Freeze damages local fruit crop

by Nora Gathings (hsgathings@wsbt.com)

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Fruit Tree Blossoms

Local farmers are keeping a close eye on temperatures. They're concerned Tuesday night's freeze will damage some of the fruit crop. (WSBT photo)

By WSBT News1

COLOMA — Local farmers are keeping a close eye on the temperature. Now that the fruit crops have bloomed, a freeze can be deadly.

Farmers still aren't sure how much damage Tuesday night's freeze caused. They say it's a process that takes several days because there's no easy or precise way to calculate the damage.

They have to go through their orchards and take a look at the blossoms by hand. They're hoping to discover green beneath the blossoms, but they're finding some black.

"We are not looking for but we are going to find dead apricots. See how black it is? We don't want that. We want them nice and green," said Randy Bjorge.

He almost got what he wanted.

"I think I only lost 10% to 20% of my sweet cherries," said Bjorge.

He says that's good news after last year's frost. That frost killed 70% of his sweet cherries and all of his apricots, Japanese plums and pluots.

Bjorge says the position of his farm on a hill keeps his crops warmer, unlike neighboring farms.

Hildebrand farms lost 50% to 90% of its grape crop Tuesday night, which isn't too far off Bjorge's estimate for the region.

"There is probably half a peach crop out here and half a sweet cherry crop," said Bjorge. "You can't make it with half of a crop."

It's still too early to determine how much impact this damage will have on the season.

"We only need 10% of the blossoms out there to have a full crop," said Bjorge. "So if it [the freeze] takes out 90%, we are still happy."

He's watching the weather and isn't happy yet.

"There is snow in Casper, WY right now," said Bjorge. "And I'm a little nervous, but it should go to the north of us."

Farmers say they should have a better estimate of the damage by this weekend.

These are just estimates, and farmers say they won't know for sure how much harm the frost had done to their crop until it has been harvested.

Thursday, May 1 at 10:31 PM Mike Hildebrand wrote ...

Also, just to clarify, we didn't lose 50 to 90% of our total grape crop. We lost 50 to 90% of the grapes in the low-lying areas. On the higher elevations, we still have the opportunity for a full crop. This is the reason why you see fruit growing on hills in this area.

Thursday, May 1 at 10:19 PM Grovertown Fruit Farm wrote ...

We've had calls from concerned customers and friends with the cold experienced earlier this week as well. We have seen no significant signs of damage in our orchard. A few blossoms showed minimal signs of frost damage, but the trees are loaded with blossoms so if the crop is thinned slightly, it will just help the fruit size better. After last year's freeze, we are very relieved! As Mike stated, our fruit is all sold here at our farm while it is fresh and in season. Tree-ripened is best!

Thursday, May 1 at 3:51 PM Mike Hildebrand wrote ...

A lot of local fruit is sold locally. Some is sold at farmer's markets such as South Bend or Chicago. Other farmers sell their fruit to brokers who deal with local chains such as Martin's. Still other farms offer fruit for sale at local farm stands and at their own locations. Remember that most fresh fruit is only available during the months that it is harvested. Our growing season is just beginning right now, so you won't see much local produce until warmer weather arrives.

Thursday, May 1 at 2:19 PM keeping the Fruit in America wrote ...

I was worndering if the fruit stays here or do we ship it over seas to other countries? All I've seen is fruit from other countries in the stores. What up with that?

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