As early as 1853, almonds of European origin were being planted in California. Many of these early varieties struggled to bear fruit regularly due to incompatibility with the local climate. As a result, most almond trees began to be grafted over into prune or plum trees, as those trees were better adapted to the climate.

By the 1880s, local varieties of almonds became widely available. At the 1886 Citrus Fair in Sacramento, the Nonpareil and Ne Plus Ultra varieties were first shown. To this day, the Nonpareil variety is dominant in California, with the Ne Plus Ultra variety also remaining popular.

Thanks to the widespread availability of new and adapted almond varieties, production steadily increased. In 1888, statewide production was 250 tons; by 1914, it had reached 2,250 tons; by 1919, 4,600 tons. Between 1935 and 1960, increased irrigation led to the average yield of an orchard more than tripling. Almond harvesting practices changed as the process became increasingly mechanized.

Between 1950 and 1970, the main regions of almond production shifted towards the San Joaquin Valley, away from the Sacramento Valley and coast. The popularity of almonds in the San Joaquin Valley is in part due to its relatively dry conditions and warmer weather. In 2016, Fresno, Kern, Madera, Merced, and Stanislaus counties produced two-thirds of California’s almonds.

From 1964 to 1985, the amount of almond acreage in California quadrupled, from 100,000 acres to 400,000 acres. After stabilizing for the next decade, acreage once more began to increase. In 2011, California had 760,000 acres of almond-bearing orchards, combining to produce over 2 billion pounds of almonds, which accounted, at the time, of 84% of global production.

All information sourced from “Almond Production in California” by Daniel Geisseler and William R. Horwath, of the University of California, Davis.