MEDIA, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — Apple picking season is here, but area orchards aren’t yielding the fall apple harvest we’re used to, due to a late spring frost that killed many crops in our region. Now orchards are telling customers to pick them while they can.
For many, an autumn without apples just wouldn't feel like a proper fall. Local orchards are able to have some, but not all harvests available for picking.
“Customers come to us for a ‘pick your own’ experience and there’s very little fruit out there,” said Steve Linvill, an owner of Linvilla Orchards in Media. According to Linvill, between 70% to 80% of the apple crop did not survive the freeze.
“In April, we had three days of 90 degree weather, which just made everything jump and so everything was growing really quickly, and then we had 17 degrees out here in our strawberry fields.”
Stone fruits were hit especially hard. “Complete loss of all the peaches, apricots, plums, cherries,” he said.
Apple picking is available, but only for certain varieties as they become ripe, though Linvill said fresh apples are still available for purchase.
“We’re letting people come out and pick what they can find,” he said, “and then if they’re having trouble filling their baskets, we’re able to source apples from other farms that weren’t hit quite as bad as we were.”
Highland Orchards in West Chester has placed similar limitations on plucking your own apples, but the pumpkin fields are loaded with gourds just in time for Halloween. Both farms offer “pick your own” options for pumpkins and other fresh produce, including peppers and tomatoes.
