FARMERS SEE FRUIT OF THEIR LABORS RUINED OCTOBER WILDFIRES RAVAGED MANY LOCAL RANCHES' CROPS.

Byline: Rachel Uranga Staff Writer

MOORPARK- From her kitchen window, Ann Ikeda sees 20 years of hard work blackened, thousands of dollars lost and the next years of her life a bit more uncertain.

Twenty acres of her 24-acre avocado grove were charred in October's Simi Valley fire, and the fruit trees, which can take five years to mature, are mostly destroyed.

``You wait and hope that some will come back, but we don't expect to see fruit sitting on the trees until 2005,'' Ikeda said.

The blaze that swept through Ventura County destroyed an estimated 5 percent to 7 percent of the local avocado crop, much of it in Somis and Moorpark, and cost local farmers millions. Avocados - the county's fifth-largest crop - were hit harder than any other crop, said David Buettner, deputy agricultural commissioner for the Ventura County Agricultural Commissioner's Office.

In all, Ventura County experienced $10.9 million in crop destruction. The fire, which lasted less than a week, will stay with the handful of avocado growers for years to come.

``We lost four and five million out of $384 million (in crops) but it's devastating to the guy who got all his trees burned,'' said Robert Gloeckler, a district manager for Calavo growers who oversees production and marketing of avocados for 279 growers in eastern Ventura and Los Angeles counties.

Many of the farmers will not see fruit on the charred trees for three years, and will not even know if the trees survived until the spring, after they have had time to recover.

``There were four or five us that got hit. We don't know what we are going to do yet,'' said Steve Shehyn, a 13-year farmer whose 21-acre avocado grove is not far from Ikeda's.

``This was going to be a great year for us, with twice the fruit load. Now most of it is all on the ground. What's left in the trees is barbecued,'' he said. ``It's a wait-and-see situation.''

It takes 10 years for an avocado tree to reach full production, said Larry Rose, sales manager of the 30-acre Brokaw Nursery in Saticoy. Come spring, many of the growers looking to replant may have a hard time finding tree replacements. Orders are usually put in months in advance and can take years for nurseries to deliver, he said. Brokaw is now taking orders for 2005.

``It's going to be frustrating,'' said David Schwabauer, who owns Leavens Ranch in Moorpark, where 20 of 700 acres were burned.

``The big question is waiting to see which trees do and don't die,'' he said. ``It's going to hurt, but it's not going to stop us. We have been farming since early '60s.''

Rachel Uranga, [phone]

rachel.uranga(at)dailynews.com

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3 photos

Photo:

(1) Owner David Schwabauer walks by charred lemon trees as well as some healthier specimens at Leavens Ranch in Moorpark on Friday.

(2 -- 3) Leavens Ranch owner David Schwabauer stands near avocado trees, left, scorched in the wildfire on his land in Moorpark. At right, he surveys the area near some burned lemons still hanging from a tree. He said he's waiting to see which trees will survive the effects of the blaze.

Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer