Last month’s post about the orchard pruning class resulted in lots of inquiries about what to do with a bumper crop of fruit. We are lucky that local options exist: City Fruit and Solid Ground’s Community Fruit Tree Harvest (CFTH) work with other organizations throughout the city to harvest fruit and to make sure it gets into the hands of hungry people.
The easiest and most direct action to take with your surplus fruit is to harvest it yourself and drop it off at a local food bank. Solid Ground has a handy list here of local food banks, hours, favorite crops and special requirements.
I received some great advice about donating produce from Robin DeCook of Solid Ground’s Lettuce Link program. Lettuce Link coordinates the Community Fruit Tree Harvest and also connects all types of produce with food banks. She wrote:
We encourage people to donate their produce grown using organic methods. We also ask that people wash their produce before bringing it in for donation, and only bring in quality produce. The general rule of thumb is if you wouldn’t give it to a non-gardening friend (since gardeners tend to eat everything!), don’t donate it. We also encourage people to harvest right before delivery, to ensure freshness.
If you don’t have the time or the equipment to properly harvest your fruit, volunteers will pick it for you and bring it to the food bank. CFTH can help you in: NE Seattle, NW Seattle (except Phinney, Greenwood, Crown Hill), Capitol Hill, Central District, Leschi, Madrona, Magnolia, Montlake and Queen Anne. To register your tree and request volunteer assistance, contact The Garden Hotline at 206.633.0224 or email [email protected]. Residents of Phinney Ridge, Greenwood, Crown Hill, SE Seattle, Colman Park and West Seattle can get volunteer help by contacting City Fruit.
If you love to pick fruit, both organizations can always use volunteers! If you don’t love to pick fruit but want to get involved in other ways, you can do everything from checking the ripeness of fruit trees, to asking your neighbors if they would like to register their trees, to storing fruit picking equipment in your garage. Solid Ground maintains a great list of volunteer opportunities which you should check out here, along with their materials for recruiting your neighborhood’s participation like this flier which you could post in your favorite café or on the light post at the end of your block.
For more fruit-related fun, City Fruit also has a mapping project. To add your fruit tree to their map, go here and assist them in their goal of “identify[ing] all of the fruit trees in the city that make up an Urban Orchard that stretches across Seattle.”
Had Lettuce Link pick my trees last summer and was amazed at the poundage. They did a great job. Here are some recommendations to Lettuce Link/Solid Ground:
Had an email from LL coordinator this year…nice…and I agreed to have my trees picked this year, but no one followed up and fruit died on tree. Would be nice if someone could monitor tree periodically and have people ready to pick when ripe.
Would be good if pickers could have sign board they could put in yard/on parking strip so people knew who they were when they were picking. This would avoid neighbors questions and inform others who might be willing to donate.
Would be good if they had tree sign or sign that could go on fence or in ground near tree year around or at least near harvest time that would identify where fruit was headed. This would be informative, might get others to think about donating their fruit, and may even keep random passers by from helping themselves.
Article above indicates that organizations may have tree stewards who could help owners with health issues, maintenance concerns, etc. like blight, pruning, insect control, worms, etc. This would be great….sign me up.
I can help you with your fruit tree care questions. I’m a fruit tree steward with City Fruit. We manage fruit trees on the Burke-Gilman Trail. Organic treatments only. Email me at: [email protected]
Barb Burrill
PS – excellent suggestions about signage with the Community Fruit Tree Harvest.
When I walk nowadays by a Wallingford plum tree that is busting with unpicked plums I want to take some for myself but am reluctant for lack of permission. Maybe people who have fruit that others might pick for personal use could simply have some sort of casual signal, like a green ribbon hanging from the tree.
Cal, you are one of the few who seem to be reluctant to pick fruit within reach without asking permission…good for you. I don’t mind neighbors picking a handful when passing by, but I do mind it when people I don’t even know stop with ladders, bags, etc and feel free to pick how ever much they want often breaking branches and always leaving a mess. The reason your suggestion will not work is insurance liability. If someon gets hurt picking fruit from your tree, permission or not, you may be liable. Sad but true. I had someone come into my yark, behind a fence and pick a whole tree after midnight one year…..lots of strange people out there.
Hi
Anyone know if there are any Feijoa trees around? Would love some of those please!