Saturday, November 11, 2017

Many Apples & Pecans for Sale Now

   Today our workers almost finished harvesting all remaining 'Enterprise' apples, and I should pick the rest early this next week.  'GoldRush' apples will keep ripening on the trees for the next 10 days to 2 weeks, and customers can still pick their own 'GoldRush' apples for the next few days, until about Nov. 14.
   We have many harvested 'Enterprise' and 'GoldRush' apples for sale now and for the next 8 months or so, until late June.  Small amounts of harvested apples cost $1.20 per pound + tax.  A 20-lb. box of apples costs $23.15 + tax, which saves $1.00 off the per-pound price.  I sort apples into two plastic bags per box, so you can get a mixed box of one bag each of  'Enterprise' and 'GoldRush' apples, and still get the 20-lb. discount.
I pack some 20-lb. boxes with one bag each of 'Enterprise' (left) and 'GoldRush' (right) apples.
   We also usually have some harvested 2nds apples, with small cracks or hail damage, great for baking or for making applesauce or apple butter.  Usually 90% to 98% of the fruit is still usable, but they're 62% to 69% the cost at $0.83 per pound + tax for less than 20 pounds, $0.79 per pound + tax for 20 pounds, and $0.74 per pound + tax for 40 pounds of harvested 2nds apples.
Bill drove a pecan harvesting machine over our main 20-acre pecan orchard yesterday, after shaking the trees to cause nuts to fall to the ground. The pecan harvester scoops up pecans from the ground with rubber fingers.
   We started harvesting pecans last week, and cleaning and cracking the pecans for sale.  We now have cracked 'Osage' pecans for sale.  Cracked 'Kanza' pecans should start in late Nov.  We should have cracked pecans for sale until late June.
   Pecans cost $15.28 + tax per 4-pound bag.  These pecan bags contain at least 75% pecan kernels, so you get the equivalent of at least 6 pounds of in-shell pecans in each bag.  These pecans are very fast and easy for customers to pick out, and when you pick out the pecans, you get at least 3 pounds of nutmeats.
   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 apples and pecans you'll buy.  Thanks.
   We're still open our fall hours until Nov. 30: open 9:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Mon.-Sat., and Sundays 1:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.  On cold or rainy days, I'm in the sales building, sorting the apples we have harvested.  I'm usually out harvesting apples, so I put a sign on the sales building post to ring the bell for service.  Ring it loudly, once or twice, and I'll hear it and come to the sales building.