BROWNSVILLE — It was cool and overcast during the recent harvest of a 12-acre field of artichokes being grown by MO Produce LLC in Rancho Viejo, near Brownsville.
As the workers methodically harvested the fist-size globes from the tops of plants, Mike Ortiz, one of the operation’s owners, oversaw the harvest and inspected the rest of the crop.
“This is our fifth year for growing artichokes here in the Rio Grande Valley and we’ve had good success with them so far, especially with help from the Texas A&M Research and Extension Center in Uvalde,” said Ortiz, who has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural development from Texas A&M University.
While more than 95 percent of U.S. artichoke production is currently in California, Ortiz and his business partner, Jed Murray, himself a California ‘transplant’ to the Lower Rio Grande Valley, have been giving the artichoke a home where the armadillo and roadrunner roam.
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