ENCANTO FARMS NURSERY
"Specializing in Figs and Bananas in San Diego"
Thank you for your interest in Encanto Farms Nursery and for being a part of my new adventure. Starting new plants was, in hind sight, the easy part. Starting a business is a lot of work. I hope that your patience with me will be rewarded when your new plants arrive. This is still a work in progress and I hope that you will continue to be patient. As with anything new, I am sure there will be some kinks, but they will be attended to.
I have enjoyed growing fruiting plants all my life and selling plants locally in San Diego for a long time before considering starting an online nursery. I do not want you to buy a plant that is not good for you, so I have shared what I know about each one, to the extent that I am able, at http://figs4fun.com and http://webebananas.com. More information will be added later this year, as time permits. The newest pictures of the USDA / UC Davis collection are posted at http://www.websitetoolbox.com/mb/figs4funforum as they are prepared. The plants in my collection are listed at http://encantofarms.com/fig6143a.html. Though the list is seriously out of date, it will give you a hint at some of the things I hope to have available next season. My experience is in Southern California, and may not be applicable to your location. If I don’t know something, I will tell you so. I know what it is like to be in the customer’s shoes because I have purchased more than my share of plants over the years. It is my hope that I can treat you in the way that I would want to be treated. Because I have been more oriented to growing, experimenting and educating (as well as keeping up with a "regular" job) some things will be done differently than you may be used to. Please read this introduction in its' entirety.
Shipping to many states requires me to provide a Phytosanitary or Snail Certificate. E-mail me with your address and I can have the Ag Inspector check the requirements for your state. States which have been checked and which do NOT need this paperwork, so far, are Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. States which have been confirmed as requiring this inspection are Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington and West Virginia. In general, northern states are more lenient and southern states are more particular. This costs me (and you) $30 per shipment. I think this is excessive, but that is the reality of the nursery business here in San Diego. The fee is assessed per shipment and per addressee, regardless of the number of plants in the shipment. One plant is $30 and 10,000 plants are also $30. So, the more plants that you order, the less the fee costs per plant: one plant is $30, and 10 plants are $3 each. I know that sounds like a marketing gimmick to get you to purchase more plants, but it is the reality of the situation. This is my full disclosure.
See http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/tools/feedback/commene.shtml Canadian Food Inspection Agency 613-225-2342 x 4359 for information about shipping to Canada, and the permits they require. For friends in other parts of the world, the restrictions and requirements are prohibitive.
As I said, starting a business is a lot of work. One of the things not attended to, yet, is credit cards (including website upgrades to handle them, etc.). So, for the time being, I will be limiting payment methods to Paypal and checks. Many of the plants that I have are one-of-a-kind. That means, at least for this season, they are irreplaceable, so both you and I need to take very special care of them. It also means that not everyone will be able to have everything they desire. Some are in 1 gallon pots, while others have grown more and are now in 2 gallon pots. Many are only available in one size or the other. So, after reviewing the list of available plants, e-mail me, and I will set the plants aside (if available) and advise you of their size, their costs, shipping, etc. After we have worked that all out to our mutual satisfaction, then I will ask you to make payment. I anticipate shipping in the middle of October, when temperatures will be more conducive to the plants arriving in a healthy condition.
Generally, one gallon plants will be $15, and 2 gallon plants will be $20 (and obviously a little more to ship as well), though there will be a few (yes, few means few) exceptions for things which have been especially difficult to propagate. There are a few plants that are in 5 gallon pots, and probably not suitable for shipping because of the expense, but I am willing to accommodate anyone who so desires.
If you are interested in fig trees, you must be aware that I have an extensive collection of varieties. As a result of their many places of origin, including USDA/UC Davis, they have all been exposed to Fig Mosaic Virus (FMV) and mostly likely are infected with it (though not all exhibit symptoms). Some of my varieties have come from the finest sources in the country, and they have been similarly infected. I do not consider this to be a problem and the United States Department of Agriculture agrees, noting that it is “ubiquitous” even in many wild populations of trees. But I understand that some people are concerned. It is not possible to have a collection of this size and not have FMV, just as it is not possible to obtain most of these varieties from uninfected sources. If this is of concern to you, you will probably want to refrain from purchasing. Also, I have used names for all of the figs which they had when I received them, unless they were unmistakably mislabeled. The pictures at Figs 4 Fun will serve to identify them as what they actually are here in San Diego (given the difference of climates, soil, fertilizer, caprification, etc. "your results may vary"). Again this is my full disclosure.
There are probably a few things which are not on the list, but they may be ready in another month. If you are looking for something in particular, e-mail me, and I will let you know what I can do this season. I am not quite ready to keep up with a want list, but let me know, anyway, which will help in planning for next season, and will, most likely, get the "plant of your dreams" to you sooner, even if it means waiting till next season. Also, I will make fig cuttings available from February 1st to March 31st, 2008, through the Nursery and through Seedsavers.org Exchange. If you are interested, e-mail me and I will add you to that list.
FIGS
I have almost 150 in-ground varieties of figs, and more than 100 more still in pots. There are about 120 fig varieties available this season. And in 2008, I hope to have as many as 200 varieties. I continue to add new varieties each month and 2008 will also bring the release of quarantined varieties received from England almost 2 years ago. Encanto Farms is definitely a "boutique" nursery, producing my own plants in very limited quantities, as I have my own cuttings available for propagation. Everything I sell, I also grow in my orchard, so I have real experience with these plants.
BANANAS
I have plants of more than 60 banana varieties available. All banana plants will be pups from my in-ground orchard. This limits availability, but provides a better plant and a shorter time to maturity than tissue culture. Everything I sell, I also grow in my orchard, so I have real experience with these plants
Finally, I owe debt of gratitude to many people who have shared cuttings and plants with me over the years, which has enabled me to make many of these varieties available. If you have varieties which are not yet a part of my collection, I would enjoy receiving cuttings or plants to add to the collection (at my expense, of course).
To be added to our mailing list, and to be notified of available varieties and future news, please click the e-mail link below. I hate spam and junk e-mail as much as you, so your e-mail address will be used by the nursery and no one else on the planet for any other reason whatsoever.
Our figs and bananas living peacefully together with many other fruiting trees.
