Archive for the ‘Portland Fruit Tree Project’ tag
Asian Pears in Southeast Portland or “Because money doesn’t grow on trees… but fruit does!”
Yesterday, I participated in my first harvest with the Portland Fruit Tree Project. The project aims to “share the bounty and of urban fruit and nut trees.” Fruit that would otherwise go to waste is gathered with half of the take going to harvest volunteers and the rest to the local food bank. Portland food banks, like many, suffer from a severly short supply of fresh produce. This year the Portland Fruit Project aims to harvest over 10,000 lbs of fruit and nuts that would otherwise end up as yard waste!
On this occasion we harvested Asian Pears from a Southeast Portland neighborhood. We gathered close to 500 lbs of pears from one tree, enabling each of the 10 volunteers to take home about 24lbs of peaches with the rest going to the food bank. A fruit lover, I took my share and made the personal pledge not to let them go to waste. When I arrived home, I immediately shared some with my neighbor who in turn gave me some of this fresh wild chanterelle mushrooms. It was a tasty treat and an equal exchange.
A big thanks to the Katy Kolker, founder and director of the Fruit Tree Project. She has created a vibrant group that prevents waste and builds community.
Incidentally, Katy and her friend Jim attended Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio, which is my birthplace and former stomping ground. It brought back some good Ohio memories for the three of us as we lovingly picked Asian Pears into the early evening.
