Monday, June 26, 2000
Registration at Sheraton at 6:45
AM
Busses load at Sheraton at 7:30 AM
Busses depart Sheraton at 8:00 AM
Travel to New York via the Plattsburgh - Grand Isle Ferry
Stop 1. Chazy Orchard, Chazy, NY
Presentation by
Tre Green, 'The
McIntosh Ambassador.' Learn about the historical significance and current
production of
McIntosh, the "bread and butter" of the north country.
Chris Watkins will talk about storage strategies for
McIntosh. Jan
Nyrop and Kevin Iungerman will discuss a predatory mite release
experiment that started in
Clinton County in the spring of 1996 as a backdrop to predator mite
introduction at Chazy
Orchard in 2000, and the implications for McIntosh cropload management.
There will also be
a discussion on Apple Scab by David Rosenberger - chemicals, strategies,
resistance, and
updates.
History of Chazy
Orchard
In 1763, Jean Laframboise settled in what is now the
town of Chazy.
Jean apparently planted the first apple trees in the Northern reaches of
the Champlain
valley. The Laframboise farm is now part of the 1300 acres owned by Chazy
Orchards, Inc.
Early in the next century, John McIntosh of Schenectady, NY moved to
Ontario, Canada.
Sometime after his arrival in 1810, he found a chance seedling from an
apple core, which
he selected for propagation due to its admirable traits. It was named the
McIntosh Red
variety.
Chazy Orchards was planted by the Delaware and Hudson
Railroad as part
of a land development and farm market shipping enterprise between 1924
and 1931. The
original plantings had over 43,000 trees of a half dozen varieties:
McIntosh, Snows,
Cortland, Spies, Lowries and Kendalls. Following the harsh winter of
1934, only the
McIntosh and Cortland remained viable, setting the stage for a McIntosh
ascendancy. In the
late 1930's the railroad sold the orchard and Donald F. Green became the
orchard manager.
During the 1940's and 1950's, Chazy orchard cooperated in the early
pioneering development
of Controlled Atmospheric Storage with Dr. R.M. Smock of Cornell
University. That first
room can still be found within the complex that now has a capacity for
150,000 bushels of
CA fruit.
In the 1950's through the 1970's, additional plantings
(and
renovations) were made, still using seedling rootstock. Beginning in the
1980's, all new
plantings were put on MM.111 rootstock. In 1990 the first planting was
made on M.26 using
a staked central leader planting system at 200 trees per acre. More
change was coming as
the learning curve accelerated. In 1997, the first vertical axe system
was planted with
M.26 at 350 trees to the acre and with Bud.9 at 450 trees to the acre.
Prior to 1999, all
plantings ware 80% McIntosh and 20% Cortland. In 1999, Honeycrisp was
added to this mix.
Today's 1200-acre farm now has roughly 90,000 trees in the ground on
about 700 bearing
acres and 100 non-bearing acres. The remaining acreage is wooded or
wetland. The orchard
remains in the Green family, having recently passed to Donald F. Green,
III as the
principle stockholder, in September 1999.
Next, a fun stop - John
Deere Tractor
collection!
The tractors are owned by Tony Trombly. Tony operates
a dairy and field
crop farm just down Route 9 from Chazy Orchard. Tony is a real
affectionado of John Deere.
Through a network of friends in the trucking business, Tony has acquired
a sizeable
collection of tractors from all over the United States.
Stop 2. Forrence Orchards, Peru, NY
Peter Forrence will demonstrate a "hand
packing"' station the
way it was done and will show a new line explaining that waxing and
stickering made it
necessary to go that route.
Mason Forrence will show the Vertical Axe planting
system being adopted
and discuss this planting system. Winter cold will be a significant area
of discussion as
will the need for irrigation for early tree production.
Jim Schupp will speak about fall defoliation work at
this stop, and
help with the planting system and variety part of the discussion.
Terrence Robinson will discuss pruning, training and establishing the
orchard.
History of Forrence Orchards, Peru, NY
The Forrence Family settled in the Champlain Valley in
1807 and was
recently awarded the century Farm Award by the New York State
Agricultural Society. In
1954, Virgil Forrence and his three sons Roger, William and Virgil
incorporated the farm.
The Forrences built their first cold storage in 1956 and through the
years have expanded
both their storage and production capacities.
