BY MARY REID BARROW

THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT NEWS

GAYLORD VENTURA’S home and yard on the shore of one of the lakes in Indian Lakes in Virginia Beach looks like most other well-kept yards in the neighborhood, but the appearance is deceptive.

Behind the garden gate, this is no ordinary garden. Instead trees, shrubs and vines of all species, and varieties of fruits in pots and in the ground line the perimeter of the yard, sometimes three, four or more plants deep. Ventura is not just a gardener. He is a plant collector.

Conservatively, Ventura raises 200 or more fruits, which include at least 100 different ones. Some are very rare like a Yuzu lemon from the foothills of China. Forty or so of his plants are cold-hardy citrus, a favorite of Ventura’s.

“But basically any kind of fruit you can think of, I grow it,” Ventura said.

Huge banana trees are two stories high. There are several varieties of guava, kumquat, mango, mandarin, lemon, star fruit and grapefruit. There is a thimbleberry (little red berries) and also a gooseberry (little greenish berries). Plants we know and love but that don’t usually grow here include sugar cane and coffee, tea and olive trees.

Ventura also raises fruits known to grow in this area, such as strawberries, raspberries, scuppernong grapes, figs, peaches, nectarines, apricots, plums, passionflower fruit and kiwis. Kumquats are a favorite, and he has many species, including Sunquat and Nippon Orangequat.

“I like kumquats,” Ventura said, “because you can eat the whole thing.”

He has an odd little plant called Miracle Fruit, which will prevent you from sensing a sour taste for 30 minutes after you eat it. “You can eat a whole lemon and think you are eating lemon candy,” Ventura said.

Ventura, an ophthalmic medical and surgical technician in Norfolk, purchased his home in Indian Lakes four years ago. He began his fruit garden with a few plants, such as the big banana tree, that came from his boyhood home in Charleston, S.C.

“My dad was into gardening, and I took a liking to it,” he said. “Throughout college, I always thought I would buy a house right away and start gardening.”

Since then the 33-year-old Ventura has been acquiring plants through catalogs and on the Internet. Whenever he travels to warmer places, such as California and Florida, he also brings back small plants or seeds. Stacks of gardening books and notebooks full of information that he has gathered are on his kitchen table, and he also enjoys trading information with other gardeners on the GardenWeb forum on the Internet.

Many of his plants bear fruit that is just beginning to ripen now because cold-hardy citrus take a long growing season and the fruit usually ripens late in the year. These citrus stay outside in pots or in the ground all winter. Some may defoliate as really cold weather comes on, but they survive. Cold-hardy plants include varieties of lemons, tangerines, mandarins, grapefruits and kumquats. He is high on a new cold-hardy citrus, a Juanita tangerine, that he recently acquired.

“It’s becoming really popular,” Ventura said. “It’s very cold hardy and produces a lot of fruit. It tastes just like storebought tangerines.”

Ventura keeps up with his hobby by spending about 30 to 40 minutes every day in the yard. In winter and spring he spends far more time as he prepares his plants for winter or gets ready for the growing season.

Ventura is building a temporary cold frame that can be erected each winter under his carport to protect some of his tropicals. In winters past, the living room and garage of his home have been filled to overflowing with the likes of bananas, avocados and mangos.

For the beginner, Ventura said there is nothing like starting out with a Meyer Lemon or a Calamondin orange tree, both readily available in winter in local nurseries. Both plants adjust to a move inside in winter with ease because they don’t have to have full sun and will bear fruit inside.

“They fruit very well in pots,” Ventura said. “And they don’t require much care, a little fertilizer here and there.”


MARY REID BARROW PHOTOS Gaylord Ventura holds a Centennial Kumquat is in front of one of his huge banana trees.

Millet, you beat me to it!

eyekr, Kudos to you!!!

Great job G !

Thanks for the posting Millet.

I think Gaylord may be the northermost true citrus nut around, and a great person to boot! Good going Gaylord!

Ned

Way to go Mr V! And to think, I knew when you were just another citruholic! Also, congrats on winning that trophy at the Expo for the lemandarin. I ate my last sample today...Ummm Ummm Good!

Congratulations

Thanks everybody! I owe a lot to or at least can lay the blame partially on Dr Bob, Stan and Ned for fueling my citrus addiction! The tropical and subtropical fruit collection is another story. I enjoyed the visit by the local reporter and giving her a tour of my postage stamp sized yard. This article is a little dated though since it was back from over a couple of years ago.

Stan, the trophy was a suprise but is now proudly displayed on my mantel

Here's a pic of a my Lemandarin's fruit cluster:

Hey Gaylord,
Great Article!
I will tell you what, that Lemandarin is GREAT! I can't wait to get one. I talk to the seeds everyday! Hopefully will come true to type, or at least close.
Darren

Gaylord, you would have to ship me some of those lemandarin fruits of yours, if not, then seeds will do,

I'll send you my budwood listing and you can choose from there for exchange.

I told Gaylord that he should name the fruit "Gaylord Lemondarin" , but I think Ventura Lemondarin has a classy sounding title.

I vote for Ventura Lemandarin!

Terrific article- Way to go G!

The photo of the fruit cluster is gorgeous!