Organic grower Vern Peterson let us in on some cool info. In the video clip below from PPNTV, Vern describes how growers will actually have to wait 6 years before a stonefruit tree is ready to produce marketable fruit. Each tree has to reach a certain level of maturity to be able to deliver the proper nutrients to developing fruit.
This is what makes stonefruit growers unique compared to row crops like cotton or wheat. Stonefruit growers are in it for the long haul and treat the land and their orchards accordingly. Through good practices, continued research and developing technology, stonefruit growers are careful to keep an ecological balance in their orchards to hopefully ensure many more years of fresh California fruit.
The Summer’s first plums are ready for harvest! The first few weeks of May provide a glimpse at this Summer’s domestic stone fruit crop. The plums you see at the market over the winter are most likely from Chile or another South American source so it’s good to know that domestic plums are now available. Of the hundreds of varieties available through the summer each individual variety has only a 7-10 day harvesting window. Each variety has its own unique color, shape and most importantly taste.
