Last week’s Your Produce Man’s Produce Puzzzzle dealt apples: This apple variety is a cross between a Red Delicious and a Ralls Janet and was first hybred in the 1930s. What is it? Most apple varieties are simply a "chance seedling," which means it's just a mutant of nature, a freak of genetics. There are very few apple varieties which are actually bred between two parents. This apple was one such apple. It was originally hybred in the 1930s, in Japan. It didn't even arrive into the United States until late in the 20th century, many years after it had already become very popular in Asia. The apple was indeed named after a mountain, Mt. Fuji. The Fuji apple. Since it is apple season, this week's Your Produce Man’s Produce Puzzzzle still deals with apples: This apple variety was the main variety taken to the Pacific Northwest by the early pioneers. It helped create the huge apple state of Washington. What apple is it? See next week’s Fresh Tips for the answer.

Flooded Grapefruit orchards are filled with fallen fruit.

Many young, tender tomato and vegetable fields were shredded and ripped from the fields in South Florida.

In just a matter of a few hours, Wilma blew through Florida, dropping over a foot of rain and destroying fruit and vegetable crops.

TOMATOES (Monday, November 7): Hurricanes never hit at the right time, but Wilma certainly hit at the worst possible time. It appears that Mother Nature is once again turning a cold shoulder…and in this case…a hurricane shoulder…to tomato crops in Florida. South Florida counties of Palm Beach and Dade are the #1 and #2 vegetable growing counties during the winter months, supplying about 45% of the nation’s vegetables from October to June. Winds and rain shredded plants and leaves, pulled young, tender plants right out of the ground, blew blossoms and small fruit right into the ocean. There are three main tomato-growing regions in Florida, starting north in the Palmetto/Ruskin area. This area had a lot of fruit ready to harvest from their first fruit set. Growers are telling us they lost about 25 – 30% of that fruit. This region’s second set of fruit is destined for harvest in late November or early December. Those blossoms were completely taken out, which will mean very little fruit to be harvested from Thanksgiving to Christmas. Moving further south to the Immokalee/Naples region, they appear to be the hardest hit, with 80 – 100% losses. This growing region usually begins harvest in mid-November and provides the bulk of the U.S. tomato supply from Thanksgiving through New Years. Growers here are still thinking of re-planting, but if they do, those crops wouldn’t be ready for harvest until January, right when Mexico and Homestead will be in full peak production, which means it may not pay to replant. Besides, of the 10 greenhouses in this region, only 3 survived the storm. Most growers in this region are still trying to find out where their tractors ended up. Further south is the Homestead region, which provides supplies from mid-December through January. Many of the very young fields were ripped apart, but there is time for growers to replant, which should allow growers to stay close to their start date of mid-December. It looks like the toughest time for supplies, quality and pricing will be from mid-November through early-January, right during the heart of the holiday season. Mexican supplies won’t be much help until January. White fly insects and disease heavily damaged their first set of fruit, which normally helps provide supplies during the holiday season. Other impacted crops will be Bell Peppers, Corn, Cucumbers, Eggplant, Green Beans and Squash. Many citrus growers throughout the region are reporting 30 – 50% losses, which will affect primarily Grapefruit and Tangerine crops. Growers are greatly concerned that this storm further spread the citrus canker disease, which has already caused the destruction of over 70,000 acres of citrus trees in Florida, roughly 10% of their total acreage.

Flooded Grapefruit orchards are filled with fallen fruit.

The pears are actually wrapped twice during the growth to maturity. These pages from the field manual show the paper bags they are wrapped in when they first blossom and once they reach a larger stage of maturity.

Each pear is carefully wrapped on the tree, protecting the delicate skin from insects and the elements.

Negative imaging more accurately reveals the size of the cavity or core of the pear as compared with that of a domestic pear.

