L is for Lindcove and Lindcove is for Citrus

L is for Lindcove, and what some people may not know is that Lindcove, an unincorporated area of Tulare County, is home to the world famous Lindcove Research and Extension Center. You may have passed it on your way to Kaweah Lake, Three Rivers or Sequoia-Kings Canyon National parks.

This little gem of a center is committed to delivering the tastiest, most flavorful, citrus to the world. So how does it work?

The center was established in 1959 by citrus growers in the San Joaquin Valley and the University of California Riverside. Its 125 acres serves as the perfect place to conduct research to find out what type of citrus will make us smile when we go to the fruit stand or the produce aisle with a craving.

Why Lindcove? Its soils and the climate are representative of the 190,000 acres of citrus growing in our great Central Valley. That's why scientists love it. They can develop new varieties of citrus, figure out better growing practices and figure out how to keep the pests away from our beloved citrus.

There are grower tastings there all the time, in fact one this month offers growers tastings of over 15 varieties of Satsumas, but every December they also do a public tasting. I strongly encourage you to attend. It's set for Dec. 11 this year and that will be here before we know it, trust me.

The Lindcove Research and Extension Center is another Tulare County the Great. For more info on it, visit groups.ucanr.org/lindcove/index.cfm.