I don't know, but most U.S. states have one. A state fruit is kind of a silly symbol, often meant to promote local agriculture or tourism. Like many silly things, this seems to have started life here in New York, where in 1976 the apple was proclaimed our state fruit.
We do grow a lot of apples in this state. The town of Warwick has an apple festival every year, as do other places like Cairo (pronounced KAY-roh) and that hub of appledom, Queens. And of course New York City is known as the Big Apple, although the origin of that nickname is a little odd. (More than you would ever want to know about that can be found courtesy of the New York Public Library.)
Once New York got its state fruit, others piled on -- Louisiana in 1980 (the Louisiana strawberry), South Carolina in 1984 (the peach), and so on. Now most, but not all, states have a state fruit, to go along with the state flag, state song, state motto, state bird, state flower, state dance, state fossil, and on and on.
Here's a handy chart if you're curious about what your favorite state's fruit might be. Up to date as of September 2022:
There are some obvious choices here -- Georgia peaches, Vermont apples, Massachusetts cranberries, Florida oranges. New Hampshire has a big pumpkin gala every October. And Minnesota's pride in the Honeycrisp is legendary.
But there are also surprises on the list. Two states picking the pawpaw, with Virginia considering joining the crew, is odd. New Jersey is proud of its tomatoes, but went with the blueberry. North Dakota's chokecherry and Kansas's sandhill plum have to be cooked before eating (but supposedly make delicious preserves and such).
California, famous for its oranges, decided to be different, or at least its governor did; Gavin Newsom named the avocado the state fruit all by himself, like the nerd at school who dares you to call his choice a vegetable. (Most of the other state fruits were chosen through state legislatures, but that's not how California works -- or does it?)
The rest of these states need to get into the act. Such as:
Idaho -- They need to develop the Honeycrisp Potato.
Connecticut -- Money -- Yes, money is not a fruit, but in some places in Connecticut it seems to grow on trees. Darien, Essex, Old Greenwich -- ah, to be there at money-harvest time!
New Mexico -- Cactus. Whatever type they like. Some are edible. Those are sorta fruits, but I don't know. I've never been there. Just choose something, New Mexico.
Colorado -- Marijuana buds.
Hawaii -- The pineapple was not a native Hawaiian plant, so choose something else. The coconut is a fruit, of the drupe variety. It kept the castaways on Gilligan's Isle alive, right?
That's all I got. What do YOU think would make a good state fruit?
My state -- the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania -- tried to make apple the state fruit a few years ago, but didn't seal the deal. Reasoning is that apples grow in every county. Makes sense.
ReplyDeleteI would have suggested raspberry, because I used to see those things grow wild in the woods when I was a kid. But maybe that's just regional.
Anything but apple would be good. Nothing against apples, but they grow all over the place and it would be silly because half of the country would have apple as the state fruit. Be creative! Pick something unique!
I thought our state fruit here in California was Scott Wiener.
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