April 2020
From the TFSS Board of Directors:
The TFSS Board of Directors continues to monitor the coronavirus outbreak. As you know, many Florida businesses and other activities have been reopened, subject to varying restrictions. Deaths from covid-19 are down, for which we are all grateful. Unfortunately, however, the number of new covid-19 cases in Florida is trending sharply upward. Studies of contagion indicate that extended indoor contact in large groups is one of the most dangerous environments. Since we cannot consider resumption of meetings until the safety of our members can be assured, we must continue on hold.
We have examined the idea of online meetings. This certainly makes sense for some organizations. However, online meetings would lack the tasting table, the plant raffle, and the informative before-and-after-meeting personal conversations that together make up so much of what we derive from getting together in person.
There remain the monthly presentations that are so useful to us as growers. We’ve considered organizing online presentations by the speakers that would otherwise be at our meetings, but the fact is, there are already many useful online resources for growers in Southwest Florida. So for now, at least, we will simply present below a basic list of links that we have found useful. We’ll post it on our main web page, and we welcome suggestions for additional resources.
We continue to wish all of our members the best during these difficult times.
— The TFSS Board
Some online resources for Sarasota home growers:
IFAS Tropical Fruit for the Home Landscape – Numerous informative articles on many of the most commonly grown fruits.
Growables.org – A useful collection of articles and links for fruits, vegetables, and other edible plants, all focused on the particular conditions of Southwest Florida. Please consider donating to this non-profit site.
Sarasota Extension – Much useful information for area residents, including webinars (see the Events Page ).
Youtube.com – Many useful videos, especially Richard Campbell’s short demos on pruning mangos.
TFSS Facebook page – 1,000 followers and growing.
Fruit Tree Paradise Workshop Notes – A free download with lots of hands-on advice.
Our Mission:
“The Tropical Fruit Society of Sarasota is organized exclusively for charitable, educational, and scientific purposes associated with the propagation, cultivation, selection, improvement or enhancement of superior cultivars of tropical fruits, and the distribution of tropical fruit trees and the associated knowledge necessary for their successful cultivation and harvest, for the benefit of mankind. A 501c3 corporation.”
Click to view our Articles of Inc.
We are a group of enthusiastic and passionate tropical fruit lovers, focused on the art and pleasure of growing our own tropical fruit here in the Sarasota area.
We love to exchange ideas, and share knowledge, tips and expertise with fellow gardeners.
But most of all, we love to enjoy ripe, delicious, homegrown tropical fruit!
Monthly Meetings:
Our regular monthly meetings are held on the fourth Tuesday of each month, except August and December, at the:
Sarasota Garden Club
1131 Boulevard of the Arts
Sarasota, FL 34236
Located on the northwest corner of US41 & Blvd. of the Arts, in front of the Van Wezel
Agenda:
6:30 – Sign in, social time, and tasting table
7:00 – Short business meeting, followed immediately by speaker’s presentation
8:00 – Plant raffle and social time
8:30 – Clean-up
Membership:
We welcome guests to join us for any meeting!
Non-members are welcome to attend meetings for $5 admission, except for tasting events such as the July MangoFest, which are $10.
We strive to keep our membership costs affordable:
- Individual membership: $10/year
- Family/household membership: $20/year
Past talks have included:
- Grafting Techniques, Wayne Clifton
- Mangofest!
- Should You Consider Growing Citrus?, Gary Patton
- All About Jackfruit, Dr. Noris Ledesma
- Growing Pomegranates in Florida, Dr. William Castle
- Lychees, Longans & Spanish Lime, Will Wright
- Canistel and Sapodilla in the Home Landscape & Tropical Fruit Pollination, Dr. Jonathan Crane
Sarasota Tropical Fruit Gardening Meetup (Sarasota, FL)
We are gardeners with a passion for growing all kinds of tropical fruit and sharing our knowledge, our fruit, and our plants. There's an amazing variety of fantastic tasting tropical fruit. Have you ever tried an atemoya? A nispero? Mango, lychee, papaya, avocado, longan, sugar apple, pomegranate, and citrus galore - the list goes on and on.......
Donations
Our donations help fund club activities such as fruit tastings, honorariums to bring in four star speakers, and cover our beautiful meeting location.
Past speakers have included Dr. Jonathan Crane of the University of Florida and Associate Director of Horticultural Sciences at T.R.E.C. in Homestead, and Dr. Noris Ledesma, Curator of Tropical Fruit at Fairchild Tropical Botanic Garden.
We always appreciate donations made in person, but we welcome them online as well.
