Grow America's Best Fruit
By Doreen G. Howard
Only fruit growers and their lucky friends get to enjoy the sublime flavors of succulent, tree-ripened fruit. When compared to bland supermarket fare, just one bite into a homegrown, richly perfumed "Forelles' pear or 'Sweet Sixteen' apple, with its sweet, anise essence can turn a fruit lover into an ardent fruit grower. A group of fruit enthusiasts, known as the North American Fruit Explorers, paired up with MOTHER to share their favorite fruits—and growing tips—on the following pages. Read on, and learn how you can grow the most flavorful fruit in your own orchard.
Destined for supermarket bins, commercially grown fruit varieties are selected primarily for their appearance and their shipping and storing qualities: Flavor often becomes secondary. Peaches, plums and apricots are picked before they're ripe, so they don't bruise during shipping. When these soft-fleshed fruits eventually do ripenin shipping boxes or on store shelves-their flavors are bland because they were deprived of sugars that naturally develop when the fruit ripens on the tree.
Even hard fruits like apples and pears suffer the same fate. "'Gravenstein' apples are unsurpassed for aroma and flavor when allowed to fully ripen," says Betty Mayfield, a grower from Rainier, Oregon. "But the green ones sold in stores are not ripe. Extra time on the tree until red stripes appear pays off in superb fruit.
" Betty, a member of the North American Fruit Explorers, is one of many throughout the United States, Canada and other parts of the world who are committed to the discovery, cultivation and appreciation of exceptional varieties of fruits and nuts.
ANTIQUE AND ULTRAMODERN
You'll find some of the most delicious and oldest varieties of fruit in the orchards and back yards of NAFEX members, and in preservation orchards such as Heritage Farm in Decorah, Iowa, where the Seed Savers Exchange is based, and Tower Hill Botanical Garden in Worchester, Massachusetts.
Newer fruit varieties created by Purdue University and the University of Minnesota have exquisite flavor, too, but are not widely in commercial production for various reasons, such as their inability to store well for lengthy periods.
Many of these new varieties withstand harsh climates and are resistant to major diseases and pests, making them especially suitable for the backyard grower.
With all the antique, standard and new varieties they can choose from, NAFEX members grow a wide array of fruits not commonly found in grocery stores. Their collective recommendations for the most delectable apples, pears, peaches and plums are listed on the following pages, followed by reference numbers for the nurseries that sell these wonderful, flavorful varieties.
Mail Order Sources
Numbers on the following fruit charts refer to the companies listed below.
1. Bay Laurel Nursery 2500 El Camino Real; Atascadero, CA 93422; (805) 466-3406; www.baylaurelnursery.com
2. Edible Landscaping PO. Box 77; Afton, VA 22920; (434) 361-9134; www.ediblelandscaping.com Fall shipping available
3. FEDCO Trees RO. Box 520; Waterville, ME 04903; (207) 873-7333; www.fedcoseeds.com
4. Johnson Nursery 1352 Big Creek Road; Ellijay, GA 30540; (706) 276-3187; www.johnsonnursery.com Fall shipping available
5. One Green World 28696 S. Cramer Road; Molalla, OR 97038; (877) 353-4028; www.onegreenworld.com
6. Rain Tree Nursery 391 Buffs Road; Morton, WA 98356; (360) 496-6400; www.raintreenursery.com
7. Sonoma Antique Apple Nursery 4395 Westside Road; Healdsburg, CA 95448; (707) 433-6420; www.applenursery.com
8. Stark Brothers Nursery Highway 54, P.O. Box 1800; Louisiana, MO 63353; (800) 325 4180; www.starkbros.com Fall shipping available
9. St. Lawrence Nursery 325 State Highway 345; Potsdam, NY 13676; (315) 265-6739; www.sln.potsdam.ny.us Fall shipping available
10. Rocky Meadow Orchard 5300 Schenley Place; Lawrenceburg, IN 47025; (812) 537-8655; www.rockymeadow.com
Follow these links for more on the North American Fruit Explorers as well as specific pages on apples, pears, peaches and plums.
