Orchard News – Blossom Time

Ambrosia apple blossoms

It’s late-Spring/early-Summer in the Okanagan. The lilacs are in bloom, sending their sweet fragrance into the air, and the Ambrosia orchards are exploding with blossoms!

Back in 2012,‘Bliss Break’ Contest Winner Judy Folk enjoyed a tour through the Dorenberg Orchard in Lake Country, BC. It was a beautiful sunny day and the Ambrosia apple trees were in full bloom. Join the tour and wander through the orchard with guide Madeleine van Roechoudt. You’ll meet the king bloom, find out why apple trees need variety and how Ambrosia apples manage to stay so crisp and juicy. 

Of course, perfect Ambrosia apples don’t just grow on trees – they need the attention of a caring grower to make them big, beautiful and tasty. For now, our farmers are busy fertilizing and cleaning up their orchards. They are removing mouse and gopher damaged trees, trapping rodents, and cleaning up trees that were removed in the fall after harvest. Irrigation lines must be checked and cleared, and any fields that are to be planted next year must be tended to. All in a day’s work for our Ambrosia apple farmers!

Once the blossoms have turned to buds, the ever-important task of thinning begins. Check out this video to see how thinning Ambrosia apples helps to ensure that only the best fruit makes it to market. 

 

 

 

 

Ambrosia Apples