May 2004 ARCHIVES of Andy's Life on
the Farm Shows
May 7th Tasting Seascape
This is Andrew Griffin of Mariquita Farm with Life on the Farm.
Jalapa, Mexico, has the jalapeņo. Brussels, Belgium, has the sprout.
And Chioggia, in Italy's lush Veneto, has a pink-ringed beet, a purple-red
radicchio, and a blue-skinned hard squash. What about us here in KUSP's
listening area? California's central coast is a world class growing
region. Why don't we get a crop named after us? Well, we do; it's just
that consumer aren't buying their strawberries by varietal names. Selva,
Pajaro, Seascape, Aromas, and Capitola are different patented strawberry
varieties, each with its own special virtues, all developed by the University
of California and named after communities in our area. My favorite,
both as a strawberry eater and an organic grower is Seascape. When picked
ripe Seascape has a rich, sweet flavor and an appealing deep red color
that goes to the heart of a lovely conical fruit. Seascape is a strong
plant, too, that tolerates relatively high concentrations of the pest
two spot mite without succumbing. Organic growers typically control
two spot infestations using biological controls like the predator mite
persimillus. Seascape is a strawberry that can survive an attack of
two spot mites long enough for introduced persimillus populations to
build and eventually dominate their prey. I confess I've never eaten
a basket of Capitolas . How about you? What strawberry varieties do
you like? If you don't know the names of the berries you're eating starting
questioning the folks you buy from.
For KUSP this is Andrew Griffin.
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Farm: Website
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