28th Annual Manatee Rare Fruit Sale Set For May 22

Manatee Rare Fruit Sale set for May 22

PALMETTO -- The Manatee Rare Fruit Council's 28th annual Rare Fruit Tree sale is set for 10 a.m. -- 4 p.m. Sunday, May 22, at the Bradenton Area Convention Center, 1 Haben Blvd.

The popular event is one of the largest, one-day, fruit plant sale in the state of Florida. Debit and credit cards are accepted and an on-site ATM machine will be available.

For sale: More than 5,000 fruiting plants, hundreds of varieties of fresh as well as dried herbs, local honey, rare fruit jellies and plenty of plant-related items, including specially formulated "Fruitilizer" plant food.

The Manatee Rare Fruit Council is a non-profit group working to introduce, propagate and distribute the many rare tropical and sub-tropical fruits that thrive in Southwest Florida.

Some of the trees available include avocado, atemoya, bananas, barbados cherry, berries, cherimoya, citrus, grumichama, jaboticaba, figs, kumquat, lychee, mango, papaya, passion fruit, peaches, pomegranate, rolina, sapodilla, soursop, wax jambu, and white sapote.

Information: www.mrfc.org.

Lakewood Ranch residents invited to emergency course

LAKEWOOD RANCH -- The Lakewood Ranch Community Emergency Response Team is planning a four-session course for Lakewood Ranch residents June 16 at Town Hall.

Residents can learn how to keep their families safe during storms, flooding, power outages, and more. Topics include basic first aid, home safety, flood zones, evacuation, making the home hurricane safe, search and rescue, fire safety, practice using a fire extinguisher and more. Register at lwr.cert@gmail.com.

Registration opens for Marine Explorers day camp

PALMETTO -- A free Manatee Marine Explorers Day Camp for local youth is set for the county Extension Manatee County office on June 10.

The camp was created by two University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension agents.

"There is so much more to the ocean than what you can see on the surface," says Angela Collins, a UF/IFAS Extension Manatee County agent and co-organizer of the camp.

She and fellow Manatee County UF/IFAS Extension agent Michelle Atkinson will introduce attendees to the diversity of marine life that may be less familiar than dolphins or sea turtles. During a fish dissection, Collins will show what makes fish unique -- such as gills -- and what makes them not so different from us. "We'll show the kids where the heart is, the stomach, intestines--things they can relate to," Collins said.

These young scientists will also discover the otolith, a tiny bone in the fish's head that can tell a scientist how old the fish is--just as a tree gets more tree rings as it ages, the otolith likewise develops rings as a fish grows older.

Registration is capped at 50 participants and will close June 3. Activities will be held at the UF/IFAS Extension Manatee County office, 1303 17th St W, Palmetto. The camp is free. For registration and more information, go to http://bit.ly/24pMFkX

-- Herald staff report

This story was originally published May 16, 2016 at 11:57 PM with the headline "28th Annual Manatee Rare Fruit Sale Set For May 22 ."