The Northern Piedmont Specialty Crops School will be held on Friday, February 29, 2008 at the Person County Cooperative Extension Center, 304 South Morgan Street in Roxboro, NC, according to Carl Cantaluppi, Area Horticulture Agent with the NC Cooperative Extension Service in Granville and Person Counties. The program will feature some good marketing ideas from our old friend, veteran grower and Emeritus VA Tech Extension Specialist Charlie O'Dell, of Crows Nest Farm in Blacksburg, VA. Charlie will give us an overview of his operation; how he got started, and how it has grown over the years to evolve into his present day operation. He will also tell us about what he does to be successful in growing and marketing specialty crops, including asparagus, blueberries, blackberries, and grapes. Pawpaws are a native fruit to NC and have largely been under-utilized until recently. The tree grows as an under story plant in the woods, producing clusters of small fruit. The fruit pulp is custard-like and has a taste that is a cross between banana, pineapple, and mango. It is highly perishable and has a soft skin that only lasts a few days under refrigeration. Ways are being explored at NC State to process the pulp into a frozen product, extending its shelf life and expanding the market for the fruit. Over the last 25 years, a pawpaw breeder, Neal Peterson of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, has developed several large fruited varieties that weigh over one pound each. Milton Parker, Retired Horticulture Agent with the NC Cooperative Extension Service has planted and now oversees a large pawpaw planting in southern NC. He will explain what is needed to be successful in growing pawpaws as a high value specialty crop and will relate his experiences with the different varieties he studies, and discuss their attributes. A pawpaw variety trial has also been planted by Cantaluppi in 2007 in Granville County that will trial four of Peterson's varieties to see how they perform in the Piedmont. Seedless table (bunch) grapes have not been grown on a commercial scale in the NC Piedmont. However, they hold tremendous potential as a high-income fresh market specialty crop for retail sales. In 2005, Cantaluppi planted a one-acre trial vineyard at the farm of Ms. Doreathy Booth with 14 different seedless table grape varieties from the breeding programs of Cornell University and the University of Arkansas. Cantaluppi will show slides of all the different varieties and discuss how well they yielded during their first year of harvest in 2007. Booth will explain her marketing techniques that enabled her to receive $3.00/lb. for the sweet, juicy grapes. Cantaluppi will also discuss the results of the first harvest of his ½ acre asparagus variety trial, comparing the yields of his 13 hybrid asparagus varieties and will make recommendations for commercial production. Muscadine grapes have been in the news recently, informing consumers about the healthful benefits of resveratrol, an antioxidant that protects the body from cancer that is found in muscadine grapes. Larry Cagle, a muscadine grape grower in Vale, NC, will explain how to plant muscadines in heavy clay soils and will talk about his creative marketing techniques to attract customers. Connie Fisk, an Extension Associate with the NC Dept. of Horticultural Science will give an overview of muscadine grape production in NC and will discuss the effects of the Easter Freeze of 2007 and its effects on production. The cost of the one-day school is $25.00 per person for the first individual in the family or business and $15.00 for each additional person. Both fees will include lunch, which will be provided. Pre-registration is required in order to save you a seat. For a copy of the program, pre-registration form, map, and a list of local motels in Roxboro, contact Carl Cantaluppi at 919-603-1350 or e-mail at carl_cantaluppi@ncsu.edu