Posts Tagged: fruit
UC CalFresh gets kids to try healthy fruits and veggies
UC CalFresh educators took part in a field trip for fourth-graders in Fresno where the children tasted a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, reported Dale Yurong on ABC 30 Action News.
"We encourage them to try it and then they try it and wind up liking it," said UC CalFresh nutrition educator Kristi Sharp. "That's a saying that we say - you can't judge it unless you try it."
Fresno Unified School District is the state's largest recipient of funds from the fruit and vegetable program, Yurong reported. In addition to including fruits and vegetables at meals, the district is serving grab-and-go fruits and vegetables everyday at recess at 45 elementary schools.
The UC CalFresh Youth Nutrition Education Program, part of UC Cooperative Extension, provides support and resources to pre-school through high school teachers in low-income schools to deliver nutrition and physical activity education in their classrooms.
Local kids learn benefits of eating healthy
Brook Borba, Turlock Journal
The City of Turlock has launched an After School Education Safety program with the Turlock Unified School District and in conjunction with the UC Cooperative Extension and AgLink.com to provide a farmers' market opportunity for local students.
Turlock students learn where food comes from, what types of fruits and vegetables are grown locally and interesting facts associated with food. At the end of the presentation, students are provided with shopping bags to pick out an assorted selection of fresh fruits and vegetables to eat or take home for their families.
Persimmons and hoshi gaki - An alternative to persimmon cookies
I have to admit that I am not a big fan of the flavor of persimmons with one exception … dried. Dried persimmons have a more intense flavor and make a wonderful, healthy snack. I have dried the Fuyu persimmons by just cutting the fruit horizontally into about ¼-inch thick slices and then putting them in the food dryer. It is a very easy method to preserve the fruit. They are tasty little treats but they can be a bit leathery and brittle.
Fruit is typically harvested in late September through early November. Be sure you retain the stem when harvesting; you will need it to hang the fruit. The fruit is peeled, and hung whole to dry in a warm area with good air circulation and protected from rain. The fruit is allowed to hang for about 3 and 7 days until it forms a skin on the outside. The fruit is then gently hand massaged to break up the hard inner pulp. The massage process is repeated every 3 to 5 days for 3 to 5 weeks. When the fruit is ready, a bloom of sugars forms on the surface, creating a fancy white coating. You can tell when the fruit is ready when the pulp is set and you can no longer roll it around. You then remove it from the hanging rack. I like to flatten the fruit out using a rolling pin and then layer and stack the dried fruit for storage. If you package them in a fancy container, they make lovely hostess or holiday gifts.
This traditional method of processing persimmons is virtually gone from the commercial markets but there are many small growers who have the skill, dexterity and patience to process fruit in this time consuming way. You may be able to find them at your local farmers markets if you want to try them. If you have a Hachiya persimmon tree in your yard and want to find ways to use the fruit, give this method a try next year. For more information on growing persimmons check out The Backyard Orchard Website or The Home Orchard Manual
Drying whole Hachiya persimmons.
Exotic pitahaya possible desert cash crop
A native of Mexico and South American, the beautiful tropical fruit pitahaya - also known as dragon fruit - could be a viable crop for Southern California desert, said an article in the Desert Sun.
Ramiro Lobo, UC Cooperative Extension advisor in San Diego County, shared the results of pitahaya studies conducted in San Diego and Irvine with a group of inland desert farmers recently.
“The fruit size and quality is good ... we’re getting great marketable yields,” Lobo said.
In March, five varieties of the fruit were test-planted at UC Riverside's Coachella Valley Agricultural Research Station in Oasis.
“We’re selecting varieties that can tolerate the heat,” said José Luis Aguiar, UCCE advisor in Riverside County. “They’re doing well in San Diego County and Irvine and we’re trying to extend the range.”
Dragon fruit grows on a cactus plant. (Photo: Jose Luis Aguiar)
Growing a better stone fruit
The story centered around Kingsburg Orchards, one of the largest local tree fruit producers. The organization's board met recently to sample 30 experimental stone fruit varieties.
Kevin Day, UC Cooperative Extension advisor in Tulare County, said the push to find an edge in the marketplace is no surprise in today's highly competitive retail market.
"People are doing anything they can for product differentiation, including having exclusive varieties," Day said. "And the focus is really shifting to flavor."
Other news
Climate change is another reason to protect farmland
Rich Rominger and Renata Brillinger - Sacramento Bee
This op-ed piece references a new report released by the California Natural Resources Agency and the California Energy Commission that focused on a study by Louise Jackson and her team of UC Davis researchers. "Thanks to the team of UC Davis researchers and government funding for their study, we can add climate protection to the compelling list of reasons to invest in the long-term protection of California's farms and ranches," wrote the authors.
Progress reported in efforts to control growing threat to local and state citrus crops
Lance Orozco - KCLU, California Lutheran University Radio
Orozco interviews Ted Batkin of the Citrus Research Board and John Krist of the Ventura County Farm Bureau. In the six-minute story, Krist mentions work by Mark Hoddle, UC Cooperative Extenison specialist in the Department of Entomology at UC Riverside, to introduce natural enemies of Asian citrus psyllid to help bring down populations of the exotic pest.
Cultivating California
Only in California could arid land be converted into the nation’s salad bowl.
In the late 1800s, University of California researchers discovered how to remove salts from the soils of the Central Valley, turning it into one of the most productive agricultural regions.
UC researchers continue to play a key role in agriculture today, keeping California the nation’s leading agricultural state, from dairies in Tulare to nut farms in Newberry Springs.
A new brochure highlights the breadth of UC Agriculture and Natural Resources’ impact. UC guidelines have helped farmers boost broccoli production. UC scientists have developed sweet-tasting citrus and strawberries to meet consumer demands. UC certifies more than 95 percent of wine grapevines grown in the state, providing a reliable supply of high-quality vines for California’s multibillion-dollar wine industry. Whether it’s managing invasive pests, promoting nutrition or sustaining small farmers, ANR serves California’s communities with a focus on advising, educating and searching for solutions.
For more information, read the Cultivating California brochure.
uc anr minibrochure cover s2