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Living
Tree Figs
The fig has been cultivated for five millennia in the Holy
Land. It is the first fruit mentioned in the Bible (Genesis
3:7).
It was popular in the Ancient World. Its fruit was cheap
and it provided year-round nourishment -an attribute of
considerable economic importance -whether fresh or dried,
in single fruits or strings of dried ones, or in cake form,
pressed down and squeezed together like a loaf of bread,
and in shapes, like either beehive or cube. Furthermore,
'Its lovely green and broad leaves...gave pleasant protection
from the sun.... White and black varieties were known, both
excellent, of wild and cultivated figs. The trees were planted
near dwellings and in gardens. They grow readily in the
stoniest of soil. The tenaciousness and hardihood of the
fig are indisputable traits and rocks do not defeat it'
-Asaph Soor and Max Nurock. Fruits of the Holy Land, Israel
University Press. Jerusalem 1968. pp 55-56.
The Calymirna Fig
We offer a variety called Calymirna. It is unusual in several
respects and we've decided to include here some details:
The introduction of this fig into California is a tribute
to human ingenuity and perseverance. Only when the ages
old technique of 'caprification' was applied was the project
successful. Here's how E.J. Wickson in his classic California
Fruits (1910) describes it: 'Caprification consists in suspending
the fruit of the wild or Capri fig in the branches of the
tree of improved variety, that the pollen may be carried
by an insect from the former to the latter. Until the present
decade, California has never been able to produce dried
figs equal to the fig of commerce or the Smyrna variety.
This was at first, thought to be due to lack of the Smyrna
variety. After painstaking effort, this variety was introduced.
Trees grew readily from the cuttings; fruit appeared upon
them and dropped before maturity. Doubt then arose as to
whether importers had not been deceived, and other efforts
were made which resulted in other importations. These also
cast to the ground immature figs. Discussion turned then
upon the fact of caprification -the necessity of having
the fruit of the Capri or wild fig adjacent to the fig of
the Smyrna fig so that insects from the Capri might visit
the fruit of the improved variety and pollinate its enclosed
flowers, which, appearing upon the inner wall of an almost
closed cavity, could not be reached by ordinary visiting
insects. The wild trees had already been introduced and
were freely growing near the others, but this availed nothing
-the figs fell just the same from the Smyrna trees.
In 1890, Mr. George C. Roeding of Fresno, essayed to demonstrate
the fact that the lack of pollination was the secret of
failure, and he succeeded in introducing the Capri pollen
into the eye of the Smyrna fig, and secured thereby the
retention of such pollinated figs upon the trees, and when
ripened and dried, these had the Smyrna character. The demonstration
was complete that California could not grow Smyrna figs
without the pollinating agency found to be essential to
success -an insect so minute that it can make its way through
the mesh of ordinary cheese-cloth and can enter an almost
closed dye of the young fig -so minute that a magnifying
glass is necessary to give one any clear idea of its outline.
For years, constant effort had been made by various parties
to secure the introduction of this insect. Urgent appeals
were made to the United States Department of Agriculture,
after private undertakings failed, to secure the insect
alive or otherwise in form for permanent residence. In April
1899, the feat was accomplished, the blastophagas being
received from Algiers as collected and forwarded by W.T.
Swingle to Mr. Roeding. Their offspring appeared in large
numbers during the summer and fall of the same year. On
the basis of this achievement, the commercial production
of a true Smyrna fig in California began and has rapidly
developed. Mr. Roeding gave his product the musical patronymic
'Calymirna,' which now adheres also to the variety from
which it is produced.
The Calymirna fig tree is a female tree. It must be pollinated
by the male Capri fig Only Blastophagris, a wasp so tiny
as to be nearly invisible, can do this. After visiting the
Capri fig, the wasp carries the pollen on its body and wings.
It enters the tiny orifice at the base of the female fruit.
It is trapped and can not fly out. In its struggle to break
free, it sheds its pollen, fertilizing the female and dying
in the act of generation.
Those wishing to read into this, a parable of men and women
in the late industrial world, are free to do so. (Whoever
writes the best essay gets 3 pounds of figs!)
