Farming

The Sikes and their neighbors became founders of a community of pioneer  farmers that settled the former Rancho San Bernardo in the 1870s. They  developed the region into productive agricultural lands that supported a rural  society. Settlement of this agricultural area was critical to the infant city of San  Diego. Farmers were desperately needed to feed the expanding urban  population and provide markets for local business.  

Farmers in the region prospered largely as a result of grain cultivation. During  initial settlement, pioneer farmers needed a product that could be quickly and  cheaply produced. Grains could be planted quickly with little initial investment  and offered a quick cash return at the end of the season.  

Wheat was first planted on a large scale in the Central Valley during the late  1860s. It became the largest and most profitable crop in California between  1860 and 1893. California winter wheat quickly gained the reputation as  premium wheat by millers in England, Ireland, and parts of Europe by the 1870s.  Known abroad as “California white velvet”, the wheat was harvested in the  summer and could be shipped thousands of miles with little degradation. The  quality was unusually hard and dry, making it suitable for long maritime transport  around Cape Horn.