Today the farm is owned and operated by a succeeding
generation of
Forrences, with yet another generation just coming on board. Together,
Mason, McIntosh,
Cortland, Peter, and now Seth Forrence, farm 1,000 acres and produce and
store
approximately a half million bushels of apples. Seventy-five percent of
the total
production is McIntosh, fifteen percent is Cortland, and the remainder is
made of Paula
Red, Empire, Delicious, and Jersey Mac.
Forty percent of the orchard' s tree acreage is
planted on MM.106,
MM.111, and M 7 spaced at 15' x 24'; twenty percent consists of
interstems (mostly M.9/
MM.111) and M.26's spaced at 10' x l8'. The trees planted to both of
these densities are
central leader training and some have had considerable renewal pruning.
Ten percent of the
acreage is planted at 5' x 16' or less, with M.26, M.9/MM.111, or M.9's
on the vertical
axe system. Most of the recent plantings include irrigation. Remaining
acreage is either
open for replanting, or will be in the future, as more and more of the
"old
dinosaur" trees fade from the scene and are removed from production.
Lunch - Royal Savage
Restaurant, Valcor,
NY.
BUFFET Relishes: Celery and Carrot Sticks, Pickles Platter of sliced Ham
and Sliced Turkey
Platter of Cheese Slices Hot Roast Top Round of beef, carved at serving
line (includes
horseradish sauce) Choice of one of the following: Scalloped Potatoes,
Rice, Potato Salad,
or Pasta Salad Creamy Cole slaw Red Ripe Tomato slices, with Mayonnaise
& Italian
Dressing New England Style Banked Beans Assorted Bread and rolls Luncheon
Dessert and
Coffee or Tea.
Stop 3. Tom and Bill Everett - Everett Orchards, Peru, NY
Ian Marwin or Rachael Byard will discuss the replant project and results to date with the fertilizer, bioremediation, fumigation and bioassay. Bill or Tom will explain how they are currently preparing the site with fumigation, choice of rootstock, and spacing changes to overcome replant disease. They will have their machinery out for view. Finally, you can enjoy a walk through the various aged plantings.
History of Everett Orchards
Everett Orchards is a sixth generation farm located in
the northwest
corner of New York State's Champlain Valley, in the township of Peru,
just south of the
city of Plattsburgh. The orchard grows apples on three sites totaling 235
acres. The
original "Home Farm" consists of standard trees planted in the
1960's and dwarf
replants set out in the 1990's. The replant blocks feature M.9/MM III
interstems, M.26's,
and a few M 9's. Our nearby "Sears Farm" is a 100 acre
semi-dwarf orchard of
MM.111 planted in the 1970' s. The "Don G" property was
purchased in 1995
following the sale and breakup of the former Peru Orchard of that name.
The first replants
of the Don G farm were set out in 1997. The trees are being trained to
the Vertical Axe
planting system. Rootstock choices include M.9, Bud.9, M.26, and G30.
Bearing acreage currently totals 200 and yields
140,000 bushels of
apples. Apples are stored and packed out of Champlain Valley Storage of
which Everett
Orchards is a major partner. The main variety is the McIntosh apple.
Other commercial
varieties include Cortland, Empire, Red Delicious, Paula Red, Spartan,
and Jersey Mac.
Everett Orchards has recently added Honeycrisp, Gingergold, and Gala to
its variety mix.
Stop 4. Rulf's Orchard & Farm Market
Patty Rulf will discuss the operation of the market and bakery. Monica Roth will offer comment on New York's farm market scene. Robert Rulf will talk about strawberries, bedding plants and greenhouses, and early tomatoes as alternate crops and sources of extra income.
Drinks and Strawberry Shortcake & Ice cream served here for break
History of Rulf's Orchard
and Farm Market
Robert Rulf came to Peru in 1954 and started his
enterprise with 4 cows
and the purchase of ten acres of old orchard planted in 1919 on seedling
rootstock. Over
the years the Rulf operation has diversified into vegetables, bedding
plants, small
fruits, and expanded apple acreage but the cows are gone (although Bob's
son is a partner
in a 1,000 cow dairy nearby). Today Bob farms approximately 200 acres on
two adjacent
properties, of which 10 to 12 acres are rented.
