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‘Now we are heading to the jaboticaba garden,’ said Simon Wong, the guide during the journey to Taiwan in April 2007. That sentence directly reminded Sardi Duryatmo, Trubus reporter, on a piece of information from Australia. From the kangaroo land, jaboticaba was only a snapshot picture. Therefore, when Simon took us to the garden, Trubus was straightly coming along.

The 4,3 acres wide garden which belongs to Pan Liang Hwa in Chou Zhou, Pin Tung, Taiwan, directly satisfied curiousity. There, 50 shady canopy trees 3 m tall are in rows neatly with 2 m x 3 m growing space. The blackish purple fruits which were in groups on the stem captured the attention in an instant. It is one of jaboticaba distinctive features.

Pan, then, invited Trubus to taste those ripe fruits. Rosy Nur Apriyanti, Trubus reporter, picked up the fruits. ‘It tastes sweet,’ she said as the grape like fruit flesh with soft texture was savored by the tongue.

Pan informed that the flavour of the Myrtaceae family member will change as the fruit gets older. On the last nine days before it is ripe-the fruit is ripe within 20-30 days after the flowers appear-the changes occured. On the first day, its flavour is like guava; the second day it is like mangosteen; the third day is lychee; the forth is passion fruit; the fifth is sweetsop fruit; the sixth up to the eighth is grape. ‘The best flavour sensation is on the ninth day when the fruit is perfectly ripe: it tastes sweet and smells good,’ said Pan. Unsurprisingly more than 10 fruits were absolutely wiped out from Trubus hand. (more…)

Two Tennessee Producers Showcase A ‘Can Do’ Attitude
Is being a cotton farmer in a small town in West Tennessee the ultimate “dream job”? That statement may sound far fetched, but it perfectly describes the feelings of Gem Mitchell and Andy Shelton.

These two young men could have chosen different careers, but instead are living out their dreams and would not change a thing about what they wake up to every day in Bolivar, Tenn., a small farming town about 60 miles east of Memphis.

They don’t have the most acres or the fanciest equipment. But what they do have is a passion for farming and a willingness to succeed in what can best be described as a difficult environment.

As colleagues and friends will say, agriculture’s future looks bright if tomorrow’s farmers look like Gem Mitchell and Andy Shelton.

Perhaps it isn’t such a surprise that these two life-long friends from the same town would wind up being farmers. Their fathers were farmers, and it’s what the sons wanted to do – even if they didn’t always admit it to friends.

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