Orchard Talk

We really have a nice crop of pears this year. The Bartletts are in right now and they are large size and real nice. We will start the Bosc pears this week they are also big and beautiful. The Stanley Prune Plums just are taking their time getting ready. We like to let them hang until they have turned sweet but they won’t be ready until late this week, at the earliest.

The M88 apple block has been laid out with u-pick in mind, and we have promoted our u-pick for several years. However, as the apples on the M-88 farm began to develop this year I realized that they were all russeted. Russet is a brown rough finish on an apple skin that is usually the result of cold wet weather during bloom. The severity of russeting can be influenced by sprays as well, usually during bloom time. Russeted apples do not size well, and may crack.

My response to the russet problem was to remove all of the fruit from the affected trees. Most of the trees in our M-88 block are under 4 years old and by removing the fruit we would encourage very strong growth and increase our capabilities for a good crop in years to come.

This has been a very bitter pill but the net results are that there will be no u-pick this year at King Orchards, and that the apple trees grew vigorously this year and should be in great shape for u-pick next year.

The good news is that the M-88 apple block is about 25% of our apple acreage, and the apples at Jim’s and Russell Ridge farms were not affected, so we will still have all of your favorite apples in the markets for this year, just no u-pick.
We will have raspberries for u-pick and the orchard is open for anyone to take a walking tour (unguided unless I am available).

John

The first of the McIntosh apples just started coming in today! We also still have Gingergolds available, however not for too much longer so get ‘em while they’re still around! We have been seeing the first of the Bartlett Pears coming in as well this week. They are perfect right now… we should have them in for about 10-14 days.

Peaches and nectarines are coming to an end very quickly. We are running a sale until they are gone so this is the time to get them! They should be done this weekend. We will have softs available throughout the week in the fruitstands for all of you last minute canners. Give us a call so we can save you some.

We are looking forward to a busy weekend ahead. The main question we have been getting- “What will you have for u-pick?” Raspberry picking will be strong this weekend. There are still some peaches on the trees, but we cannot guarantee that they will go through the entire weekend. Call us ahead of time and we can give you the status of the peaches. Hope to see you at the orchard this weekend!

This fall weather means its apple season! Today, I had my first apple of the season and it was everything I have been waiting for- juicy, crisp, and sweet! We are looking forward to a big Labor Day weekend! We are planning on having Sanza apples in the markets before the weekend and Ginger Golds by the weekend.

Keep in mind, we will still have peaches and nectarines in the markets all weekend. The Red Haven peaches are coming off the pit nicely and the nectarines are still as juicy and sweet as ever!

We still have a huge veggie selection in the markets including some great canning tomatoes! Be sure to make a stop at one of our markets so you and your Labor Day guests can enjoy some fresh Michigan produce over the weekend!

Betsy and I just completed a lap of the orchard and I felt I better report.  Red Havens are taking their time getting ripe. We will start on Monday or Tuesday.  We are hearing from a lot of people who want to u-pick this weekend and they can get some nice peaches but let me caution you. Red Havens are only freestone when they are ripe.  Stone fruit softens after it is picked but it does not add sugar. Every year we have customers who return peaches that “won’t come off the pit”. Every year is different and some years the peaches are clingy, but if we wait and let them ripen and sweeten they usually will come off the pit nicely.

The nectarines are not freestone and cling to the pit and we are starting them right now. I eat a lot of nectarines! Betsy wanted to pick them but I wanted to let them hang 2 more days to add sugar. Betsy pointed out that we have a hard time interesting a fruit stand customer with a dented nectarine. So I am advising blog readers that dented nectarines are just about the sweetest fruit we have and you will definitely want a napkin ready if you bite into one.

We have had a big apricot season.  There are still some for upick but it is rapidly winding down. Frank, Megan, and Jimmy took a load to the Benton Harbor market where the sales start at 5.45 am and are fast and furious for an hour or so.  Big Jim and Jack took a load to the Detroit Eastern Market too. That sale starts at Midnight and lasts until 6.00 am.

