FRUITED PLAINS RETURNING TO VALLEY.

Byline: Charles F. Bostwick Staff Writer

LITTLEROCK - Richard Youngblood grew up on a cattle ranch in Newhall and dairies in the San Joaquin Valley in the 1950s. After a career in aerospace, he's again farming, part of the persistent - and expanding - agriculture industry in the Antelope Valley.

Youngblood, who retired from Northrop Grumman in 1995 and has operated a fruit ranch for 20 years, grows peaches, apples and other fruit to sell at the burgeoning farmers market circuit around Southern California and to city dwellers who come to his orchards to pick fruit right off his trees.

``The farming's in my blood,'' explained Youngblood, 62.

Although primarily noted for its aerospace industry, the Antelope Valley still has a significant agriculture industry. Irrigated by water imported through the California Aqueduct or pumped from wells, the desert produces alfalfa - the crop that gave the valley its annual fair - as well as carrots, onions, potatoes, peaches, livestock and vineyards.

Youngblood's 15 acres with 2,000 trees are among more than 12,000 acres farmed in the Antelope Valley as of 2002, the last year for which Los Angeles County statistics were available.

In Littlerock, commercial orchards have expanded in recent years, but there are fewer small growers, Youngblood said. Where 20 years ago Littlerock had 15 or 20 ``u-pick'' orchards that let people come in to pick fruit - like the dozens of Leona Valley cherry orchards do every June - now there are only four, Youngblood said.

Youngblood's orchard survived by going into direct marketing. He started selling his Youngblood Farms fruits eight years ago at farmers markets in places like Ventura, Torrance, San Dimas and Montrose.

``I've got varieties coming off in July, and they go all the way through to November,'' he said. Part of his orchard he still opens in mid-August for people to pick peaches and apples.

Farmers markets are growing in popularity because people can taste the difference from supermarket fruit, which commonly is picked early to last through the shipping, he said.

``In the stores, they have to pick real green so you don't have the sugar content. It's not ripe. If you leave it on the tree, that's where the sugar content comes in,'' Youngblood said. ``There's a big difference.''

Charles F. Bostwick, [phone]

chuck.bostwick(at)dailynews.com

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2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- 2 -- color in AV edition only) Peach and nectarine trees, top, line the land on Youngblood Farms in Littlerock, where Richard Youngblood, above, tends to the young bloosoms.

Jeff Goldwater/Staff Photographer