subtropical tree fruits are typically non-deciduous, meaning they do not lose their leaves in the winter like stone fruits, apples, and grapes. Avocados, citrus, and more exotic fruit trees—such as mangos, lychees, and cherimoyas—fall into this category. Successful production of avocados and other exotic fruit trees is limited to California’s Central and South Coasts, as they cannot survive or remain sufficiently productive in the extreme temperatures of inland regions.
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AVOCADOSCITRUSSUBTROPICAL FRUITS