Farms of Fancy

657-4888 or

www.aboutharvest.org

Nuts about Nuts

George Anderson cracked, in a manner of speaking, during a visit to Hawaii. "According to my wife, that was the beginning of the end," he says. After his trip to the Aloha state, Anderson started Anderson's Macadamia Arboretum Grove and Nursery in LaBelle. "I started wondering why we couldn't grow macadamia nuts to their extent here in Southwest Florida. The climate is so similar," he says. Anderson began the operation in 1997, and because it takes seven years to establish a grove, he's just getting ready to begin selling the nuts. "Once established, you can harvest approximately 300 pounds per tree, per year," Anderson says. "It's a good cash crop. There is a growing demand for the nuts and lots of future potential. Wholesale prices run about $8.50 a pound."

The farm is relatively inexpensive to operate. Two workers can manage a 10-acre grove, and part-time, temporary workers help during fall harvest. Blights that affect citrus farmers do not affect macadamia growers, thus reducing costs.

Another positive factor: The nuts can be easily stored up to one year. After harvesting, nuts are de-husked, usually with an improvised corn-sheller, washed, placed on wire trays for about six weeks to dry, graded and shipped to market.Shelled kernels deteriorate quickly unless kept in vacuum-sealed jars, but processed nuts, when roasted and slightly salted, keep extremely well.

"If you have a 10-acre farm," Anderson says, "you can expect to pay for your trees by the third year." The average cost of a tree is $30, he adds, and 10 acres will fit 2,000 trees. Typically, a financial return will out-perform that of a Florida citrus grower by a factor of 20. Anderson says he's the only macadamia producer in the state.

One more benefit: The trees produce for more than 100 years. "There are some trees that get to be as old as 500 years," Anderson adds, "but I don't plan to be around to see what happens with those."

Anderson's Macadamia Arboretum Grove and Nursery, (727) 643-1424

Echo: A First Helping

Hot humid lowlands, tropical highlands, tropical monsoon territory, semi-arid tropics, tropical rainforest and urban landscape can all be viewed within the confines of a 21-acre training farm and experimental laboratory in North Fort Myers. ECHO, the Educational Concerns for Hunger Organization, began in the 1970s as an effort to help farmers in Haiti. This Christian organization serves as a laboratory in low-tech farming techniques for the Third World.

"We are about providing techniques and tools," says Mike Sullivan, ECHO's development director. "One of my favorite examples of how we have made an impact results from the shipping of 10 seeds. We sent 10 Moringa tree seeds to Kenya. Within nine months, those trees had grown to be 12 feet tall. They were harvested and shared and within two years, these 10 seeds yielded 250,000 trees."

The Moringa tree is a versatile plant; in addition to serving as a food source, it can be used to purify water and enhance milk production in women with newborns.

ECHO works with a global network of missionaries and development workers, providing seeds, information, training and ideas that help fight against world hunger in over 180 countries, according to the ECHO Web site.

A stroll through the ECHO farm is truly a walk through a world of practical solutions to international hunger. ECHO offers free public tours on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday starting at 10 a.m. After the one-hour guided tour, visitors are invited to browse through the edible-landscape nursery and bookshop. Visit their Web site at www.echo-net.org, or call 543-3246.