The Rural Voice, 1983-11, Page 6The
big
apple
There are 7,000 acres of apple
producing a two million bushel
by Mary Lou Weiser
An apple a day keeps the doctor
away is an old saying that's been
around for a long time. If there's
truth in this saying, then there should
be a lot of healthy people in Grey
county.
The apple industry is big business
in Grey. However, because the 7,000
acres of apple orchards are con-
centrated in a small area, many
people are not aware that a two
million bushel crop of apples is
produced annually, generating an
eight million dollar farm gate value to
the producer. While there are several
small apple producers spotted
throughout the county, the bulk of
the apple orchards are located in the
Thornbury, Clarksburg, Meaford,
Collingwood area along the shores of
Georgian Bay.
Apples grow very well here with the
gentle influence of Georgian Bay on
the north and Blue Mountain to the
south, along with deep, fertile, well -
drained land. Georgian Bay is slow to
heat up and slow to cool and because
of this, springtime temperatures are
cool. causing the apple trees to bloom
later, at a much safer time when there
is less likelihood of a devastating
frost. Frost at blossom time would
mean misshaped fruit that would
have to be graded out and used only
for juice rather then as fresh fruit.
There are 225 different apple
orchards in Grey county
crop annually.
growing operations in the Georgian
Bay area, the largest apple growing
area in Ontario, which represents one
quarter of the apples grown in the
province. Orchard acreage varies in
size from small to very large. One of
the large apple growers is Peter
Hartman, president of the Southern
Georgian Bay Fruit Grower As-
sociation, whose operation, Blue
Mountain Nurseries and Orchards
Ltd., is located near Clarksburg and
involves 380 acres, some of which is
apple orchard with the remainder in
nursery stock. Harman grows a varie-
ty of apples, but the McIntosh is
definitely king, making up 60 per cent
of his orchard. McIntosh is very
popular throughout the province,
possibly because it originated in On-
tario. John McIntosh discovered a
tree growing in Dundas County in
1796 and the variety was names
McIntosh in 1870.
"Sunny days and cool nights are
good for the colour and flavour of
the McIntosh", Hartman says. The
Northern Spy is also popular in the
area. Red and golden delicious are
grown as well but these varieties
require a tremendous amount of heat
and a better delicious apple is grown
in southwestern Ontario, B.C. and
Washington State.
Weather is an important factor in
the quality of the fruit and the
drought of July and August has
PG. 4 THE RURAL VOICE, NOVEMBER 1983
meant smaller apples despite the fact
that there was a tremendous fruit set
and there are more individual apples
growing this year than ever before.
Producers are satisfied with the
quality and colour of the apples this
year despite the decreased fruit size.
Operating a large apple orchard as
well as a nursery involves a lot of
careful planning and crucial timing
throughout the growing season, and
Hartman attributes good manage-
ment to the success of his operation.
While the six weeks of apple picking
in the fall may be the busiest time for
apple producers, there is a tre-
mendous amount of work that must
be done throughout the year to ensure
a good crop.
Pruning of the apple trees in March
marks the beginning of work in the
orchards, and a flail mower is used to
chop up excess small branches. Trees
up to five years of age are hardest to
prune because the branches are not
established.
Hartman broadcasts fertilizers of
different formulations for different
varieties alongside the trees in April.
The Northern Spy is grown mainly
for a peeling apple rather then for
eating, so nitrogen is used to produce
as large an apple as possible. Other
nutrients are added besides nitrogen
for the McIntosh tree to give the
apple colour, a real necessity for
consumer appeal. An average 600 lbs