On occasion, I have posted tidbits of information from the magazines
"Tropical Fruit News" (http://www.gate.net/~tfnews), which is put out
by the Rare Fruit Council International (RFCI: Miami, Florida), and also
"Fruit Gardener" (http://www.crfg.org), which is put out by California
Rare Fruit Growers (CRFG: Fullerton, California).

Anyway, the latest issue of "Tropical Fruit News" (January, 1999)
arrived and includes a letter from the President of RFCI indicating
that RFCI and CRFG are discussing the possibility of combining their
separate magazines into one. The effort to produce a magazine is
significant, and perhaps by combining forces a better magazine
can be produced.

As a member of both organizations, and being cognizant of the effort
required to put out a magazine (I am involved in the production of
the monthly newsletter for SF-LiFE, the San Francisco Living Foods
Enthusiasts;  http://www.living-foods.com/sflife ), I support any
effort that will improve these publications and help the organizations
to continue their work.

Now, after the above administrative remarks, let me note that the latest
issue of "Tropical Fruit News" has as central topic the mangosteen,
Garcinia mangostana. The front and back pages of the issue feature color
photos of Florida-grown mangosteens. Many people consider the mangosteen
to be the finest fruit in the world; I personally have a different
favorite (Muntingia calabura, the "strawberry tree" from the Amazon
basin); the mangosteens I tried in Southeast Asia were good, but not as
good, in my opinion, as Muntingia.

Tom Billings
http://www.beyondveg.com