The Calymirna fig is noted for its delicious nut-like flavor
and tender skin. Just the thing to wean kids away from junk
food.
These figs are organically grown and sun-dried by our friend,
'Mr. Fig,' who farms near Fresno in the Great Central Valley.
More
On Organic Farming
Glen
Anderson, Master Almond Grower
Living
Tree Almonds
This nut of the Roseae family, botanically
known as Prunus amygdalus originated in the Middle East
and in Western Asia, Turkestan and Kurdistan. Experts believe
that ever since pre-historic times, it grew wild or semi-wild
in the warm and dry regions of the Middle East and Western
Asia. The distinction between bitter and sweet almonds goes
way back. Botanists hold that the cultivated sweet almond
originated from the bitter as a result of natural selection
over many generations. Genesis (43:11) mentions almonds
among the things that Jacob bade his sons bring to Joseph
in Egypt to win favor in their powerful brother's eyes.
The Hebrew name for almond is 'shaked' from the root that
means 'early rising' and 'vigorous wakefulness' -this denotes
the tree's habit of arousing itself into blossom and leaf
while other trees tarry in their winter sleep. The loveliness
of the tree as it leafed out and blossomed won warm adoration.
It was a conspicuous motif upon the Golden Menorah in the
Temple. The story of Aaron's rod (Leviticus 17:16-24) reflects
the vigor and life force of the tree.
Plantings of almonds moved westward to the Mediterranean
region, where Spain and Italy became major almond producers.
In the middle 1700's, the Franciscan Padres brought almonds
to California to grace their missions. By the 1870's, research
and cross-breeding had developed several of today's prominent
almond varieties.
In modern times, when Luther Burbank came to California
to seek his fortune, he chose the almond as the rootstock
to fulfill a commission from an entrepreneur eager to cash
in on the 'prune boom' of the 1880's. To the astonishment
of his contemporaries, Burbank was able to produce the trees
in a very short span of time as he took advantage of the
almond's ability to sprout readily and produce a seedling
suitable for bud grafting in a few months.
By the turn of the century, the almond industry was firmly
established in California where ideal conditions for growing
almonds were found in the Sacramento and San Joaquin areas
of the state's Great Central Valley.
Today, California is the only place in North America where
almonds are grown commercially, with some 400,000 acres
under cultivation by approximately 7,000 growers. In terms
of dollar value, acreage and world distribution, almonds
are California's largest tree nut crop. At one time all
of the U.S. almond supplies were imported. Today, California
grows over half the world's supply, including that for all
of the domestic market.
Almonds, botanically, are a fruit -the ancestor of stone
fruits such as nectarines, peaches, plums and cherries.
The fruit grows on trees closely resembling peach trees
in size and shape, and has a tough gray-green hull that
resembles an elongated peach. The hull splits open at maturity
to reveal the almond shell, which encloses the nut.
Because the almond tree is not self-pollinating, an orchard
must have trees of more than one variety. Bees are brought
into the orchard during the February bloom period to help
pollinate the alternating rows of almond varieties.
Growing almonds is a year-round business. In winter, trees
are pruned and orchards cleaned. From blossom time onward,
orchards must be frost free, rain should be minimal and
days warm enough (55-60°F) so bees will do their pollinating
work.
By mid-March, the trees have leafed out and the first signs
of the fuzzy gray-green nuts can be seen. With warm weather,
the crop matures rapidly and growers are busy irrigating,
controlling weeds and protecting the crop against harmful
insects. In early July, the hulls split open slightly, exposing
the shell inside. As the kernels start to dry, the split
widens and the almonds are ready to harvest.
Upon harvest, Living Tree Almonds are frozen as soon as
possible to preserve freshness and flavor and destroy insect
larvae (conventionally grown almonds are fumigated with
methyl bromide, a toxic substance).
Almonds are balanced and nutritious. They are best eaten
after being soaked in water over night. They can also be
made into a delightful drink -see recipe section.
To store: Almonds should be stored in the refrigerator or
any other cool place at temperatures below 35°F. Almonds
freeze well if wrapped in a moisture-proof bag or placed
in an airtight container.
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