The early season raspberries are about done and the late season ones will be rolling in over the next several weeks. The late ones are larger and it is easy to fill the containers. We should have good picking this weekend unless there is a big run on the raspberries.

Stanley prune plums and Bartlett pears will be ready in September. We have a very nice apple crop and Ginger Golds are 1-2 weeks away.

Oops I almost forgot that our own sweet corn is in the market and I am pretty happy with it. Remember it was very dry during July but we have pretty good tip fill and great flavor.

That’s all for now

John

The fruit stands are running out of table space because of all the fresh produce we have in right now! The markets have been taken over with the smell of peaches. Right now, we have the Garnet Beauty and Early Glow peaches, which are semi-cling. We will have the Red Haven, free stone peaches in next week.

We just got in nectarines as well! You can find at least one employee snacking on a nectarine in the fruit stand at all times… they are wonderful- juicy, sweet deliciousness!

King Orchards’ sweet corn is also available in the market. Bay City canning tomatoes are just starting to roll in so those should be available for the next couple weeks at least. Lots more fresh veggies are also available including potatoes, onions, zucchini, summer squash, peppers, and green beans.





We are hoping to get in Ginger Gold apples for Labor Day weekend. We will be shipping these this year, so if you want to get a taste of Michigan apples early in the season contact us for more information!

Things have been very busy at the farm lately. We are moving into our peak week for apricots! The trees and our coolers are loaded. We have them available for U-pick and also in the market. The apricots are hanging low on the trees so picking is fun for the whole family.

Sunday (July 7th) will be our last day for U-pick tart cherries. They are beautiful and still abundant. We will have fresh pitted 10lb bags of tart cherries available through the weekend. This is the weekend to come for people who still need to fill their freezer for fresh cherry pies all winter!

The fresh summer veggie season is rolling in now. We have great Bay City corn in the market right now. We are hoping to have our own corn in Sunday. We have lots of fresh KO zucchini and summer squash, along with potatoes, onions, and peppers from Bay City. We also just got in Bay City Honey Rock melons that are wonderful!

We are coming to the last few days of sweet cherry picking. Tomorrow is the last day for picking at the M 88 market. We have a later variety (the Hudsons) that will be able to be picked at our US 31 market through the weekend.

The tart cherries are looking great right now! We will be offering U-pick of Montmorency tart cherries through the weekend and into next week. Free pitting is provided for anyone who picks two buckets (about 28 lbs.) of tart cherries.

The Balaton tart cherry season is in full swing now as well. They are a great variety of tart cherries that are darker, a little sweeter, and more firm than the typical Montmorency tart cherry. We offer these in our market by the quart and lug (20 lbs.). We are also offering these to those customers who do not live in the area for shipping (call us for prices and shipping quotes). Shipping will be available until Tuesday of next week.

We will be beginning apricot season within the next 4 days or so. Those will be available for U-pick and in our market. There are tons on the trees so make sure you take a trip to the orchard to help us get them all off the trees!

What a cherry season it has been already! We have never seen U-pickers so happy with their fruit! The good news for this season is that these are truly the biggest black sweet cherries ever! The bad news is that for years we are going to be hearing “why aren’t they as big as they were in 2011?” Easy picking will be going on for the next 4-5 days. These cherries are wonderful so be sure to make a trip to the orchard to find out for yourself just how big and sweet these cherries are!

Tart cherry U-picking has also started. This is just the beginning so we are expecting to have them for at least the next 10 days or so. We have a pitter available. We offer free pitting when you pick at least 2 buckets full (around 28lbs or so).

In the market, we also have blueberries available from the heart of the “blueberry belt” that runs through Michigan. It is a great year for those as well!

We had a few apricots available on our early trees this weekend, but the big season will be beginning in about 10 days or so.