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Michigan apple harvest could be one of state’s recent best

 

By SHELLY STRAUTZ-SPRINGBORN

Michigan Correspondent

 

LANSING, Mich. — Michigan’s apple harvest is ongoing and could be one of the best in recent years.

During last month’s USApple Outlook meeting in Chicago, Michigan’s crop size was predicted at approximately 28.74 million bushels of apples this year, which is in line with the 2013 crop that weighed in at a record size of 30 million bushels. The average apple harvest is about 20 million bushels, according to the Michigan Apple Committee.

The forecasted size would be one of the state’s largest apple crops; last year, Michigan broke records with its harvest. Michigan is the second largest producer of apples in the nation, behind Washington state.

"Many factors have contributed to this large crop," said Diane Smith, executive director of the Michigan Apple Committee. "Great weather this past spring and summer, including cool nights, plenty of rain as well as a good amount of sunshine certainly helped. Of course, the hard work of our apple industry always plays an important role.

"With high-density plantings – approximately 1,000 trees per acre – and advancements in technology, Michigan is going to continue to produce a larger quantity of apples. We are also seeing great quality and size."

Suann Shoemaker, owner of Ed Dunneback & Girls Farm in Grand Rapids, said overall yields so far for early apples are in line with last year’s crop.

"We’re picking about what we picked last year, maybe a little less, but it’s a nice crop," she said. "The apples are sizing well and are really nice-looking."

She added they are picking Galas and McIntosh apples, and Honeycrisp are popular again this year at their farm market. She expects harvest of Jonagolds to get started around Sept. 25. "I keep calling them pumpkins, they’re so huge," she joked.

Shoemaker noted losses in past years make her cautious about getting too excited about the crop this early in the harvest season. "Once we get them all picked, we can say we have a really nice crop."

Two years ago, the state lost much of its crop when an early spring warm-up gave way to killing frosts, which destroyed the majority of the crop statewide.

Terry Anderson, owner of Anderson & Girls Orchard in Stanton, said their orchard has "a nice crop" but he’s not sure it will be a record year.

"They’re talking about a giant crop," he said. "We have a nice crop, but it’s not a really big crop."

He noted growing conditions have been favorable throughout much of the season. "We had a lot of rain early on and never had a bad dry spell all summer."

This year’s season is running a little late due to the cool weather. "We picked some McIntosh at the end of August to make cider for Labor Day weekend," he said. "This is the first week we’ve really picked steady. We’re a little behind. Harvest got started later because it’s been a little cool."

"We’re maybe a little behind on maturity," Shoemaker said. "We don’t want to pick them too soon or they don’t have as much flavor."

Statewide, farmers are reporting fruit size, color and finish are excellent for early-harvested varieties, according to last week’s agricultural summary published by the Michigan field office of USDA’s Agriculture National Agricultural Statistics Service.

Michigan has more than 9.2 million apple trees in commercial production, covering 36,500 acres, according to the Michigan Apple Committee. About 40 percent of the state’s crop is sold on the fresh market and the remainder are processed into other products such as juice, cider and applesauce.

9/24/2014