KOREAN PEARS (Tuesday, November 8): Fairly new to the Western taste buds, the over 100 varieties of Asian Pears grown today came originally from Japan. These firm, yet amazingly juicy pears are grown throughout the West, mainly in the San Joaquin Valley, north into Oregon. They range in size and color from gigantic (2 lbs.) and golden brown to about 7 oz. and yellow. In general, ripe pears are quite firm to the touch, crunchy to the bite and exceedingly juicy! The most recognized Asian Pear here in the West is the 20th Century or Nijisseiki. Unlike other pears, Asian pears are not soft and mushy when they're ripe. Asian pears are firm to the touch but shattering to the taste buds! If picked too soon, they will never develop the sweetness and character for which these fruits are loved. Well, have you heard of a Korean Pear. The skin of the pear has a light brownish-yellow tint while the inner flesh is white. This variety is bred to have an extremely thin skin. This is one of the reasons it must be wrapped when growing. Therefore, when a bite is taken, the taste is a juicy flesh, not a bitter skin. They are crispy when eaten and are sweet in taste. Chilled or cooked, Korean Pears always make a wonderful addition to any meal! The Large Korean is similar to the Shinko in texture but is a bit sweeter and surprisingly, unexpectedly juicy. Nothing quite describes the unique flavor of this pear except to say that it's satisfyingly delicious. Serve slices of Large Koreans after a meal and you will not hear any complaints. Enjoy out of hand; serve with Brie, Camembert or Stilton cheese; add to watercress and spinach salads; use in filling for flans and pear pie; poach in syrup; drizzle thinly cut slices with caramel or chocolate; bake or sauté with toasted slivered almonds or ginger (requires longer cooking time than regular pears). Korean Pears are often individually wrapped in tissue for moisture retention. A sweet aroma is the best indicator of ripeness, not gentle pressure. They'll keep a week or two at room temperature and up to three months refrigerated. Tender loving care goes into each and every one of these magnificent pieces of fruit. When they are still small buds on the tree, each Korean Pear is hand wrapped to ensure a blemish free appearance as the fruit matures. They are crisp in texture and offer a mildly sweet, refreshing flavor when eaten out of hand. Try them in salads, dipped in caramel, or sautéed in a little butter and brown sugar for a quick dessert.

Tree in California loaded with Satsuma Tangerines, ready to pick.

Satsuma: Seedless, Sweet, Simple to peel …and sexy.

SATSUMA MANDARINS (Wednesday, November 9): For most people, the only Satsuma they know is the one in a can, generally called “mandarins.” By the way, Tangerines are simply a class of smaller Mandarins. Tangelos are a class of larger Mandarins. They are all in the Mandarin family Satsuma mandarins may have originated in China or Japan but it was first reported in Japan more than 700 years ago where it is now the major cultivar grown. The ancient Japanese province of Satsuma is in the southern most part of the island of Kyushu. The first recorded introduction into the United States was in Florida by George R. Hall in 1876. The name "Satsuma" is credited to the wife of a United States minister to Japan, General Van Valkenberg, who sent trees home in 1878 from Satsuma, the name of a former province, now Kagoshima Prefecture, on the southern tip of Kyushu Island, where it is believed to have originated. During the period 1908-1911, approximately a million 'Owari' Satsuma trees were imported from Japan and planted throughout the lower Gulf Coast states from the northern Florida Gulf coast to Texas, where an extensive tangerine industry developed. Even though the Satsuma is one of the coldest resistant tangerines, the occasional severe freezes in Florida and Texas have reduced the Satsuma to a cultivar of minor importance in those growing regions. Today, most Satsumas produced in the U.S. are grown in California, both in the San Joaquin Valley and the desert. It is seedless. It is sweet. It is simple to peel. And some have called them sexy. The Satsuma is undoubtedly the best Tangerine on earth. And it is the ugliest Tangerine on earth. In fact, the uglier they are, the better they are. Their peel will look like it is shriveled and old. That’s just the looseness of the peel. From now through January, enjoy some of the sweetest Tangerines of the year.

Tangerine with stems and leaves.

The Fall Glo Tangerine rings the bell to the start of the winter citrus season.

FALL-GLO, FAIRCHILD TANGERINES (Thursday, November 10): The Fall-Glo. One of the first Tangerines of the season. Just when you’re getting thirsty for new citrus, here come the Fall-Glo. The origin of citrus goes back 20 million years, probably beginning in Southeast Asia, or what is today Malaysia. From emperors to peasants, citrus fruits were enjoyed in ancient China, and much later, in Japan and the South Pacific. Over the centuries, traders and explorers carried citrus from Asia to the Middle East and Africa, and to ancient Greece and Rome. Greeks revered citrus highly, considering it the food of their mythological gods (they even called oranges “golden apples”!). By the sixth and seventh centuries, citrus was popular among Europeans, mostly for the fragrant, ornamental trees; the fruit itself was bitter. Not until Portuguese explorers brought a sweeter variety to Europe did sweet oranges dominate the groves of the Mediterranean. Citrus trees are NOT native to Florida. In 1493, citrus came to the New World on Columbus’ voyage to the island of Hispaniola. A few years later, another Spanish explorer, Ponce de Leon, brought citrus seeds to Florida. By 1579, orange trees were growing in St. Augustine, the oldest European settlement in the United States. With good growing conditions, groves were established. St. Augustine and Tampa, with their easily accessible seaports, grew citrus: oranges, tangerines, lemons and limes. In 1823, the French Count Odet Philippe brought grapefruit from the West Indies to Florida, planting the first grove near Tampa. As the citrus industry grew, so did Florida. Growing areas developed beyond the areas of the coast. In the late 19th century, as the railroads expanded, trains supplied citrus to other parts of the nation. The Great Freeze of 1894-95 devastated Florida’s thriving citrus industry. Fifteen years later, the industry recovered, and crops became bigger than ever. Today, oranges are the “golden apples” of Florida, and citrus is one of the state’s most important industries. Hurricane Charley plowed through central Florida on August 13, 2004, devastating the citrus industry by destroying not only the current crop, but also demolishing millions of trees. This "newcomer" to the tangerine family was born in 1962. It is cross, bred with the temple orange and tangelo, producing a highly flavored fruit that tastes great. It's the best of both worlds! The peel is an outstanding red color with excellent internal juice.

