Episode Details

Ever wonder how a New York apple picked in October can still taste crisp the following summer?

We’re heading to Peru, New York, in the Champlain Valley to meet Jenna Mulbury, third-generation co-owner of Northern Orchard and our latest guest in the Women in Agriculture series with Cornell Cooperative Extension of Clinton County. Northern Orchard has been growing apples since 1906, and today its fruit travels from the Adirondack Coast to grocery stores across the country.

Jenna takes us beyond the farm stand and into the surprisingly scientific world of commercial apple growing. We learn how enormous low-oxygen storage rooms essentially put apples “to sleep,” why warm days and cool Adirondack nights help create that perfect red blush, and just how much work goes into growing the flawless fruit shoppers expect.

There’s plenty here for anyone planning a fall trip to the Adirondacks, too. Jenna shares what’s growing at the Northern Orchard Farm Stand, why you should venture beyond your usual Honeycrisp, and a few apple varieties worth hunting down this season.

What you’ll hear in this episode

• How Northern Orchard has grown apples since 1906
• How apples stay fresh nearly year-round
• Why the Champlain Valley is ideal for apple growing
• Jenna’s experience as a woman in agriculture
• New apple varieties worth trying
• How to choose and store apples at home
• What’s fresh at the Northern Orchard Farm Stand
• Why the Adirondacks extend beyond the Blue Line

Resources:

• Northern Orchard
• Cornell Cooperative Extension of Clinton County
• New York State Horticultural Society
• SUNY Cobleskill
• New York Apple Association

Produced by NOVA