There have been so many articles about the trees planted in the new Apple campus, and how this was somehow groundbreaking, but it's actually been pretty disappointing. I've seen some lists of trees, especially fruit trees, that they've planted, and it's pretty uninspired -- they didn't Think Different. Lots of pomes (Apples, Pears, etc.) and stone fruit (Plums, Cherries, etc.) -- conventional varieties too. And they talk about drought tolerance, but I haven't seen a single mention of them planting White Sapote, a fruit perfectly adapted to the local climate, delicious, and very productive (not to mention, rare). Or various Guava relatives (Lemon / Strawberry Guava, Guabiju, Pineapple Guava, etc.). And that's just scratching the surface...<p>I wish they would have talked to the local chapter of California Rare Fruit Growers to plan an orchard with a true diversity of interesting fruit. They had an opportunity to include a huge diversity of fruits and cultivars with the space they have, but it seems like they're not going to.
I've visited a park here that has living trees that were planted by a wealthy retired officer, to be sail ship masts. Now would be about harvesting time, some 100 years later. It's a nice place though.<p>I applaud their efforts. Seems it's just impossible to let the environment be. First everything absolutely just must be destroyed, and then, years later, somebody must spend a lot of effort and time to actually try to make it "nice" again, and they won't see the results in their lifetime anyway.
I can't believe that this is the first time anyone's ever brought up plating a macintosh apple tree. I mean, if you have the opportunity to make a pun in tree form, how could you not?