RENSSELAER FALLS, New York (WWNY) – Why is this past spring’s late frost being talked about now? It’s because it took a bite out of this year’s apple crop in much of New York state.
But, in St. Lawrence County, apples are ripe and plentiful for picking.
At Applewood Orchards in Rensselaer Falls, co-owners Andrew and Alicia Brice are ready for people to come to the farm to pick apples.
“We do have a very good crop across all of our different apple varieties and we started our you-pick two weeks ago so we are very fortunate that we are able to open up to you-pick this year as well as selling inside of our store,” said Andrew.
The Brice’s say they’ve been fortunate this year with a majority of their crop still intact while other orchards in New York state have suffered from the spring frost.
The frost damages or destroys blossoms and deforms apples that are already growing.
“If the bloom is killed, then the apple doesn’t produce. The scaring affects the apple by its look but not necessarily by its taste. So a lot of customers may not want an apple that’s scarred even though it tastes fine,” said Alicia.
The Brices say the lay of the land helped protect their crop and they’ll yield 20,000 apples a day.
Copyright 2023 WWNY. All rights reserved.
