COME SEE US THIS WEEKEND

We will have Zestar, Ginger Gold, Sansa , McIntosh ( a little tart ), and Gala available for picking on our opening day Saturday September 7.  Overall the crop is not as plentiful as last year, but there are lots of good apples.  The recent rain has helped the fruit gain size.

We anticipate Honeycrisp, Cortland, Macoun  and Blondee to be ready to pick on September 21 & 22 weekend.

Mrs. Murphy’s,  our donut supplier for twenty years is no longer able to supply us because they are having difficulty getting enough help – SO we have taken the plunge and purchased a donut robot, large mixer and many assorted items which are now set up in the kitchen of the Red House adjacent to the barn.  We have successfully completed some trial runs and if all goes well we will have Mad Tom Donuts this weekend as well as local cider

Weather looks perfect for apple picking.  Look forward to seeing you.

 

ON TARGET FOR OPENING SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 7

Opening day will be Saturday September 7.  As usual, we will be open 9:00 to 5:30 – closed Mondays. Two recent rains of over 1.5 inches will help the fruit size increase over the next three weeks.

We have been busy getting lots of mowing done – we mow several times during the year to to reduce competition of the grass with the trees for water and nutrients. The picture shows our big German hydraulically controlled mower which automatically swings the outboard rotor back when it senses a tree – this allows us to eliminate any use of herbicides (Round-Up) in the orchard and greatly reduces the amount of string trimmer use.

As we complete the mowing, the next big task is to move all the equipment out of the barn and get it set up for sales. Look forward to seeing you soon!!

APPLE PICKING WILL PROBABLY START ON SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 7

The season is late this year and Labor Day is early, so apple picking will probably start on Saturday September 7 (weekend after Labor Day)  with Zestars, Ginger Golds and Sansas and possibly some tart Macintosh.  The crop this year overall is not as big as last year, but there will still be a reasonable supply of apples – more Macintosh and Cortland – fewer Honeycisp.

Watch the web site for most current info – photo shows some Zestars approaching 2 inches in size.

Put us on your fall calendar!!

APPLES ARE GROWING WELL

The apples are now up to about an inch and a half in size – the picture shows some on the old MacIntosh trees. The crop overall this year will probably be a medium sized one – not as many apples as last year or 2015, but if the weather cooperates, there will be good apples.

The rain has made the grass grow rapidly as well as the apples, so we are busy mowing and thinning a few trees that are overset.

Remember – no more raspberries and cherries – see the raspberries and cherries section on the web page for details and alternate sources.

SORRY – NO MORE RASPBERRIES AND CHERRIES

We made the decision last fall to end our production of raspberries and cherries so that we would have time available to ensure that our apple production is sustainable for the long term. We have known for years that the amount of time we spent maintaining the raspberries meant that some time critical work on the apples did not get done. The raspberries were taking 40% of the total work effort but producing far less of the revenue, so we have taken out almost all our raspberries and cherries except for a small amount for family use.

We know this will disappoint many people, but we will still be able to welcome you and the many others who come for apples in the fall.

There are several options to find berries elsewhere:

  1. Dutton’s Farm Stand on RT 11&30 in Manchester will have already picked raspberries – also good strawberries picked and pick your own in June – plus lots of good fruit and vegetables all year.
  2. Wildwood Berry Farm next door at 2977 Mad Tom Rd will have blueberries later in July and early August.
  3. Merck Forest in Rupert has some pick your own raspberries which are a fairly long walk to reach plus many good family activities.
  4. Champlain Orchards in Shoreham is a large diversified fruit producer and has both raspberries and cherries.

Make sure to check with any of these folks to be sure that they have berries available before you go.

We greatly appreciate the support for our berries you have given us over the years and will definitely miss seeing you in the summer, but look forward to seeing you in the fall for apples.

Tom & Sylvia

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