Garlic is believed to have originated in the mountainous Central Asian region and spread throughout the world. Average crop yields are 8,000 to 10,000 pounds per acre. Jimmy Hirasaki was the first to grow garlic commercially in the 1920s and became one of the largest growers. Joe Gubser Sr. was known for expertise in growing garlic and water conservation, and his son Joseph Jr. expanded the business by marketing garlic worldwide. Christopher Ranch produces the largest supply of fresh garlic in the United States. Don Christopher, carrying on his grandfather’s farming traditions, began by planting garlic on 10 of the 130 acres at Christopher Ranch in 1955, and by 1963 the company grew, packed, shipped, and sold its own garlic. Christopher Ranch was the first company to peel garlic commercially and offered many jarred products sold worldwide. Garlic bulbs are harvested when the lower leaves turn yellow and show signs of dryness, then air dried in the fields for a few weeks before being packed for market. Christopher Ranch now manages over 4,000 acres of garlic and row crops and, using sustainable farming practices, grows, packs, and ships over 70 million pounds of fresh California garlic annually. The Gilroy Garlic Festival began in 1979 as the idea of Don Christopher, Val Filice, and Dr. Rudy Malone, and became a world-renowned food and entertainment festival. More than 4,000 Gilroy citizens volunteer to host it, and it draws over 100,000 visitors for three days every July, with Gourmet Alley at its heart and pyro chefs staging a flame-up show.