The Tree That Bethany Built

The Tree That Bethany Built

If Aretha Franklin can belt out a tune like The House That Jack Built (and boy can she ever), then I can most certainly tell you about "The Tree That Bethany Built." That tree -- the Flavor Finale Pluot planted in one corner of the Bird Back 40 -- is now a multi-studded pluot tree thanks to a co-worker in the State Senate named Bethany and her love for all things pluots.

What? Write about a lady other than the wife that is Venus? Shameful! But I've got to give credit where credit is due. Thanks to Bethany's efforts and gifts, the Flavor Finale pluot tree will now produce Dapple Dandy and Flavor Grenade pluots, to go along with the Flavor King and Flavor Queen pluot scions that I grafted to the Flavor Finale tree during my first attempt at grafting exactly two years ago this month.

Flavor Finale Pluots (Delicious)

Ever tried a pluot or two? You should. They are perhaps the most famous of the interspecific plum breeding efforts introduced by biologist Floyd Zaiger. A cross between a plum an apricot, they more closely resemble a plum and they happen to be one of the easiest trees to graft. I discovered this, quite by accident, during my first baby-steps at grafting attempts two years ago. I'm still not the best grafter in the world, but I'm a whiz with pluot trees, as are many others.

In other words, grafting pluots is like falling off a log. You can't possibly fail. Oh sure, one or two grafting attempts may not make it. That's to be expected. But after documented success on grafting scions to our Flavor Finale pluot tree -- and tasting the results of that success last summer -- I can proclaim that grafting pluots is nearly foolproof.

Flavor Grenade Graft to Flavor Finale Tree

In other words? If I can do this, you can do it too.

And, as luck would have it, the "Mother of All Grafting Celebrations" (Thank you Saddam Hussein) takes place this Sunday in Sacramento, when the Sacramento Chapter of the California Rare Fruit Growers (CRFG) holds its annual "Scion Exchange." This yearly exchange takes place Sunday, January 19th at the Sacramento Cooperative Extension Center at 4145 Branch Center Road (near Highway 50 and Bradshaw Road exit). The fun starts at 10 AM and ends at 1 PM -- getting you home just in time for the start of Championship Football Sunday.

GO FRANK GO!!!

Not that I'm expecting my San Francisco 49ers to slap the Seattle SeaChickens upside the head silly. Because, I am. How can you not appreciate that Frank Gore run from the last meeting between these two? *Sniff* It brings a tear of joy to my eye.

Back to the point: The CRFG is open to all interested fruit enthusiasts. Never tried the process of grafting before? Well my friends -- now is the time to start. It's never too late to get busy. Because where there's a fruit tree -- there's a scion that fits it. And there's only one thing better than a tree full of fresh fruit: That would be a tree filled with two varieties of fresh fruit.

Sign Leading the Way to Scion Exchange

So, if you find yourself wild about walnuts, or plain nutty over nectarines, this is the weekend for you and every other fruit fanatic in the Sacramento area. It doesn't matter if you find yourself in a panic over plums or apricots make you anxious, because the scion exchange offers the cure to your ills.

And -- as for that very special Flavor Finale Pluot tree growing in the Bird Back 40? The Tree That Bethany Built finally holds a Flavor Grenade graft that promises to be the answers to all my ills. Why, you ask? You are the curious one, aren't you? Actually, pluots do just fine on their own, but they do even better with a second tree nearby. Not just any tree mind you, but a "pollinator" tree. In my case? The best pollinator for a Flavor Finale tree happens to be the Flavor Grenade Pluot. The best pollinator for the Flavor Grenade tree happens to be the Flavor Finale Pluot.

Handy Dandy Grafting Tool with Grafting Tape

So, what happens when you combine the two into one, plus offer other varieties like the Dapple Dandy, Flavor King and Flavor Queen? What happens is this: a summertime of fresh fruit ripening during all months and all phases. That's one tree and a summer's worth of different harvests.

Now you tell me: what could be better than that?

¡FRUTAS!

Fresh Fruit Samples from Dave Wilson Nursery

Mmmm....Yeah, like that...

