apple

Snowpack and reservoir levels are already creating concerns for irrigators in the Yakima Basin.  But it looks like, according to one expert, that Mother Nature will help in other ways this year.  When it comes to the temperatures growers can expect this season, Drew Lerner, Senior Agricultural Meteorologist at World Weather, Inc., said central Wash...

Some encouraging news for Apple growers after producer prices dropped to a four-year low last April in both nominal and real terms.   "Fresh apple grower prices reported by USDA NASS began to slowly increase in the first six months of the 2024-2025 marketing year,” said USDA economist Catharine Weber.  She added app...

The Washington Apple Commission's Jennie Strong talks about the latest international marketing efforts in today's Focus On Fruit.     If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail glenn.vaagen@to...

In today's Focus On Fruit, we get the latest from the Washington Apple Commission.     If you have a story idea for the PNW Ag Network, call (509) 547-1618, or e-mail glenn.vaagen@townsquaremedia.com 

According to the latest numbers from USApple, the total number of apples in storage on February 1st was 130 million bushels, 5% less than last February 2024’s total of 137 million bushels.  This month’s number is also 11% higher than the five-year average.   Fresh ap...

According to a labor cost study for Washington Apples, labor costs consumed 99% of grower net returns per bin in 2023. That figure is considerably higher than the 37% per bin reported in 2013.  Mark Powers, President of the Northwest Horticultural Council said this data supports what growers have been saying for the past couple of years.  He said if t...

In apple orchards, heat stress can cause severe damage to trees and fruit.  And with climate projections suggesting stronger heat events, and more frequent events in to the future, Washington State University is out with a free guide helping growers look at cooling down their orchard.   ...

USApple has increased its estimate for the 2024-2025 harvest.   “280 is an approximate adjustment of the adjustment, a recalibration of our August," noted Chris Gerlach is vice president of insights and analytics at USApple. .  And so...

Earlier this fall, Michael Schadler was named the new President of the Washington Apple Commission, taking over a roll that’s been filled by Todd Fryhover for the past four decades.  Schadler said while there’s much to learn, one of his priorities is to continue to educate the consumer, in the Northwest and internationally, about the Washington apple industry.   “We've got a...

New research launched this fall at Washington State University looks to help apple growers better understand how their trees respond to increasingly unpredictable cold snaps that freeze buds and destroy harvests.  Funded by an $850,000 grant from the USDA’s Specialty Crop Multi-State Grant Program, the four-state study led by WSU's Stefano Musacchi, will gather new data on dormancy in Gala, Honeyc