A Year at the Orchard

The majority of apple orchards are family-run farm businesses, operated in cooperation with the
laws of nature. This highly seasonal enterprise is as varied as the days in a year, with each day
bringing a new chance to test the orchardist's skills against the measure of the eventual harvest.
An apple orchard is a busy place.

WINTER
In January while the trees are dormant, pruning begins. Limbs are sawed off and clipped to allow
maximum sunlight into the growing structure. Pruning allows the tree to produce larger, better
colored, higher quality and more valuable fruit. Equipment repairs and maintenance occupies the
days too cold or stormy to be outdoors, through the winter months of February and March.

Spring
April is the time to prepare for spring planting. The average tree will bear fruit in 3 years, with
full production coming in 8-10 years. Most apple trees planted today are on dwarf stock. Allowing
for more efficient use of valuable land and labor.. If Newton sat under one for these small
wonders, the lesson of gravity would have been easier to learn. Since apples do not grow true to
their seeds, young trees that have been grown in a nursery from cuttings are transplanted to the
orchard site. These trees have a desired fruit variety grafted (attached by tissue splicing) on to a
root-stock selected for characteristics of size and vigor.
Sometime tin the beginning of May, the buds begin to swell. Spring is near and the pace of the
farm quickens. The brush from pruning is picked up or mulched back into the orchard soil. Grass
that has grown tall is mowed to reduce competition for nutrients and habitat for pests. Growers
sing Integrated Pest management (IPM) start monitoring the weather while hanging various insect
traps to collect data for an annual spray program. Temperature, humidity, and rainfall are
recorded in orchard weather stations to predict disease outbreaks and identify effective
management tools. Both harmful and beneficial insects are counted to determine spray schedules.
Spraying is done only when needed to protect the tree and fruit.

Summer
With the opening of the "King" blossom ( the largest and center- most of the five-blossom clusters),
it is time for pollination to begin. Bee colonies rented from bee keepers must be moved in quickly,
usually at night so the bees are "home" and not in flight. Sunny mild days are needed during bloom
to encourage strong bee activity. Apples need more than one variety of pollen for the
cross-pollination that ensures good fruit set. Fertilizing and tree training round out the busy June
calendar. Limbs must be tied up or weighted down to spread the young tree into the perfect shape.
Pomology (the science and art of growing apples) has become a very refined practice, and apple
producers attend regional meetings and classes to keep abreast of the latest information and
technology.
In some dry years, irrigation must be used during July. Fruit size and firmness are affected by
moisture in this critical month. Spraying, mowing, and shaping practices continue, and some summer
pruning is done to expose growing fruit to ripening sunlight.
August is the last growing month before the apples begin to ripen. Red Apples need the assistance
of cool nights during harvest to trigger an enzyme which increases the amount of color or "blush".
Mowing is completed and bins ( the large bulk boxes picking buckets are emptied into) are
positioned strategically around the orchard. Ladders are repaired and the harvest logistics are
carefully planned. Storage rooms must be cleaned and their refrigeration systems tested. Most
growers store some of their fruit in controlled atmosphere (CA) rooms where the temperature is
rapidly brought down to 32 degrees, and the oxygen is replaced with nitrogen to slow ripening.
Apples come out of these rooms months later as fresh as the day they were picked. For an apple to
pass the "admissions test" to a fall CA room, it must have the proper starch and hardness
measurements (to determine ripeness) at harvest.

Fall
Apples bruise easily and must be hand picked. Additional harvest workers are hired both locally
and from other areas and countries to help get the crop in on time. When picking begins around the
end of August, there is a constant buzz of activity until the last of the fruit comes off near the end
of October. Now it becomes the job of the farmers to market their fruit; either through their own
farm store or packed and shipped fresh to supermarkets, restaurants, and schools nationwide and
around the globe. During the harvest season, some farms invite the public to come for the fun of
picking their own apples (PYO).
Many apples are processed into sauce, pies, and jelly= or pressed into fresh cider and processed
apple juice. Some apple varieties are designed specifically for this market. For others, cider is a
delightful by-product of apples not "pretty" enough for the fresh whole apple market.
An apple is in the pome family- a fruit whose seeds are embedded in the core of the fruit. Another
surprising member of this family is the rose. Apples come in lots of colors and shapes, all of which
add up to America's number one snack. Select one of each type and have a taste test. Each apple is
loaded with minerals, vitamins, and fiber. At least 85% water and 1% fat, an apple makes a low 80
calorie contribution to the five-a-day recommendation form the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services.

With the harvest complete, it is time to prepare again for winter. Growing an apple takes all year,
and there is always something going on in the orchards. If you look closely, you can even see the
promise of next year's crop at the tip of each branch in the snow. It is the bud that will become
the apple which you might eat a year from now.

Welcome to the Four
Seasons of Growing Apples!