“The proper use of science is not to conquer nature but to live in it.”
Interesting readings
We love to learn and be inspired by people who’ve dedicated themselves to the study of agroecology, orcharding and, of course, the wonderful world of subtropical or rare fruit trees. In this page, you’ll find a few of the books and websites/blogs which have most influenced our life and work at Orchard of Flavours edible botanical garden.
Do you have a favourite book or web resource on subtropical fruit trees which we haven’t mentioned? Please feel free to send your suggestion our way, by sending us an email to miguel@orchardofflavours.com.
Fruits of Warm Climates
Julia F. Morton
In one definitive volume, Morton explores the world of tropical and subtropical fruit, providing information on the history of the plants, cultivation techniques, food and alternative uses, nutrition, varieties, and much more. Written in a professional yet accessible voice, Fruits of Warm Climates is a must-have for anyone interested in tropical horticulture.
It masterfully packages the essential information on familiar and not-so-familiar tropical fruit. With over 400 pages containing hundreds of images, the volume is overflowing with information on countless varieties of fruits. Years after its original publication, Fruits of Warm Climates remains a leading text on the subject and the pinnacle work of economic botanist Julia F. Morton.
You Can Grow Tropical Fruit Trees
Robert Mohlenbrock
No citrus here, but lots of other fruits: mango, papaya, avocado... In Florida there's a cornucopia of ornamental, edible delights! Botanist Robert Mohlenbrock shows you how to grow them in your own backyard. Contains illustrations and instructions on how to grow, prune and fertilize these living treasures.
Finding the Mother Tree
Suzanne Simard
In her first book, Simard brings us into her world, the intimate world of the trees, in which she brilliantly illuminates the fascinating and vital truths — that trees are not simply the source of timber or pulp, but are a complicated, interdependent circle of life; that forests are social, cooperative creatures connected through underground networks by which trees communicate their vitality and vulnerabilities with communal lives not that different from our own.
Simard writes — in inspiring, illuminating, and accessible ways — how trees, living side by side for hundreds of years, have evolved, how they perceive one another, learn and adapt their behaviors, recognize neighbors, and remember the past; how they have agency about the future; elicit warnings and mount defenses, compete and cooperate with one another with sophistication — and at the center of it all, the Mother Trees: the mysterious, powerful forces that connect and sustain the others that surround them.
Something else Suzanne Simard talks about is something we’re quite familar with, here at the Orchard of Flavours, and that is the wonderfully magical connections that happen between trees and mycorrhizal fungi.
Hailing from Australia and containing a wealth of information, the STFC — or Sub-Tropical Fruit Club of Qld Inc. — promotes the growing and use of rare, unusual, and common types of fruit trees, bush food, and vegetables.
Several articles in their Articles section are quite interesting and a very worthwhile read indeed. We liked the ones on Fruiting Cactus and on Soil – Testing Your Soil’s Organic Matter, as well as the plant profiles on trees and shrubs such as Acerola Cherry, American Pawpaw, Moringa oleifera and a more broad one on Eugenias – South American Berries.
Another area worth checking on stfc.org.au is the Tips section. Have fun while learning about exciting plants!
