Still Many Harvested Apples & Cracked Pecans

   We still have many harvested apples and cracked pecans for sale.  We'll have #1 'GoldRush' apples for sale until we sell out in June or July.  We also have a few #1 'Enterprise' apples and some #1 apples of some selections from my apple breeding program.
   We also have #2 apples, with small cracks or other surface damage, which are fine for making apple butter, apple pecan pancakes, applesauce, apple pecan topping for waffles, apple pie filling, etc.  We have many #2 'Enterprise' apples for sale now until whenever we sell out, and they're excellent for making apple pie filling, apple butter or other apple products.  We also have a few #2 'GoldRush' apples with rain cracks, and some #2 apples of some selections from my apple breeding program, excellent for blending in applesauce or apple butter.

I just sorted and packed this 20.0-lb. box of #1 'GoldRush' apples yesterday, as last week people bought them as fast as I sorted them. They'll keep till Sept. in your fridge.

   Small amounts of harvested #1 apples cost $1.30 per pound + tax.  I pack them in 20-lb. boxes, which I then weigh to exactly 20.0 lbs., so you save $1.00 if you buy a 20-lb. box of apples for $25.00 + tax.  You can get a 10-lb. bag each of 2 different apple varieties, and still get the 20-lb. discount.
   Our harvested #2 (2nds) apples sell for just $0.93 per pound + tax, so a 20-lb. box costs $18.60 + tax, which is $7.00 less than a box of #1 apples, including tax.  If you get 40 lbs. or more of #2 'Enterprise' apples, the price goes down to just $0.88 per pound + tax, so each 20-lb. box costs $17.59 + tax, and 40 lb. of #2 'Enterprise' apples costs just $35.18 + tax.
   We'll have harvested, cracked pecans for sale now until we sell out, probably in April or May.  Our high-efficiency pecan cracking machine blows out most shell fragments, so our bags of cracked pecans contain over 75% nutmeats and less than 25% shell fragments, which come off very easily.
   We sell mixed selections from Bill's pecan breeding program in 4-pound bags.  Each bag has the equivalent of 6 pounds of in-shell pecans, and when you pick them out, you get at least 3 pounds of nutmeats.  These are all large pecans with thin shells and great taste.  Each 4-lb. bag costs $16.67 + tax.
   We also sell smaller, 1-pound bags of cracked 'Kanza' pecans.  You get at least 3/4 pound of nutmeats when you pick out these pecans.  Each 1-lb. 'Kanza' bag costs $4.63 + tax.
   We're thankful that the ground finally dried enough late last week for Bill to till the soil and prepare raised beds, so I could plant 36 more peach trees last weekend.  Peach trees start bearing a few fruit 2 years after planting, but don't start producing heavily until they're at least 5 years old, and the average lifespan of a well-cared-for peach tree is 15 years.  Over half of the first 90 peach trees I planted in 2001 are still producing crops at age 19, as are the additional 130 or so peach trees I've planted since then, but we'll need these new peach trees in a few years as more of the original trees die.
   We're also thankful that the weather was warm enough for the last 2 weekends for our workers to get back to pruning blackberries.  This is a huge job each winter and spring, so there's lots more to do, plus pruning of all the fruit trees.

Our workers Zach Campbell (left), Masin Jackson (right) and Samuel Campbell (not in photo) pruned 'Ouachita' thornless blackberries last weekend. They cut out last year's fruiting canes, which died after harvest, and cut back side branches of canes that will fruit this year. They place prunings in wheelbarrows and haul them to our burn pile, which reduces cane diseases.

   We're very busy working all over the farm at this time of year, and some days we may be gone, getting supplies or delivering apples to schools, so you do need to phone 620-597-2450 a day ahead and leave a message on our answering machine, saying when you'll come to buy apples and/or pecans.  Until May 31, we’re open by appointment, so leave a message with your name, day and time you’ll come, and what you want to buy.  State your phone number (with area code) in your message, and we'll return your call after dark to confirm your appointment.