North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Lon Rombough <lonrom@hevanet.com>]

Fruit news from the NW. 

Begin forwarded message:

> By Lane Bettencourt - IPT
>
> PARMA -- With many colors, tastes and variations, the University of Idaho's Fruit Field Day showed visitors the surprising variety of fruit that can be grown in Southwest Idaho.
>
> The familiar red delicious apple was there, of course, but tables also showcased 20 other varieties with names such as ultima, buckeye, and pink lady.
>
> More than 30 varieties of peaches could be found, some flat and shaped like doughnuts. If you looked one place, you saw "pluots," a cross between a plum and an apricot. Others offered Asian pears, persimmons, quince and almonds -- all grown locally at the U of I Research and Extension Center.
>
> More than 100 people showed up for the free event, from commercial growers to certified master gardeners to backyard hobbyists.
>
> All were encouraged to walk around and sample the offerings, then rate them on a scorecard. Afterwards, some toured the fields and orchards where the fruit was growing.
>
> "I've never eaten an Asian pear," said Evelyn Arendts, who drove up from Mountain Home with husband Charles to get ideas for their garden. "We might (plant) one, but we wanted to come here before deciding what to buy."
>
> Most of the fruit varieties shown at the event will probably not wind up in supermarket produce bins.
>
> The purpose of researching so many varieties is to narrow the candidates to the ones that have appeal to consumers and grow well in the local climate.
>
> Dr. Esmaeil "Essie" Fallahi, a UI scientist considered to be the father of Fruit Field Day, said in a global marketplace, fruit growers must remain competitive.
>
> This factor is especially true in a small state like Idaho that relies on exports to maintain a healthy fruit industry, he added.
>
> "We simply don't have the population to consume everything we grow locally," Fallahi said. "We have to stay on the cutting edge or we'll be left behind."
>
> Fallahi is widely credited with demonstrating to skeptics that a wider variety of fruit can be grown in Idaho than was once thought.
>
> Table grapes serve as one example. For a long time, Idaho was considered too cold for them to be grown successfully.
>
> "About nine years ago Essie got a bee in his bonnet that we ought to grow table grapes here," said Ron Mann of Payette, president of the newly formed Idaho Table Grape Association. "Everybody wanted to laugh him out of the universe."
>
> Now, Mann said, more than 100 acres have been planted by 38 different commercial growers. Several thousand more acres are planned in the next decade.
>
> Starting with 60 varieties, Fallahi and others pared that number down to about 10 that were of good quality and relatively tolerant of Idaho winters.
>
> Mann said all 600,000 pounds of table grapes grown in Idaho this year have already been snapped up by commercial buyers, most of them in Alaska.
>
> "Buyers have told me, 'You have the finest grapes we've ever tasted,'" he said.
>
> Idaho's table grape harvest is in September and October. Mann said this is an advantage in marketing, because it comes between seasons for two large competitors -- July in California and February in Chile.