Pandemic moves popular rare fruit sale to a new outdoor site in East Manatee
Now in its 32nd year, the Rare Fruit Tree Sale, an annual Manatee County event with a huge following, has a new location this year.
Traditionally held indoors at the Bradenton Area Convention Center in Palmetto, the sale moves outdoors to Premier Sports Campus, 5895 Post Blvd., Lakewood Ranch. The event is 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, May 16.
Last year, the nonprofit Manatee Rare Fruit Council canceled the sale because of COVID-19. One of the reasons the sale is outside this year is because of the continuing pandemic threat.
Things can get pretty crowded indoors when several customers are vying for the same plant or tree, whether it be a dwarf mango, carambola, sapodilla, jackfruit or dozens of other choices that will be offered by more than 20 vendors.
Michael Jaster, a member of the council for 35 years and one of the council’s past presidents, moved to Florida from Cleveland and became intrigued by all of the fruit trees that could be grown in Bradenton’s subtropical climate.
“I got hooked,” Jaster said. “You can’t grow these things in Cleveland.”
Now his yard has so many mango, black sapote, carambola and macadamia nut trees that he can’t add any more without removing something.
That reflects the passion of rare fruit lovers in general. Some, like Jaster, come from the snowy north, while others are native Floridians. Then there are many who have a recent immigrant background, who come looking for the flavors they knew and loved in southern Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean, and elsewhere.
Premier Sports Campus is located 4 1/2 miles east of Interstate 75. Parking is free, and restrooms are on site. Masks and social distancing are required.
Bring your own cash and cart or wheelbarrow. There is no ATM. Vendors will accept payment directly this year. In the past, customers paid for their purchase as they exited the convention center.
For more information about the rare fruit council, visit http://www.mrfc.org/.
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The Manatee Rare Fruit Council planted and maintains an exotic fruit tree section at Palma Sola Botanical Park, 9800 17th Ave. NW, Bradenton.
Many of the exotic trees and plants that will be sold at the rare fruit tree sale can be seen at Palma Sola Botanical Park. Admission to the park is free. Each tree has an identification post and can be viewed along a shell walkway with benches. There is a gazebo near the pond, and an attractive bridge connecting the rare fruit tree area to the back of the park.
The Park began in 1990 when community groups rallied to save the 10-acre site that had once been the Manatee County Nursery. The Palma Sola Botanical Park Foundation was created in 1993 to preserve the former nursery as green space and a park.
The park receives no funding from local government and supports itself through rentals for special events, including celebrations of life, quinceaneras, anniversaries, weddings, yoga and gardening classes, and art shows.
At one point during the worst of the pandemic, the park lost all of its bookings and launched a GoFundMe page to help stay open.
This story was originally published May 12, 2021 at 7:48 AM.
