The FRUIT You Can SALUTE!

I am a big fan of the CBS Network Radio show called Mystery Theater. The program, which ran from 1974-1982, was a throwback to the Golden Age of Radio. Tributes by hundreds of fans about this show can be found online today, and thousands of shows can be easily accessed on YouTube and elsewhere.

The introduction to each show ran like clockwork. It featured the long, drawn-out sound of a creaking door that opened slowly (which was actually the creaking sound made by the producer's well-worn office chair). Host E.G. Marshall would tell listeners to "come in," and prepare them for the "sound of suspense" and "the fear you can hear."

Producer Himan Brown had a rolodex of actors as long as my arm to call upon. If you listen to any of these shows, you're going to hear the voices that made Fred Flintstone or Herman Munster famous.

E.G. Marshall

I'm going to borrow this sinister format for a bit to inform you about an upcoming event that is far less sinister. However, it is a lot more fun and rewarding, especially if you love fresh fruit. It is the annual Scion Exchange hosted by the Sacramento Chapter of the California Rare Fruit Growers organization.

It is a collection of "fruit you can salute." How about the "treat you can eat?" It is a collection fruit that you can grow at home in your own front, side and back yards. A solitary apple, plum, cherry or peach tree can be transformed into a fruit producing monster through the process of grafting. Even a NON-produing fruit tree such as a Purple Ornamental Cherry Plum tree can be transformed into one or more fruit producers through the process of grafting.

The 2023 Scion Exchange event is coming up this Sunday, February 26th. It will be held at the La Sierra Community Center at 5325 Engle Road in the community of Carmichael (Sacramento County). The event begins at 11:00 AM SHARP! The $5 entrance fee at the door will give you access to hundreds of varieties of peaches, nectarines, plums, pluots, cherries, pears, figs, pomegranates and much, much more.

Hale Peach

If you are looking for an older, elusive variety of fruit that can no longer be found in most big box stores or commercial nurseries, chances are you will discover that hard-to-find variety at the upcoming scion exchange. If you are a fan of home-grown peaches for example, it won't be hard to find the somewhat elusive 49er or Hale peach varieties. You might even find a scion or two for the Sun Crest variety, a peach so famous that a California Sun Crest farmer wrote a book about it.

A lot of the scions that will show up at events like these hail from test or heritage orchards that are maintained throughout northern and southern California. This includes Luther Burbank's Gold Ridge Experiment Farm in Sebastopol. Other scions were procured from the Guadalupe River Parkway Conservancy fruit tree orchard in San Jose. It might even be possible to secure scions from fruit varieties that sprang from the orchards of gold rush era grower Felix Gillet. These are the earliest fruit tree varieties brought to California, most of which came from farms in France, Germany and elsewhere in Europe.

Bigarreau de Mai

The Cerisier Bigarreau de Mai may be hard for some of you to pronounce, unless you speak the French language. But I can tell you from experience that it is one fine cherry. Roughly translated, it means Sweet Cherry in May. It is a very old variety that was once widely grown in California. Are you going to find a tree like this in any nursery or big box gardening center today? Probably not. But you might find a branch (scion) or two at this Sunday's scion exchange.

The process of grafting is an art and science that does take time and practice to become proficient in. But, practice makes perfect. I discovered that plum and pluot trees were the easiest to graft. That is where I experienced most of my early success. It wasn't long before I gained the experience needed to conduct grafting experiments on cherry, peach and nectarine trees. Grafting tools can also help.

In other words: If I can do it, so can you! If you need help, you will find plenty of it, including demonstrations at the scion exchange. You will also find root stock trees that you can purchase and experiment with.

2018 Scion Exchange

There are some items that you should bring to this Sunday's event if you wish to attend. Organizers are *requesting* exact cash for the $5 entrance fee (avoid $20 bills if possible). You will also need masking or painter's tape that you can write on, plus a pen or pencil or both. Finally, it's also wise to bring a one-gallon plastic bag to hold all the scions that you plan to collect.

More details about the event can be found here. Best of luck. In the words of the late, great E.G. Marshall: "Come in. Welcome." Prepare yourself for the "treat you can eat" at the annual CRFG (Sacramento Chapter) scion exchange.