While first-time visitors attending the cavernous and well-known Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in the California desert mid-April might have been fooled by the stormy weather, residents knew it was a mirage. High winds and rains had many different media outlets discussing the poor weather that accompanied the festival, but this year’s real story for the crops that originate from this desert oasis is the near-perfect growing conditions for the past several months.

At The Table Public Relations, formerly Sahlman Williams Public Relations & Marketing, has officially been renamed. The new name and logo/brandmark reflect the firm's nearly 30-year commitment to food-related public relations and marketing._

Homegrown Organic Farms in Porterville, CA, has “a full offering of stone fruit, starting with apricots, moving on to Pluots, peaches both white and yellow, nectarines, red plums, black plums and a few green plums,” said Stephen Paul, stone fruit category sales manager, who joined the company in October.

REEDLEY, CA — For Family Tree Farms Marketing LLC, here, the year 2012 “is going to be another year with more proprietary varieties coming out,” said Don Goforth, marketing director for the family-owned company that has built its reputation largely by focusing on fruit varieties that are “something special.”

This year, said Mr. Goforth, “I believe there are three brand new white nectarines coming out” as well as two or three new Plumcot varieties and two new Apriums.

Stockton, CA-based Grower Direct LLC will once again see an increase in volume in its proprietary Monster Cot apricot program this year, according to Don Walters, a founding partner of the company.

Monster Cot is a trademark name for a family of proprietary licensed varieties with similar characteristics. Named for their large size, they also have good color and great flavor, according to Mr. Walters. This will be the company’s sixth season with the variety.

Blossom Hill Packing-Lucich Santos Farms in Patterson, CA, a four-generation family business that, according to the company web site, has specialized in apricots for the past 35 years, continues with the practices that have made it successful, while staying current with new developments in the market and industry.