Fruits of labor

During fall at Otow Orchard in Granite Bay, the colors of the season are vibrant with the ripening persimmons and citrus on trees laden with fruit.It's a busy season for the family — not only running the popular farm stand but creating the sweet delicacy known as hoshigaki.Hoshigaki, an ancient Japanese art, is a labor-intensive undertaking for Tosh and Chris Otow Kuratomi, with help from daughter-in-law Christy Kuratomi.The month-to-six weeks process begins with picking the fruit at just the right time and then choosing the ones that will work best."They must be hard enough to peel and not too big or too small," Christy said.On a mid-November day, she was busy peeling persimmons, carefully attaching a string to each one, then placing them on an outdoor drying rack.For the first few days, each persimmon has to be massaged frequently to soften the fruit."They form a second layer and a kind of leathering," she said. "That's when it is time to move them to an inside room."The massaging continues indoors, but on a less frequent basis, until the bright orange color fades to gray with a sheen of white. That's the sugar coming to the surface, Tosh Kuratomi explained. During the drying process, there's a lot of care to avoid mold."(Each piece of hanging fruit) can't touch anything, not even the string. So that requires more space," he said.Kuratomi learned the art from his grandfather and has been making hoshigaki since the 1970s."(My grandfather) would leave it up until the sugar stated to show and (the fruit) was very hard," he said.Kuratomi has adopted a different style — a soft product. "Like a nice soft raisin," he said.The Kuratomis sell some of the hoshigaki at the farm stand but most of it is shipped through the website to customers all across the United States.He estimates they create about 800 pounds of hoshigaki in a season."More than 300 pounds have already been ordered," he said.There are several types of persimmon trees in the orchard, among them Fuyu (apple), Hachiya (soft), Hyakume (vodka) and Maru (chocolate).Hachiya are the most frequent choice for hoshigaki, Christy said.In addition to hoshigaki and fresh persimmons, the fall and winter produce at Otow Orchard includes Asian pears, pomegranates, mandarins, walnuts, chestnuts and winter squash. In mid-December, the oranges and lemons are ready for harvest. There are eggs from a nearby farms. Bottled honey is from hives in the orchard, as well as from a Beal's Point beekeeper.Customers can also purchase Christy Kuratomi's handmade Calendula lip balm and salve.Everything grown at Otow Orchards is pesticide free — no sprays or chemicals, Kuratomi said.According to the website, the land has been in the family since Kitchitaro Kawano and his wife, Momi, purchased it in 1911. After Kitchitaro's death, Momi and daughter, Helen, took charge. When Helen married Seiichi Otow, the couple continued the stewardship of the acreage, bringing it back into production after World War II. Now a widow, Helen Otow still lovingly watches over her land as her son and daughter-in-law handle the day-to-day management.