All Apples Harvested, Pecan Harvest Continues

"All is safely gathered in, 

before the winter storms begin.

God our Maker doth provide 

for our wants to be supplied.

Come, ye thankful people, come,

Praise the God of harvest home."

   We praise God that yesterday afternoon, Sat. Nov. 21, we finished harvesting all remaining 'GoldRush' apples plus a few 'Enterprise' apples that were left on the trees.  Our 6 workers, my husband Bill and I harvested over 2000 pounds of apples in 4 hours, despite a temperature of 37 F all afternoon.  We got the apples in before the 23 F freeze that occurred this morning.

Brandon Ledford (left) and Luke Laws (right) added 'GoldRush' apples they harvested to the large storage bins in the trailer, while Ben Miller (far right) and our other workers Tim Epler, Skyler England and Tanner Mix all picked apples.

   We now have over 9000 pounds of apples in our two coolers.  The second cooler was just installed 2 weeks ago.  So we will have top-quality 'Enterprise' and 'GoldRush' apples for sale until late May or June.
   'Enterprise' apples keep well in our cooler or a fridge for 6 to 7 months, and 'GoldRush' apples keep well in our cooler or a fridge for 8 to 10 months.  All winter I sort apples from the large storage bins into trays holding 20 pounds each.  We currently have about 1000 pounds of sorted and cleaned apples in these trays, ready to sell.
   Besides plenty of 'Enterprise' and 'GoldRush', we have small amounts of about 16 other apple varieties and selections for sale.  We also still have many 'Shinko' Asian pears for sale for about 2 more weeks, until they sell out.  I give taste samples of all our apple varieties and Asian pears, to those interested in buying them.
   Small amounts of harvested apples and Asian pears cost $1.20 per pound + tax.  A 20-lb. box of apples or Asian pears costs $23.15 + tax, which saves $1.00 off the per-pound price.  I harvest apples and Asian pears into two plastic bags per box, so you can get a mixed box of two apple varieties, or one bag of Asian pears and one bag of apples, and still get the 20-lb. discount.
   We also have some harvested 2nds apples, with small bird pecks, cracks or other surface damage.  These are great for making apple butter, pies, breads, or other holiday baking.  Usually 90% to 95% of the fruit is still usable, but they're 60% the cost at $0.83 per pound + tax.  A 20-lb. box of 2nds apples costs $15.74 + tax, which saves $1.00 off the per-pound price

I made this apple pecan bread last night, for the Bread Breakfast we have each year at Center Christian Church on the Sunday morning before Thanksgiving.  The recipe is posted as a Note on our Facebook page, Brendas Berries, along with many other recipes using apples and pecans.

   Pecan harvest resumed late last week after the ground dried from the 3.35 inches of rain we got early last week.  My husband Bill is now very busy harvesting, cleaning and cracking the pecans for sale.  We now have cracked 'Kanza' pecans for sale, for $15.05 per 5-pound bag + tax.

   Bill cracks the pecans, blows off the loose shells, and then weighs the bags to 5 pounds.  So you get the equivalent of 6 pounds of in-shell pecans in each bag, and when you pick out the pecans, you get at least 3 pounds of nutmeats.  Pecan harvest will continue until January or February, and we should have cracked pecans for sale until mid-May.

We now have cracked 'Kanza' pecans for sale, for $15.05 per 5-pound bag + tax. 

   For payment, we accept cash or checks, but NO credit cards or debit cards.  Please bring your checkbook or enough cash to cover the amount of fruit and pecans you'll buy.
   Until Nov. 30, we're still open our fall hours: Mon. to Sat. 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., & Sundays 1 to 6 p.m.  From Dec. 1 to May 31, we're open by appointment.  That means to phone 620-597-2450 a day ahead, and leave a message on the answering machine saying the day and about what time you're coming.  I will get the message and meet you in the sales building when you come.