Associated Press
09-27-07
Apple harvest not ripe for the pickin'
By MATTHEW WILDE
Courier Staff Writer
DENVER --- A weather roller coaster last spring left a scant crop of apples for
this fall's harvest, growers say.
A warm spell in March caused trees to bud early and a freeze in April killed off
many of the blossoms, said Eric Nordman of Blueridge Orchard just west of
Denver on County Road C-50. That alone was enough to cut production in half.
Then a storm in August pelted Nordman's apples with nickel-size hail for five
minutes leaving the fruit battered and bruised. Another 25 percent lost, he said.
To top it off, 10 inches of rain last month saturated the ground so much the some
roots couldn't keep trees upright during high winds. Seven of his 250 trees were
lost.
"It wasn't a good year," Nordman said Wednesday trying to stay positive.
"There's a few (orchards) hardly even open this year so I'm thankful for what I
got."
Nordman hopes to harvest 180 to 200 bushels of apples this fall. However,
there's no guarantee that many will be sold.
"The apples toward the top of the tree look fine from the ground, then you find
big, brown spots (hail damage) and have to throw them away," Nordman
continued.
Some of his 13 varieties, like the popular Honeycrisp, are already picked and
sold out. Though others like Connell Red and Fireside are still being plucked
from trees. If things go well, Blueridge will have apples available until the third
week in October.
The harvest at Apple Ridge Orchard, located on County Road D-15 near Iowa
Falls, while not particularly fruitful by any means, is slightly better. Owner
Lynnette Fevold said the adverse weather basically wiped out a few of her 26
varieties but most produced half to a three-quarter crop.
There were only one or two apples in some McIntosh trees, she said. But the
Red McIntosh must have bloomed just after the freeze.
"Those are looking pretty good," Fevold added.
Instead of 5,600 to 7,000 bushels of apples she normally gets from 2,100 trees,
Fevold may not get 3,000.
To make sure she can meet demand through Thanksgiving and pay the bills,
she's now open Thursday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. instead of daily.
Cider production has also been curtailed. On-farm prices will average about $1
per pound, Fevold said.
"It's been a strange (season). In a regular year we're pressing cider and not even
thinking about it," she said.
Bob "Chug" Wilson of Wilson's Orchard in Iowa City said he expects to sell out of
apples early this year because his orchard produced only about 20 percent of the
usual crop. The shortage has caused Wilson to charge $1.35 per pound for upick apples -- up from the usual price of 99 cents per pound.
He said yields could also be low because of a phenomena called alternate
bearing, in which trees produce less a year after overbearing. Trees
overproduced last year after a total crop loss in 2005.
Kaimour Orchard in Cedar Rapids has scrapped the season because its crop
was so badly damaged, said Margaret Sears, an official with the orchard. Others,
such as Allen's Orchard near Marion, are reselling apples from other orchards.
Morris Allen, the orchard's owner, said his trees produced about 5 percent of
their usual crop.
While it may have been simpler to scratch the entire season, bringing in apples
from other orchards has allowed him to keep selling at farmers markets, which
require produce be grown within the state, he said.
Orchards in Northeast Iowa faired better this year, said Paul Domoto, a fruit
specialist with Iowa State University. He said orchards in southwest Iowa
didn't do as well.
Allen said few customers are complaining about the higher prices for apples this
fall.
"When you compare the number of apples you get for 10 bucks ... apples are still
a good buy," he said.
A list of Northeast Iowa apple orchards can be found on the Iowa Department of
Agriculture and Land Stewardship Web site at www.www.agriculture.state.ia.us.
Click on the diversified crop section, then fruits and vegetables, then apple
growers.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Contact Matthew Wilde at (319) 291-1579 or matt.wilde@wcfcourier.com.