When Bill Bird encounters a fruity scene from heaven like the one you see to your immediate right -- the first impulse that pops into his head is the overall urge to shove everyone out of line and announce (with a bullhorn no less): "This fruit has been impounded by the blog that is Sacramento Vegetable Gardening."

Thank goodness I ignore these types of urges -- as I most certainly would have incited a riot amount the HUNDREDS (dare I say thousands?) of fresh fruit and vegetable fans that showed up this past weekend for Harvest Day 2010 festivities at the Fair Oaks Community Garden.

This was the first time that Venus and I have attended said annual event. Dare I say that it probably will not be our last?

If fresh fruit is your game -- an endless game of checkers awaits. You're not going to find everything under the sun -- fruit wise -- at this event because -- not everything ripens at the same time. The world just doesn't work that way. My June Pride peaches are but an afterthought -- and the impending O'Henry Peach harvest is still another week or two off.

But there's enough getting ripe now on ye olde vine and fruit tree to satisfy just about anyone's palate. You want proof?

Dapple Dandy Pluot

How about this scrumptious offering of Dapple Dandy Pluots? The pluot -- a relatively new introduction from the fine folks at Dave Wilson Nursery -- is all the rage in backyard gardens right now. The perfect cross between a plum and an apricot -- breeders can't churn out enough varieties to meet actual demand. Question any nursery owner in the Sacramento area -- and they'll tell you that pluot trees are normally the first to get snatched up during bare root planting season.

As for Bill and Venus Bird? We have a Flavor Finale Pluot growing like gangbusters in the Back 40 that is our North Natomas backyard. Purchased from Bay Laurel Nursery during bare root season last winter -- we may be forced to order up another tree to serve as a pollinator.

I know -- unlucky us.

Flavor King Pluot

As much as I would have liked to sample what is currently growing in our backyard -- alas -- it's not quite Flavor Finale season yet. Pluots -- like plums and like apricots -- ripen up at different times of the year. If you're lucky enough to visit a fruit tasting festival in August or September? You just might be lucky enough to get a slice or two of pure fruit heaven.

No worries though -- despite the absence of the Flavor Finale. There was plenty of fruit to go around -- including the nectarine varities of Flavortop and Arctic Jay -- which are growing quite nicely in the Bird front yard as part of our experiment with the Backyard Orchard Culture concept. After one taste of each variety Venus and I both know that a bit of nectarine heaven awaits. Very soon -- one day -- our trees will provide enough bounty for not only our needs but the desires of an entire neighborhood.

There's nothing like fresh fruit season baby.

If you're in the market for planting a fruit tree (or ten) -- and you're just not sure what to plant or when -- this is one reason why you should attend a harvest tasting festival like this one. Instead of sampling just one or two different kinds of fruit from different trees -- you're sampling 30. Didn't like the taste of that particular pear? How about this one?

Harrow Delight Pear

That's how I discovered this Harrow Delight Pear. After just one taste -- I knew this one was a keeper. It is sugary sweet.  Indeed -- Venus and I have set aside space in the backyard for additional fruit trees after our failed experimentation with all things avocados (they'll grow in some areas -- and in others -- fergit it son).

No matter what corner you turned at this weekend's harvest festival -- there was something to either see or sample. Heirloom tomato season is decidely late this year (for some -- not for others) -- but there was still enough to go around for tomato afficiandos.

Black Monukka Table Grapes

The same applies to fresh-from-the-vine tablegrapes like this sampling of the Black Monukka -- which Venus and I planted as part of our grand "table grape experiment" in the Back 40 last spring. The vines aren't producing yet. They probably won't produce until the third year. But a tasting festival like this one gives you a chance to sample the bounty that will soon come.

So -- what was the best part of this year's harvest festival? If you like to look at and analyze trends like Venus and I do -- one had to be amazed and heartened by the young twenty-and-thirty-somethings that showed up -- children and dogs in tow. It's proof that the "grow your own" movement isn't slowing down -- indeed -- if anything -- it's still taking off.

That suits these gardeners just fine.