It’s only available October and November. Every year, the Fall Glo brings about the start of the winter citrus season. These early Fall Glos will have a pretty pale outside color. In fact, growers will treat the Tangerine with ethylene gas to help bring out the orange color. Ethylene is a very nature fruit hormone that causes fruit to ripen. All fruit that ripen, put off ethylene gas. Citrus growers learned long ago that ethylene also destroys the chlorophyll cells. That’s why the very early season citrus will be treated with ethylene. The fruit is mature, but will have some green color to it. The ethylene treatment destroys the chlorophyll, leaving the pale orange color. As each week passes, the outside color will naturally improve. Juice content is excellent and sugar content is improving every single day. When I first started working in a produce department in a small town in California, some of my Chinese customers would come in the store, starting in early December, and ask me, “Are the stems and leaves in yet?” When I first heart that questions, I was stumped. But a 3rd generation Chinese American explained that stems and leaves still attached to the Tangerine is a symbol of good luck and prosperity for the new year. So, every year, for New Years, it is common to see Fairchild Tangerines, with stems and leaves still attached, given as gifts. The Fairchild is one of the popular tangerines grown in the United States. The Fairchild tangerine is North America's earliest ripening variety and one of California's most heavily planted varieties. It’s the “first of the season” Tangerine. The Fairchild is thin-skinned with what we call a “zipper skin” that peels easily. They are sweet, juicy but unfortunately, they do contain seeds, so be careful when you are giving them to your kids. Mandarins include a diverse group of citrus fruits that are characterized by bright peel and pulp color, excellent flavor, easy-to-peel rind and segments that separate easily. Because all tangerines are mandarins but not all mandarins are tangerines, mandarins are commonly separated into four groups: Mediterranean, king, satsuma and common tangerines. Tangerines are the most important of the mandarin groups, both because of their widespread culture and because of their use in citrus hybridization. 'Clementine' ('Algerian') originated in Algeria and was introduced to the U.S. in 1909. It has deep reddish orange color and both the rind and segments exhibit slightly more adherence than most mandarins. Fruit of 'Clementine' matures earlier than 'Dancy' and it is usually smaller; the fruit will store on-tree better than most. The Tangerine is symbolic of good luck as the word tangerine has the same sound as the word luck in Chinese. The Fairchild Tangerine has few seeds with a mild, but tangy flavor. Fairchild mandarin is a hybrid of Clementine mandarin and Orlando tangelo. The cross was made by J. R. Furr at the U.S Date and Citrus Station at Indio, California, and the variety was released in 1964. It has proven to be particularly well suited to the California and Arizona deserts where it provides an early season fruit for the market. Fairchild trees are vigorous with a wide-spreading habit. For best fruit production, a pollinator is necessary. The fruit is medium-sized, oblate in shape, and has a thin, slightly pebbled, dark orange rind. Fairchild is not especially easy to peel and the fruits typically contain many seeds, but the flesh is quite juicy and the flavor is rich and sweet.

The very cool Cinnamon Persimmon.

CINNAMON PERSIMMON (Friday, November 11): These are also known as “Hyakume” or “Howard’s Amagaki,” but is mostly marketed as the “Cinnamon Persimmon,” named because of its sweet flavor, but with a flesh that has dark speckling inside, reminiscent of cinnamon. This Cinnamon Persimmon is prized throughout Asia as “goma.” Properly ripened and “cured,” these Persimmons will have very little tannin, which is often associated with regular persimmons. The Cinnamon Persimmon is a great salad item. Most of this fruit is grown in California, and most by one man, an 80-year-old man who first brought seeds over with him from his ancestral home in Japan. Most are grown in California’s Gold Country, the foothills of the Sierra Nevada. By the way, can you say “Cinnamon Persimmon” five times, fast?

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