Oct. 7, 2025—Unscientific research reveals Santa Cruz enjoys many claims to fame.
The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Steamer Lane surf. The UC Santa Cruz banana slugs.
The Henry Cowell State Park redwoods, the Mystery Spot’s gravitational pull, Jack O’Neill’s wetsuit invention, Santa Cruz Mountains wines, Santa Cruz Skateboards and Santa Cruz Bicycles—and The Lost Boys, too.
Yet Santa Cruz *farms* don’t rank among the top 20!
That feels weird.
The area’s farmers markets are the envy of the category.
Chefs from across the state swear by Monterey Bay Area produce.
And I’d say, if we passed around the truth serum, it’s what locals miss most when they move away—or at least ranks on the level with the other natural wonders of mountain and sea.
Also, if this year’s 12th annual Open Farm Tour is any indication, S.C. farms are as ready to blossom into the big time—while staying small—as they ever have been.
This year’s tours involve an unprecedented number of farms, and a bumper crop of featured activities therein.
Which is a beautiful development.
It’s also logistically demanding for organizer Penny Ellis.
“There’s so much going on, not just with the tours…” she says. “I can hardly keep up with new farms this year.”
She passes zero of that complexity to farm visitors.
The weekend arrives organized by 1) a handy interactive map—printable or interactive on your smartphone—and 2) a new two-part geographic sequence.
Saturday stays south, featuring (alphabetically) Blossom’s Farm, Dos Aguilas olive grove, Esperanza Community Farms, Live Earth Farm, Prevedelli Farm and Thomas Farm, with a bonus barbecue 11am-3pm at Luz Del Valle farm.
Sunday heads north for farms like Beeline Blooms, Flip Flop Farm, Homeless Garden Project, Pie Ranch, Post Street Farm, Rodoni Farms, Santa Cruz Permaculture and Swanton Berry Farm, with another 11am-3pm live-fire lunch at Sea To Sky Farm!
In other words, a ton of intriguing things to harvest.
The sticker price also proves helpful: $25 for a carful of up to five for the whole weekend.
It’s nice to take advantage for a multiple stop odyssey, but as Ellis points out, a visit to one or two farms unlocks plenty to experience across the five senses, a sixth or seventh included (imagination and inspiration).
“Every farm offers something unique—not just in what they grow, but in how they care for the land in harmony with nature and climate,” Ellis says. “We’re so lucky to live in a region with rich natural resources and a Mediterranean climate that supports such abundance.”
In 2025, the broad slate of farms is also offering more to enjoy than ever.
Some quick highlights include Post Street Farm, which is open year round, and (for the Farm Tours) evoking a Halloween theme with a walk-through tunnel and gourds molded in ghastly ways (kids activities are common from property to property).
Sea to Sky Farm will host Watsonville Taiko drummers 1-2pm Sunday in their redwood grove as part of event-long live music.
Farm Cat Marmalade will appear at both barbecue lunches with apricot-orange-saffron-type creations that helped the local label win Best in Division honors—for its Ukrainian Quince with Walnuts—at Santa Cruz County Fair, with all ingredients hailing from local organic farms like those on the map.
“Those are the things I look for,” Ellis says. “Items that express not just local identity, but creative personality.”
She goes onto add some earthy context.
“Good land stewardship is more important than ever, and giving the public a chance to meet our farming community and see their work firsthand is really special.”
And it’s gonna grow next year too, with additional stops in San Benito County.
“The goal is a sustainable—and regional—food system,” Ellis says. “The Farm Tour role in that works around giving people the opportunity to learn about how farmers use methods to grow things mindfully, without heavy chemicals, and with healthy microbes in the soil, and a lot of fun activities on top of it, getting outside with friends and family on the farm.”
To rephrase that more cinematically, look out Lost Boys. This farm thing is growing its fame from the ground up.
More at openfarmtours.com.
About the author
Mark C. Anderson, Edible Monterey Bay's managing editor, appears on "Friday Found Treasures" via KRML 94.7 every week, a little after 12pm noon. Reach him via mark@ediblemontereybay.com.
