Time to eat

Depending on location and fruit variety, among other factors, the picking traditionally started in mid- to late-August, and they could count on full-bore production up to, and beyond, Labor Day.

The schedule is far different this year, thanks to changes in weather, reduced water, and periods of cold followed by high heat in late June and into July. Growers are picking, hiring workers, and picking some more, and looking ahead to the next block of fruit or the next variety to ripen. Fruit farmers have always been a resourceful and flexible group, and no doubt they will find the way to respond to this change in the fruit calendar.

We can all help. Those of us so-inclined can help with the harvest, but that’s conditional at best.

There’s another way to help.

It’s simple.

Buy local fruit.

As it comes on the market, snatch up those Starkrimsons and Bartletts at local markets that sell them, or go to the source: many local growers also provide fruit stands where you can buy the fruit right next to the highway. It’s not far out of the way, and it’s fun. You also get to meet the grower and learn directly from them about the fruit, and what it goes with it in planning meals or recipes.

Another case for buying directly from the grower is introduction to the many lesser-known varieties of fruit grown right here in the valley — and in dozens of cases they are grown and sold nowhere else in the country, and not at any supermarket.

The Fruit Loop organization is one source of information on what’s growing and where to buy it, including upcoming festivals celebrating agriculture. Look for more details in the Hood River News and, when it comes to specialty products, events and the people behind them, look to the next edition of our Savor publication, due out just before Labor Day.

Agriculture is what drives the local economy. We can’t all drive tractors or fill bins — unless it is your grocery cart. It’s time to eat.