Lodi weather drives plants bananas
Lodi woman’s tree bears fruit for first time
Lodi is famous for growing winegrapes, olives and cherries, but the area isn’t exactly known for its banana crop.
That’s why Dorothy Gambetti was so surprised to find the usually tropical fruit growing on a tree in her backyard.
Gambetti, who turned 91 on Wednesday, first noticed a large, red flower blooming on the banana tree about a week ago, with the fruit coming a day or two after.
She told her friend, Gloria Day, who was equally shocked by the out-of-place fruit.
“It’s definitely very unusual,” Day say.
Gambetti, who has lived in her house on Reynolds Way for 15 years, planted the tree 10 years ago.
This is the first time that it has produced fruit, she said. (Fun fact: Botanically, bananas are classified as berries.)
San Joaquin County Farm Bureau Executive Director Bruce Blodgett had not heard of bananas being grown in Lodi, stating in an email that while they are not grown commercially in the area, blueberries and other specialty fruits and vegetables are grown for various ethnic markets.
Gambetti and Day think the two long stretches of high temperatures this summer contributed to the growth of approximately 30 small, green bananas.
“Maybe they have to get so old before they start to bear,” Gambetti said. “I don’t know. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Gambetti does not yet have any plans for the bananas once they ripen, but she’ll most likely enlist the help of a friend or neighbor to climb a ladder and pick them, she said.