forbidden fruit

Another story about “wasted food :”
In the bamboo-filled lot just down the street today, Mari and I noticed that the kaki (persimmon) tree was heavy with ripe fruit — juicy-looking bright orange and tomato-red sweets hanging just a few feet out of reach. There’s space for a ladder — a small parking lot sits underneath — but a storm drain runs right in front of the tree like a moat. We discussed whether we could make a fruit picker with a pole and string.

Reminded me of Fallen Fruit, the project that mapped free fruit in Los Angeles, encouraging people to take advantage of a law that says, according to the project statement, “if a fruit tree grows on or over public property, the fruit is no longer the sole property of the owner.”