September 2023 - 6

COVER STORY
BUSY
ORCHARDS
Harvests start with high hopes for apple season
A
pple growers in Washington,
Michigan and New York are
optimistic for the 2023-24
fresh apple season.
With weather described as
" near-perfect, " Washington
dodged the heat and cold from the
past two seasons. The U.S. Apple
Association is projecting Michigan's
crop to be almost as high as last
year's record production. Overall,
New York expects a quality,
promotable crop even though a
spring freeze and hail affected
some areas and the USDA reported
a mild winter followed by " a very
warm spring. "
Despite the record summer heat
across the nation, growers aren't
reporting sunburn or issues with size.
The U.S. Apple Association,
which released its annual report on
Aug. 18, puts the overall U.S. crop at
256.26 million 42-pound bushels.
6 | SEPTEMBER 2023
Washington: Back on track
The Washington State Tree Fruit
Association (WSTFA) released
its fresh apple crop forecast in
early August, at about 134 million
40-pound boxes (127.62 million
42-pound boxes). That is a 28.8%
increase from the previous year's
production, which was marred by
snow during bloom, followed by hot
weather and hail in some areas.
The WSTFA doesn't estimate
production for the processing
market. Both the USDA and USApple
estimate overall production;
using historical data that shows
Washington's fresh crop has been
about 75% of the overall production,
USApple is forecasting a fresh crop
of almost 120 million bushels, with
a total crop of about 160 million
42-pound bushels, a 9% increase
from 2022-23.
Brianna Shales, marketing
director for Stemilt Growers,
Wenatchee, Washington, said the
2021 and 2022 springs were wild,
but characterized this season's
weather as " really remarkable. "
" We're looking ahead to a great
year, " Shales said. " Last year was
challenged, with the volume of the
crop down, kind of to a historical
low, and quality was challenged
from a Washington perspective. "
Harvest started in late July
for Stemilt with Rave, early
Honeycrisps and Wildfire Galas.
" The color of the fruit is just
fantastic and the sizing is really
strong, " she said. " I think sizing
will be typical. We'll have enough
(smaller apples) for bags and some
good bulk sizes as well. "
Tim Kovis, director of
communications and events for
the WSTFA, said weather conditions

September 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of September 2023

Editor's Letter
Cover Story: Busy orchards
Grower Profile: Cherry trial
Grapes: Targeted and true
Biologicals: Set to explode
AgTech: Grove benefits
Great Lakes EXPO News: Emerging technology in the ag industry
Farm Market and Agritourism: Can you support another employee?
Ag Labor Review: The backbone of America
Classifieds
Advertiser Index
September 2023 - 1
September 2023 - 2
September 2023 - 3
September 2023 - Editor's Letter
September 2023 - 5
September 2023 - Cover Story: Busy orchards
September 2023 - 7
September 2023 - 8
September 2023 - 9
September 2023 - Grower Profile: Cherry trial
September 2023 - 11
September 2023 - 12
September 2023 - 13
September 2023 - Grapes: Targeted and true
September 2023 - 15
September 2023 - 16
September 2023 - 17
September 2023 - Biologicals: Set to explode
September 2023 - 19
September 2023 - 20
September 2023 - 21
September 2023 - AgTech: Grove benefits
September 2023 - 23
September 2023 - 24
September 2023 - 25
September 2023 - Great Lakes EXPO News: Emerging technology in the ag industry
September 2023 - 27
September 2023 - Farm Market and Agritourism: Can you support another employee?
September 2023 - 29
September 2023 - Ag Labor Review: The backbone of America
September 2023 - 31
September 2023 - Classifieds
September 2023 - 33
September 2023 - Advertiser Index
September 2023 - 35
September 2023 - 36
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