McIntosh is the orchard' s primary apple although 14
other varieties
are grown for both the farm's retail stand as wall as local market
outlets. These other
varieties include Lodi, Quinte, Jersey Mac, Vista Belle, Cortland, Red
Delicious, Macoun,
Empire, Northern Spy, Golden Delicious, and a few Mutsu. The original
orchard was
replanted to MM.106 and some MM.111. Some 75 acres are in apples.
Much of the farm operation has shifted over to other
crops to service
the retail trade with a rich blend of flowers, vegetables, and small
fruit. Currently
8,000 square feet of space in 5 greenhouses are dedicated to bedding
plants and hanging
baskets and another 2,000 sq. ft. are for hothouse tomatoes. Vegetables
weigh in with 65
acres to sweet corn, 5 acres to winter squash, 4 to 5 acres to garden
vegetables (cabbage,
cukes, peppers, tomatoes), and of course, 40 acres to that other autumn
stalwart,
pumpkins. There are 12 acres of strawberries too (Earliglow, Honeoye,
Winona, Northeaster,
Mesabi, Jewel, Mira) and about an acre of blueberries. Rounding out the
cornucopia is the
on-farm bakery specializing in apple pie, and a cider press which
previously produced
16,000 gallons but now turns out some 3,000 gallons for localized
consumption.
Stop 5. Northern Orchard, Peru, NY - Al Mulberry, Owner
There will be a 'Honey Crisp Forum' since
Northern Orchard
boasts some of the oldest Honeycrisp trees in northern NY. Take a close
look at growth
habits at Mulberry's and a discussion of the pros and cons of this new
variety and its
suitability for various growing areas with North American experts
including Susan Brown,
Paul Wooley, Bedford, Jim Schupp, perhaps Chris Watkins.
History of Northern Orchard
Northern was one of the first commercial orchards in
New York's
Champlain Valley. The home farm is situated on a prominent stopping point
on the
Underground Railway which funneled runaway slaves to Canada prior to the
Civil War. The
original Northern orchard was planted to 40 acres of mostly seedling
McIntosh in 1906. In
193O, before the advent of modern truck transport, Northern constructed
the first
commercial cold storage facility on a railroad siding. Renovations and
plantings in the
1970's favored MW.111 and M.7 rootstocks. In the 1980's, M.26 came into
use as the
rootstock of choice, and continued to be planted into the 1990's, along
with the newer M.9
and Bud.9 rootstocks.
Acquired in partnership in 1945, the orchard passed entirely into Mulberry family ownership in 1960. Today's orchard is a 460 acre operation, which includes 100 rented acres. Fruit is packed on the premises and sold mostly to wholesale markets. Traditional strains of McIntosh continue to comprise the bulk of the plantings, although lesser commercial amounts of Cortland, Paula Red, and Macoun are grown. Since the latter 1990's, Honeycrisp has joined McIntosh as a major cultivar choice. One Honeycrisp planting will serve as a focal point for a field discussion on this apple's merits and present drawbacks. Other varieties grown include Ginger Gold, Jonagold, Fortune, and Gala. Recently, a farm market venture has been launched featuring vegetables, small fruit, pumpkins and of course, apples.
Return to Vermont via the Essex, New York - Charlotte, Vermont Ferry
Monday Night - Dinner at Shelburne Farms
Located south of Burlington on the shores of Lake Champlain, Shelburne Farms is a great historical part of Shelburne. The first people to live on Shelburne Farms were William Seward Webb and his wife, Lila Vanderbilt Webb. Their home was the big house at Shelburne Farms, what is now called the Inn at Shelburne Farms.
On Shelburne Farms there is a barn that used to be the largest barn in the United States. The Farm barn and the Coach barn on Shelburne Farms both house animals. Lila and William Webb were the first people to settle on Shelburne Farms. They had come to Shelburne Farms and built the mansion and gardens by the lake. Lila and William had children who later took over the farm and the mansion. The Shelburne Farms farmhouse is famous for its copper turrets. In its heyday, it was the most innovative and modern working farm in the world, and it was designed on a slope to blend in with the hill.
Menu
Tossed green salad with 2 dressings
Homemade Baked Beans
Rolls
Butter
Pickles
B.B.Q Chicken
Hamburgers
Vegetarian dish
Coffee/lemonade
Homemade Carrot cake
Return to Sheraton around 8:30pm.
