Apple harvest winds up in the Okanagan: 80,000 tonnes have been picked
Credit to Author: Lora Grindlay| Date: Thu, 17 Oct 2019 22:09:15 +0000
It took some extra pruning and white tarps, but, ultimately, orchardist Steve Brown coaxed his apples to a glossy red.
“Really, we’ve had a crummy fall with lots of rain and not a lot of sunshine,” said Brown of Happy Valley Harvest in Summerland. “As a result, we were having colour problems. Apples like some sun and warmth to ripen and turn the red we like.”
So, Brown helped Mother Nature along.
“Three weeks before harvest, we cut back some of the leaves on the apple trees so more light could get through,” he said, “and we also set up white tarps to reflect the light.”
As a result, his Ambrosia, Gala and Pink Lady apples ripened nicely and turned glossy red.
“We’re at the tail end of the harvest now, and overall it’s only been a couple of days late,” said Brown. “When all is said and done, it’s been a very good year for both quality and quantity.”
Brown knows of which he speaks.
In 2017, his Ambrosia apples were judged grand champion of new varieties at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto.
In 2018, Brown won the Golden Apple Award from the B.C. Fruit Growers’ Association for overall excellence in all apple varieties.
Brown, who has 15 acres, is one of 420 Okanagan apple growers finishing a harvest that has presented challenges, but will likely turn out to be average in size and overachieve in quality.
When it comes to tree fruits, the apple is still king in the Okanagan, although cherries are quickly catching up.
The average annual harvest of about 80,000 tonnes of apples equates to about $51 million in revenue for orchardists, $116 million in wholesale value after being packed for shipment to stores, and $410 million in overall economic impact when trees, farm equipment, labour, taxes and retail sales are taken into account.
Apple orchards account for about 3,500 hectares in the Okanagan.
Cherry volume is less at 1,500 hectares, but draws a higher price, so is catching up with apples in economic impact.
Meanwhile, there is a near-overtaking happening in the apple realm, too. For more than a decade, Gala has been the No. 1 variety, accounting for about 40 per cent of total apple production.
However, as some Gala growers switch to Ambrosia, and with Ambrosia growing 15 per cent a year, Ambrosia is set to overtake Gala in the next couple of years.
“Ambrosia may be well-known and mainstream in B.C.,” said B.C. Fruit Growers’ Association general manager Glen Lucas. “But in the rest of the world, there’s still lots of demand. That’s why we need to concentrate on getting it more into Eastern Canada, California and Arizona.”
Ambrosia quickly became a star after being discovered in the early 1990s in the Mennell family orchard in Cawston. It was what is called a chance seedling — the result of an unknown apple dropping to the ground and sprouting a new tree from one of the seeds.
The resulting Ambrosia apple tree is believed to be a cross of a Starking Delicious and Golden Delicious.
The apple has a slightly conical shape and glossy red blush over a creamy yellow background.
All Ambrosia trees around the world are a result of branch clippings from that initial tree.
The Ambrosia apple has turned out to be better than the sum of its parts, with appealing crispness, white, honey-flavoured flesh and a low-acid finish that pleases fresh-apple eaters as well as cooks. Ambrosia literally means food of the gods. It also stores well and lasts for months in cold storage.
Lucas said rain has delayed the harvest, but that most of the crop has now been picked and growers are anxious to get the last of the apples off the trees.
B.C. Tree Fruits packs the tree fruits produced by the 420 members of the B.C. Fruit Growers’ Association.
“Yes, I’d say the apple harvest is 85 to 90 per cent done,” said the marketing manager of B.C. Tree Fruits, Chris Pollock. “There’s really only some late-ripening varieties like Fuji, Pink Lady and Granny Smith yet to come in.”
Gala and Ambrosia account for about 65 per cent of total apple production in the Okanagan. The remainder is made up of a long list of other varieties. They include Spartan, McIntosh, Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Pink Lady and Honeycrisp.