It’s not too late to get your share of the crop.  The Inland Orange Conservancy makes its first navel orange deliveries to IOC members beginning the week of January 24.

"We’re ready for our first deliveries,” said Bob Knight, Inland Orange Conservancy Coordinator.  “The navel season started in the middle of January, and IOC members will be able to pick up their first bags of oranges.”

Knight, also manager of Redlands Foothill Groves Packing House, referred to the newly-formed Inland Orange Conservancy, whose purpose is to connect Redlands residents with Redlands-grown navel oranges—considered by connoisseurs to be the best oranges in the world—and keep Redlands “grovers” in business.

"Everyone wins with this project,” Knight explained, “because the residents finally get to have their home-grown, fresh oranges, and the grovers get to sustain their groves, which also means Redlands gets to keep its groves.”

Knight and the board members of the IOC arrived at the concept to sell memberships for $65 to everyone who is interested in sustaining and supporting the area’s citrus groves.  In return for the membership, members receive two five-pound bags of freshly-picked oranges every week for the entire 14-week season.

Can’t think of how to use 10 pounds of oranges each week?  No problem, says Knight, because the program has several variations which encourage people to donate their oranges to charities if they don’t want them for themselves.   

"The time is short for purchasing memberships and taking full advantage of the entire season’s fruit,” Knight said.  Of course, he added, the IOC will take contributions of any size at any time.  Currently, the IOC operates as a committee of the Redlands Conservancy, a non-profit tax-exempt charity organization.

For more information, visit the Web site at www.inlandorange.com, or call (909) 794-4484.