The benefits and effects of vine-ripened red passion fruit, netting organic happiness

 

 

In mid-June, the weather in southern Taiwan, China is unbearably hot. Chen Shigong and Huang Huijuan, the couple at Shihui Organic Farm who had already been busy in the fields all morning, fearless of the scorching sun overhead, hold freshly harvested, brilliantly red passion fruit in their hands, wipe away sweat and say they are used to it, their faces full of contented smiles.

 

The orchard grew from small to large   the more they planted, the more experience they gained

In 2013, through her contact with organic farming methods, Huang Huijuan met the previous owner of the orchard, who had succeeded in growing organic passion fruit. She was very satisfied with this orchard, so she leased it. "At first I had no experience and only dared to plant a small plot, but unexpectedly, the more I planted, the more experience I gained, and the more confident I became." This couple, who switched careers to farming in middle age, have expanded their planting area from a bit over two fen of land to 1 hectare now!

 

 

 

"Vine-ripened red" (tsāi-tsâng- âng) is pronounced in Taiwanese and refers to the most perfectly ripened state of fruit on the branch. After comparing various passion fruits, Chen Shigong chose to grow Tainung No. 1, because it has a particularly rich aroma and a balanced sweet-and-sour taste. Seedlings are planted in early November each year, flowers bloom in March of the following year, fruit harvesting begins in mid-May, and the peak production month of June is the busiest time, when they must patrol the trellises and collect fruit every day, until August when the season enters its final stage. "During peak season, we can harvest a full 6 bamboo baskets of 20 kilograms each every day!" From seedlings, watering, fertilizing, and pest removal to harvesting, everything is handled by the couple themselves, and beneath the beads of sweat is a sense of accomplishment and joy.

 

A pure environment   attracts lovely birds to nest

 

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During the growth process, passion fruit must go through flowering and pollination by bees before young fruit can grow. Therefore, the help of bees is greatly needed. "But where have all the bees gone?" Huang Huijuan sighed. Facing fewer and fewer wild bees, they once tried artificial pollination, but since only the couple works in the orchard, it was not only physically overwhelming but also inefficient. For this reason, Shihui Organic Farm keeps quite a number of bees, taking on the important role of little pollination angels.

 

The two are quite proud of managing the orchard to be lush green, clean and refreshing. While patrolling the orchard, they also said cheerfully, "We'll take you to see the birds nesting on the trellis." Everyone carefully looked up and searched, and indeed found several bird nests "hidden" on the trellis! Chen Shigong said that Japanese white-eyes, Chinese bulbuls, night herons and other birds often come here to nest. "To get these lovely guests to grace us with their presence, the prerequisite is a non-toxic, pesticide-free environment!"

 

 

 

A sweet-and-sour sense of happiness   the taste buds know best

 

Although it was Huang Huijuan who decided to step into organic agriculture, Chen Shigong, who followed afterward, instead became the main force in field cultivation and management. For example, setting up hanging nets on the trellis was his masterpiece after observing and studying in many places. Besides allowing the fruit to ripen fully and fall naturally, preventing it from falling on the ground and rotting from dew or rain, it also makes harvesting more convenient!

 

 

 

Chen Shigong is also very attentive in caring for the fruit trees. He places DIY flypaper around the trellis to prevent aphids and spider mites from biting; he also sprays mineral oil or neem oil to prevent pests from reproducing, and it also has an antifeedant effect on insects. In addition, besides needing sufficient sunlight, good ventilation, and not too high a density, passion fruit trees are also very afraid of "fusarium wilt"! He learned from experts' research analysis that it is caused by planting too densely. After switching to a spacing of 2 m x 4 m per plant, fusarium wilt rarely occurred.

 

How should you choose delicious passion fruit? Huang Huijuan said that the redder the color, the riper it is; when it turns purple-red, the sweetness rises, and the sweetness is highest when the skin has obvious wrinkles. "For people who are afraid of sourness, this is the one to choose!" Chen Shigong emphasized that passion fruit should not be put in the refrigerator, because ripened passion fruit tastes better, and refrigeration instead stops the ripening process! The couple said confidently that after eating the passion fruit they carefully grew, you will surely taste the abundant sense of happiness blooming on your taste buds.