Fruit, berry, and nut inventory: An inventory of nursery catalogs listing all fruit, berry, and nut varieties available by mail order in the United States
by Kent Whealy, Joanne Thuente
Category: Gardening

Fruit, Berry and Nut Inventory is an essential reference for all backyard fruit growers and commercial orchardists who care about the rich diversity of fruit, berry, and nut varieties offered by mail-order nurseries in the United States. This comprehensive "catalog of catalogs" is now available in its newly updated Third Edition, which lists 280 nurseries that offer nearly 6,000 varieties of fruits, berries, and nuts-everything from apples and bananas to tangerines and walnuts. There's nothing sexy here, no color photographs or quaint illustrations. But the information presented in this book is so unique and invaluable that fruit growers everywhere will turn to it again and again, looking for sources that offer rare nineteenth-century apples, or for descriptions of newly bred grapes, or even for unusual varieties of tropical fruits. Where else could you find sources for Maiden Blush apple (1817), African Rhino Horn banana, Leningrad Giant currant, Adriatic fig, Pineapple grape, Dr. Beaumont macadamia, Choctaw pecan, or Yellow Egg plum? Backyard and commercial growers concerned with the loss of biodiversity will deeply appreciate the Fruit, Berry and Nut Inventory. Fruit breeders, plant collectors, and amateur growers can quickly tell which varieties are being offered by only one or two companies and need to be purchased, while sources still exist, and permanently maintained to prevent being lost forever. Everything commercially available can be scanned to find varieties perfect for specific climates, or resistant to local diseases and pests. Northern and high-altitude growers can use the book to find exceptionally hardy, short-season varieties that will survive and mature in their locations. Orchards, nurseries, and botanical gardens can use it to find sources for unique plant material. The fruits, berries, and nuts available today are the result of centuries of collection and amateur development, further refined by the world's finest breeding programs. Growers and breeders have developed regionally adapted varieties with superior taste, disease resistance, and countless other virtues. Fruit, Berry and Nut Inventory opens the orchard's gate and invites us to discover them.