Pick-your-own apples in short supply at some local farms, lots at others

CLEVELAND - It’s officially fall, and that means apples and other crops are ready for harvest.

Picking apples are one of the simple joys of the season. But this year, not as many of them are falling into pick-your-own bags. The pickings are much slimmer on some farms. 

“I wasn't even sure that they were going to be picking, the self-pick - we thought we'd just go in and buy some off the shelf - nice that they do have some available,” said pick-your-own apple shopper Kathy Stefko of Mentor.

Apple farms across the Midwest and northeastern United States are suffering from the after-effects of an early spring followed by a late freeze, a combination which killed flowers that had already blossomed.

"We lost somewhere around 90% of our apples this year. I think the total crop in Ohio is down about 40 percent. There are apples and some varieties did a little bit better, but it's up and down," said Bill Patterson of Patterson Fruit Farm in Chesterland.

Even so, Patterson’s farm was lucky. They managed to harvest a full supply of Honeycrisp apples, and they are still offering pick-your-own apples – on weekdays only – through at least Oct. 10.  Several other area farms have cancelled some or all of their pick-your own events. 

But it’s a different story at many west side farms. “We've had no problems, there's 100 kids with us and we all got big bags,” said one pick-your-own shopper at Miller’s Apple Hill in Amherst.

Pockets of warmer air meant that some west side farms didn’t lose anywhere nearly as many apples as their competitors in the east.  Miller’s Apple Hill farm in Amherst managed to save 80% of its  crop.  Still, it hasn’t been an easy year.

"The crop was early, the apple flowers pollinated, then they froze. We've had hail damage, insects and sunburn, so the apples are smaller because of that," said Roger Miller of Miller’s Apple Hill.

One big exception to the apple shortage is Washington state, which is enjoying a bumper crop of the classic red fruit this year. But the added cross-country transport costs mean you won’t find any bargains from their crops in Ohio stores.

Prices for pick-your-own apples vary from farm to farm and apple to apple – anywhere from $1.25 a pound to over $3 a pound, depending on type. Typically, you’ll pay around $2 a pound, roughly equal to what you’d find at local grocery stores.

But even if some local apple crops are small, there’s still all kinds of autumn activities available at many local farms and geared for everyone from kids to seniors to enjoy.

The best advice is don’t wait until mid-October for your annual pick-your-own outings or you might be caught short – and call ahead to make sure your favorite farm still has produce on the tree.

Pumpkins are also ready for harvest, and in general the crop is good, although you’re not likely to see as many huge ones. Researchers at the Ohio Agricultural Research Center in Wooster say pumpkins are slightly smaller this year due to the drought.

For a list of area farms offering pick-your-own events: http://www.pickyourown.org/OHcleveland.htm

The Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, Wooster: http://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu