Working a 'miracle' with apples
By MEGHAN SAPP
If impressing a teen-ager is a talent, then keeping a teen-ager interested in grafting apple trees for 85 minutes is a miracle. Joe Sabol of Cal Poly's ag ed department has performed more than 3,000 miracles this winter.
With the help of some local Master Gardeners, a few members of the California Rare Fruit Grower's Association, a van full of Pink Lady apples and a plaque framed courtesy of funds from the California Apple Commission, Sabol attacks high schools up and down the coast with gusto. As a guest speaker from as far north as Paso Robles to south of Ventura, Sabol roams the California Coast teaching high school students to graft apple trees "for only a dollar."
Three years ago, as an outcropping of the rare fruit grower's annual fruit grafting scion swap, Sabol contacted ag teachers in Atascadero, Paso Robles and San Luis Obispo high schools. Armed with some Swiss army knives, apple root stock, dirt, tree tape, "goop" and some apple scions, Sabol introduced about 100 teen-agers to cleft grafting.
What makes this experiment fun for the kids, who under ordinary circumstances would rather be ogling each other than listening to strangers talk about apple trees, is that "Dr. Joe" keeps them involved.
His quick manner of speech makes sure they pay attention or they'll miss out on something. There's a joke around every corner and a smile on every face. Make sure you're right hand is up during the oath. "I swear to not cut myself. I swear to not cut anyone else." Sabol has a 99 percent no-cut rate.
After Sabol's first round of school visits in 1998, which he does between February and April, word began to spread. The second year it increased to 13 schools and this year to 30.
"It's getting out of control," Sabol said. "It's so popular to have rare fruit growers going to the high schools."
For $100, a school can get 106 apple trees and Sabol will show up with his "crew" for free. "But it's getting too big for us. We have got to spread the wealth."
At last year's state conference of the CRFGA, Sabol passed out fliers explaining how to do the project hoping other chapters would take it to their local schools. So far as he knows, at least one other chapter began teaching cleft grafting at schools this year, but he hopes to hear from others.
When doing the demonstration and projects at schools, local growers, ranchers, nursery people and other community members usually are invited to join the kids. While doing the demonstration in Porterville this year, a local couple joined the students at Lindsay High School. Mary and Alan Bennett were so impressed with the program, they wrote a check to the high school for $100 to pay for next year's trees.
That spirit of generosity has been a large part of the grafting projects. Because the root stock is bought in bulk for high school students, Sabol can get them from his supplier in Montana for $1 each. The CRFGA bought all the knives, the apple commission gives a Pink Lady apple to everyone who plants a tree and pays for the frame that holds the certificate given to every high school that participates in the program. Sabol figures all they really need now are about 65 clipboards to keep the worksheets from flying away during the demonstration, "and maybe an RV."
Famous for his own grafted apple tree that has 67 varieties on it, 26 of which produced fruit last year, Sabol wonders how many miles he'll log next year. "If everyone had gotten his money in on time, we would have had 50 schools this year."
© Copyright 2001
Capital Press Agriculture Weekly. Capital Press is an independent weekly farm/ranch newspaper published every Friday by Press Publishing Co., 1400 Broadway St. NE, Salem, OR 97303. Telephone 800-882-6789. Fax 503-370-4383