Apple Crops and Farmers Rally After Hurricane Irene [Video]

From growers to the governor, Rhode Island’s biggest agriculture advocates include apples among the state’s core crops.

They note that while had thinned some early season pickings from some orchards around the state, they want Rhode Islanders to know many apple varieties are still available and ready for picking this season.

On Wednesday, some of those advocates from the local, state and federal levels fanned out across Rhode Island to help get the word out. The “First Annual Apple Harvest Month Kick-Off” media campaign made stops at Pippin Orchard in Cranston, Barden’s Family Orchard in North Scituate, Narrow Lane Orchards in North Kingstown, and

The team of representatatives from the Rhode Island Fruit Growers Association and the state Department of Environmental Management’s Division of Agriculture arrived at Sweet Berry Farm by mid-afternoon.

Kenneth Ayars, Chief of the DEM’s Division of Agriculture, read a proclamation issued by Governor Lincoln Chafee declaring September as "Rhode Island Apple Harvest Month" and Wednesday, Sept. 7 as "RI Apple Day."

Rhode Island Fruit Growers Association President Kerri Stenovitch noted that the event was already planned and in the works before Hurricane Irene hit the area. “A couple of those orchards were hit a little harder than others. But it’s always good to go out and support your local farmer,” she said of Wednesday's promotional campaign.

Jan Eckhart, owner of Sweet Berry Farm in Middletown, said an insurance adjuster was continuing to calculate SBF’s total crop loss but he remained optimistic as the farm prepared to reopen this weekend for pick-your-own Ginger Golds, Macintosh, Honey Crisp and Gala apples.

“The earliest season apples on the southeast side took a beating,” Eckhart said. “We were able to open just a few days and those were all gone. But now we’re into the midseason apples…We’re reopening apples this weekend. The mid-season and later-season apples are all still fairly secure on the tree.”

Besides apples, SBF hopes to finish out the year strong with pumpkins, winter squash and Christmas trees. “It doesn’t appear that the storm did anything to them,” Eckhart said.

Paul Brule of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Farm Service Agency also came out Wednesday to help champion Rhode Island’s apple industry. In his travels around the state, he'd seen that the hardest hit crops by Hurricane Irene were the peppers and tomatoes, due to the saltwater damage to the foliage.

The apple crops are rallying though, he noted. "I've been out to some of the orchards this week and they look very, very nice."

Brule added about the Apple Day promotional tour, “I thought it was a nice thing to encourage people to come back out to the orchards."

The Rhode Island Fruit Growers Association noted that there are 24 commercial orchards located throughout Rhode Island, with the opportunity to “pick-your-own” at nearly all of them.

With the mid-season for apples underway since the beginning of September, the varieties currently available for picking include Macintosh, Paula Reds, Gala, and Honey Crisps, according to the RIFGA. In the later stages of the growing season, more varieties will become available.  

How about 'dem apples?

• According to the RIFGA, apples have been an integral crop to the state’s agricultural industry since the 1600s. The Yellow Sweeting apple, the first North American variety, can be traced back to its development by William Blackstone of Cumberland. 
• The Rhode Island Greening Apple—the state fruit—was developed in 1796 and originally came from the Green End area of Newport.

For more information

• The Rhode Island Fruit Growers Association publishes a free guide to Rhode Island apple orchards, including orchards with pick-your-own apples. 
• The brochure lists addresses, hours of operation, as well as telephone numbers, and includes nutritional information and apple facts.
• The apple guide is available on DEM’s website, by clicking on “Agriculture in RI” on the left side of the homepage, or by calling DEM's Division of Agriculture at 222-2781.