Extremely local Papaya and hyper local Manzano bananas.
I had an incredibly fresh and local fruit snack for this afternoon. How local? I should probably label it all hyperlocal but I will differentiate. The papaya is from a few blocks away at Mike and Annette’s yard, also hosts to my very productive 8 frame garden hive. There are two mature Papaya trees growing from their compost bins….the discarded seeds apparently liked the environment, therefore, the Papayas are very, very local. The Manzano bananas are 29 steps from my back door, in my little plot, obviously, very hyperlocal.
Hyperlocal – “”The term hyperlocal has been used in journalistic circles since the late ’80s, but with the changing face of journalism and the development of online media, has now begun to filter into more mainstream use.” http://www.macmillandictionary.com/buzzword/entries/hyperlocal.html
I was going to give Tara Chapman of Two Hives Honey credit for the term “hyperlocal”. She is an Austin, Texas, based beekeeper with a very interesting background. I took her marketing class at the Brenham Beekeepers school. She markets her honey as “hyperlocal” – named for the Austin neighborhood hosting her hives….I market mine by the zip code of the hive….a little larger than hyperlocal. Check out her website.
Lets get back to my snack. A little google search and I had my papaya prep instructions…a first for me. Sliced lengthwise, de-seeded and sliced into strips, carefully removed the skin and then cut into chunks. The banana was cut in half lengthwise and then sliced. A sprinkling of lime juice and chill for a bit. Yum.
The starting point. Yes, the papaya is ripe as are the tasty Manzano bananas.
My next step? Seed saving and growing my own Papayas…..about 29 steps from my back door…..so very hyperlocal.
TTFN
Bishop
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From My Backyard 
Sep 24, 2016 @ 23:10:10
Oh, I envy you those papayas!!! I have adored them since growing up in South Florida in the 50s. I tried growing them when I lived in SoCal in the 90s. Bot a small tree at a reputable nursery, planted it in full sun. It grew, within a few years started bearing. The fruit was big and lush, but went from green to yellow to black rot, never turned orange. Sadly, they smelled and tasted like mushy, moldy pineapple.
The next year I was book-careful with my feeding and watering. Same results. Thinking I personally must have had some sort of taste-smell “stroke,” I called in objective friends and neighbors. They too got only a moldy pineapple taste. Ugh!
I kept trying for another five years, during which time the tree grew larger and more fruitful. It was happy, I was not. I began taking the fruit directly to the compost pile for a few more years, while hoping the tree would “mature.” After about ten years I gave up and dug it up and out.
Very sad, very puzzling. Happy to hear of your own local success!!!
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